140423 by The Southern Cross

The

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April 23 to April 29, 2014

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Seven Hills of Jesus lead us to heaven

No 4870

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ELECTION 2014: Easter hope for South Africa

OPE Francis is very passionate about combatting human trafficking, according to a South African priest who took part in a Rome international conference on the trade in people, which was addressed by the pope. Fr Peter-John Pearson, director of the Catholic Parliamentary Liaison Office (CPLO), said that “human trafficking is definitely getting worse”. He said the pope called it “a crime against humanity” that requires continued global and local cooperation between the Catholic Church and law enforcement. At one point Pope Francis departed from his prepared speech and exclaimed: “Basta! Basta!”, meaning “Enough is enough”. The pope spoke to 120 participants in the conference, representing national and international police agencies, women and men religious and humanitarian workers aiding victims. It was the second such conference to be organised by the Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales. The twin strategies of police cracking down on the criminals behind trafficking and Church and social workers aiding victims “are quite important”, the pope said, and “can and must go together”. “The emphasis of the gathering was on engagement at a law enforcement and policy making framework,” said Fr Pearson. He said that while South Africa does have legislation on human trafficking, it has not been implemented. Meanwhile, many more countries have no laws at all to address human trafficking. “This makes it difficult to catch criminals, to punish them, and to compensate victims— not that one could ever compensate for the psychological trauma the victims go through,” Fr Pearson said. South Africa is known to be both an importer and exporter of slave labour, as well as a point of transit in trafficking. Trafficking also takes place internally, usually from rural to urban areas. Fr Pearson said the engagement in Rome was helpful for the CPLO which works in advocacy; those present were able to share insights. Three of the four victims attending the conference also spoke to the assembly about

Professor on Pope Francis’ leadership style

Page 7

Modern slavery: ‘Enough!’, says the Church By CAROl GlATz & ClAIRe MAThIeSON

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how they fell into in the snares of criminal gangs and escaped from their ruthless traffickers. A woman from Hungary told attendees how her own sister had sold her into slavery. She was separated from her 2-year-old daughter and was even “traded for a car” by her traffickers. She was abused, beaten and bullied by the family housing her, including the family’s 3year-old boy, she said. For three years she was forced to prostitute herself 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

he conference focused on showcasing a joint initiative between police and the Church that began in London three years ago; it’s a model the British bishops hope will be copied and adopted around the world. Detective Inspector Kevin Hyland of Scotland Yard’s trafficking and organised crime unit explained in his talk how, when the police conduct raids on suspected brothels and potential crime scenes, they have groups of nuns speak with the women found inside because the women often don’t want to talk to the police, but they do open up to the sisters. The sisters pass on to police additional testimony they receive from the women while they are living under the sisters’ care. Disclosures of rape and other crimes “led to immediate arrests” and the identification of perpetrators, as well as brought down a major trafficking ring, he said. Sacred Heart Sister Florence Nwaonuma of Nigeria told the conference that because the world’s religious sisters are on the ground with the people, “we know exactly what is happening” when it comes to victims, clients and traffickers. “But we need the empowerment to challenge these unjust structures that are pushing our women out of Nigeria,” and they need more vocations to religious life “so we can continue our work”. Another Sacred Heart sister from Nigeria, identified as Sr Antonia, asked participants to think of ways the Church can help the men seeking prostitutes. “Most clients are Catholics and family men, even teenagers,” she said. She called for approaches that would help men see “that they are using these girls and that they are not objects”. She and other religious said as long as

The

Pope John Paul II embraces Argentine Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio after presenting the new cardinal with a red biretta at the Vatican on February 21, 2001. It was the Polish pontiff’s choice of cardinals that would help set the stage for last year’s election of Cardinal Bergoglio as Pope Francis, who will now canonise his predecessor. (Photo: Reuters/CNS)

nothing is done to amend the poverty and injustice that is rendering people more vulnerable to traffickers, the supply of people for sale will never end. Ronald Noble, secretary-general of Interpol, said modern-day slavery is a huge business. The United Nations estimates 2,4 million people are trafficked at any given time and generate $32 billion (R360 billion) in annual profits for criminals. But he said, it’s the real human being, “a name, a face, a voice crying for help,” that should move people into action, not the statistics. Cardinal Vincent Nichols of Westminster said: “Only 1% of people in slavery are identi-

fied and rescued.” Even while one life is saved, there are still millions of women, men and children in the grips of traffickers. “We need legislation, concrete action and robust funding” to do more, he added. Human trafficking has long been a concern to Pope Francis. As Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio of Buenos Aires, he held annual open-air Masses for and with victims of human trafficking. In his homilies, he denounced their oppressors, as he did in 2010 when he condemned the “great mafia of very elegant people”—the traffickers and those who profit from the illegal trade—whose “money is stained with blood”.

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The Southern Cross, April 23 to April 29, 2014

LOCAL

Seven hills guide us to heaven STAFF RePORTeR

HE path to the Kingdom promised by Jesus can be summed up by seven famous hills in the Holy Land, a leading guide from the Holy Land told audiences at packed lectures in Johannesburg, Pretoria and Cape Town. Rimon Makhlouf, a Latin-rite Catholic Palestinian from Jerusalem, outlined the story of salvation by drawing from Scripture, from Genesis to the Acts of the Apostles. In Jesus’ time, the world’s superpower was Rome, a city built on seven hills, Mr Makhlouf explained. Jesus promised a new Kingdom which we may reach by observing seven pillars of faith. These pillars can be located on seven hills in Jesus’ earthly ministry in the Holy Land Mr Makhlouf identified the seven hills as the Mount of Temptations, a site of cleansing from sin; the Mount of Beatitudes, where Jesus gave us a new law to obey; Mount Hermon, where Jesus gave us the

Church by declaring Peter its leader; Mount Tabor, site of the transfiguration which fulfilled the prophecy of Psalm 2:7 that the Messiah would be named as the Son of God. On Mount Zion, Jesus replaced the corrupt temple by instituting the Eucharist; on Mount of Golgotha Jesus unlocked heaven by his death and resurrection; and on the Mount of Olives Jesus ascended to heaven to bring us home. Apart from his lectures, Mr Makhlouf also appeared on three separate programmes on Radio Veritas. He was interviewed on Chris Busschau’s Changing Gear show, Kani Butelezi’s YouthWise and Fr Emil Blaser’s morning show. On Fr Blaser’s show, Mr Makhlouf pointed out that Arabic is not a Muslim language, but is also spoken by Christians throughout the region. A Maronite Catholic caller to the programme then spoke Arabic with Mr Makhlouf—a first for the station. Last year Mr Makhlouf guided pilgrimages with Archbishop

Little Eden trip to Italy STAFF RePORTeR

WO South African bishops will travel to Bergamo, Italy, the place of birth of the late Little Eden founder, Domitilla Rota Hyams, to pay their respects for the work done in South Africa for the intellectually disabled, and to help strengthen the working relationship between the two countries. Cardinal Wilfrid Napier of Durban and Bishop Graham Rose of Dundee were invited by the Associazione Domitilla Rota Hyams Onlus. They will concelebrate Mass at Santuario della Madonna della Cornabusa on May 4 in remembrance of the late Danny and Domitilla Hyams. The last cardinal to celebrate Mass at Cornabusa was Cardinal Angelo Roncalli, later Pope John XXIII—a sanctuary which he often visited as a child, as did Domitilla; they grew up in the same district. The Onlus is a legal entity formed in Italy with its prime function to support and help sustain the Little Eden Society and to foster relations with the European community through partnerships with higher learning institutions that will incorporate programmes to benefit the community of people with profound intellectual disability. During their time in Italy, the cardinal will speak at the University of Bergamo where he will address

William Slattery of Pretoria, Fr Tom Tshabalala OFM and Fr Blaser, and he will guide The Southern Cross pilgrimage with Archbishop Stephen Brislin in May. He is also scheduled to guide 2015’s Southern Cross pilgrimage with Archbishop Slattery, among other South African groups. Mr Makhlouf was brought to South Africa by Fowler Tours, a local pilgrimage agency, who offered the lectures free of charge. A guide of 34 years experience, Mr Makhlouf said he loves South African groups, noting that “they come to the Holy Land as pilgrims, not as tourists”. He said he enjoyed seeing South Africa and meeting the locals. Among the highlights of his visit was attending Sunday Mass at Regina Mundi church in Moroka, Soweto, being guided through Pretoria by Archbishop Slattery, seeing the vast emptiness on a drive from Pretoria to Polokwane, and “all of Cape Town”.

Jhb Catholics to take to Mass for late deacon the streets for Fatima A STAFF RePORTeR

Cardinal Wilfrid Napier (left) and Bishop Graham Rose will be travelling to Bergamo in Italy. members of religious orders, the academics of the university, politicians, council members and citizens of Bergamo on South Africa celebrating 20 years of democracy. He will speak about his recollections of the events leading up to the first democratic elections in South Africa. The solidarity visit follows the trainee project of a research team from the university to the two homes of Little Eden in Johannesburg. The team spent one month visiting both sites, aimed at “spreading the horizons of the message of love of Domitilla and Danny as well as to give substance to the reality of our association’s assistance and training,” said Lucy Hyams Slaviero, CEO of the Little Eden Society. Ms Hyams Slaviero said the visit was an opportunity to fulfil a longtime wish of the late Mr Hyams.

N Saturday, May 10, hundreds of Catholics will be taking to the Johannesburg streets for the 15th time, eight years in succession, to celebrate the apparitions of Our Lady to three shepherd children in the hamlet of Fatima in Portugal, srarrting onm on May 13, 1917. “Since these apparitions, millions of people have changed their lives positively and come to practise the messages of Fatima,” Manny de Freitas, co-convenor of the pilgrimage, explained. He said that because these apparitions took place in Portugal, the Portuguese community has a special devotion to Our Lady of Fatima. To mark these Marian apparitions, Blessed Sacrament parish in Malvern East will be undertaking a pilgrimage on foot, led by parish priest Fr Tony Daniels OMI. This pilgrimage will commence from the Blessed Sacrament church, corner Geldenhuis and Mullins roads, Malvern East on Saturday, May 10 at 18:30 and end with Holy Mass at the Schoenstatt shrine at the corner of Van Buuren and Florence roads, Bedfordview.

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Rimon Makhlouf, a Catholic holy land guide from Jerusalem, delivers a lecture on “The Fifth Gospel” at St Michael’s in Rondebosch, Cape Town. Mr Makhlouf also spoke in Johannesburg and Pretoria, and appeared on Radio Veritas. he was brought to South Africa by Fowler Tours.

Mr de Freitas said that as an extension and success of the pilgrimages, the Fatima five Saturdays will be instituted. The Fatima five Saturdays originated when one of the visionaries, Sr Lucia dos Santos, then a postulant, received a visionary visit by the Child Jesus and the Virgin Mary in her convent cell. Showing the young nun a heart surrounded by thorns, Our Lady called on the sister to confess, receive Holy Communion, recite the rosary and meditate on the 15 mysteries of the rosary on the first Saturday of every month for five months. As requested by Sr Lucia, the five Saturdays will start on the first Saturday of each month from June until October, which is also a month devoted to Mary. All are invited to recite the rosary at 16:30 on the Saturdays of June 7, July 5, August 2, September 6 and October 4 at the Schoenstatt shrine in Bedfordview. “Just like the pilgrimage, we will start small but hope to grow each month as more and more people discover for themselves the power of the rosary,” said Mr de Freitas.

MEMORIAL Mass will be held at St Joseph’s church in Kommetjie, Cape Town, on May 11 at 8:00 to commemorate the first anniversary of the death of Deacon Raymond Dunlee. Deacon Ray, as he was fondly called, died on May 9, 2013 at 75, leaving his wife Hilda, their three children and five grandchildren. While living in Randburg, Johannesburg, e became one of the first people in the Church to become a Proclaimer of the Word at St Charles parish in Victory Park when this ministry was newly introduced in the Church. He served two terms as Grand Knight of the Knights of da Gama. In 1972 he was chosen to stand for the United Party for the Randburg Town Council. He served a term as deputy mayor in 1973/74. In 1974 he was elected to the Transvaal Provincial Council and was one of the “Ten Young Turks” who broke away from the United Party, which led to the formation of the Progressive Federal Party (now Democratic Alliance). In 1982 he moved to Cape Town. On retiring from business in 2004 he devoted himself fully to St Joseph’s parish in Kommetjie and became their first deacon in 2008. He was deeply involved in Charismatic Renewal and served terms as Cape Town leader as well as national leader.

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The Southern Cross, April 23 to April 29, 2014

LOCAL

Religious leaders refreshed STAFF RePORTeR

Progress of Ingwavuma’s new retreat centre is on schedule and the St lucia Retreat and Training Centre is set to open on November 1. The special opening will include the dedication of the church and the altar. Bishop José Ponce de león of Manzini, apostolic administrator of the vicariate in Kwazulu-Natal, said the buy-a-brick project had been going well, with Mtubatuba parish donating R40 000 towards the new centre. Further donations can be made through the centre’s website at www.stluciaretreat.org.za

Call to be more family-focused STAFF RePORTeR

HE year 2014 is dedicated to the family at both Church and secular levels and the Family Life Desk at the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference has called on Catholics to get involved in their own families and at parish level. The bishops of the region at the 2014 plenary meeting chose family life as a priority area for the next three years. Resolutions requested a family prayer, a resource package for celebrating family days, and a family leadership conference for ongoing formation. The first two resolutions have been addressed and the Family Life Desk, as the major resource for family life, continues with its objectives of assisting dioceses and providing training and resources for family education and enrichment, said desk head Toni Rowland. Furthermore, 2014 is the 20th anniversary of the United Nations International Year of the Family, which offers an opportunity to refocus on the role of families in development; take stock of recent trends in family policy development; share good practices in family policymaking; review challenges faced by families worldwide and recommend solutions. Worldwide, rapid socio-economic and demographic transformations have challenged families, who are finding it more and more difficult to fulfil their numerous responsibilities “Clearly these issues are as relevant in our Southern African region as anywhere else in the developing and the developed world,” said Mrs Rowland. Civil society institutions, NGOs and the Church have followed themes adopted by the UN in order to promote and assist families. “The themes are not narrowly related to marriage or parenting which are often the Church’s focus when

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dealing with family life, but the themes do include these issues and also deal with the family on a much broader level.” Mrs Rowland said the Church has called on all Church structures to help strengthen the family focus in their work, using the resources made available through the Family Life Desk and Marfam. “The family is recognised as the basic building block of society and of the Church. Whatever is done to build up society should take families into consideration,” she said. Mrs Rowland pointed out that a family can take any form—from child-headed to single parentheaded. “As a response to the themes justice and peace or development, groups can consider family poverty or gender issues in a family context and not limit this to women and children, including, as has become quite common recently, men. Workfamily balance is an issue for men, women and even for youth,” said Mrs Rowland. The SACBC Family Life Desk is the major resource for the region and all bodies with regard to family life, including family education and enrichment. The 2014 overall theme is “Families together, that’s us!” and more information can be found at www.marfam.org.za Mrs Rowland said Pope Francis and all recent Church documents recognise families as the first educators and the place to experience God. The bishops’ synod on the family in October will also be an important step towards promoting family life. Mrs Rowland has encouraged each diocese and parish to plan their own events accessible to their region’s families. A family conference is planned for Johannesburg in September, the 20th anniversary of the first family conference held there at Bosco Youth Centre in 1994.

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ORE than 70 leaders of the country’s religious congregations met in Benoni, Gauteng, for the annual meeting of the Leadership Conference for Consecrated Life (LCCL) where the religious experienced mutual enrichment and challenge. “We examined critically the prevalent values operating in Church and society in order to sharpen our focus for mission. It was an inspiring and enlightening gathering,” said the conference’s secretary general Sr Ann Wigley OP. Sr Gemma Simmonds CJ from Heythrop University in London gave inspiring inputs, inviting the religious to be signs of the incarnation in the world and calling each religious to live their vows radically. If religious do this, they will be able to fulfil their task which is to transform any oppressive structures in the Church and in society, Sr Simmonds said. “She reminded us that Jesus calls us, within our own reality

Augustinian Sister Dolores Nzimande reads at the annual meeting of religious in Benoni. and the reality of society around us, to share in creating the kingdom of God which is not a commodity economy, but a solidarity economy. This is a daunting task, but we were reminded of a truth that we know, but often do not pay attention to, that we are always being given more grace than we can work with,” Sr Wigley said. The meeting was also joined by Rob Riedlinger and Sheree Conway from Mariannhill Media to

discuss the conference’s new website (www.lccl.org.za) which is hoped will be a valuable source of information and communication in the future. The two facilitators, Sr Mary Tuck OP and Br Michael Burke, helped the group to choose meaningful actions to ensure that the seeds planted at the AGM can bear fruit in the coming year. The conference has decided to focus on the Year of the Family, to celebrate 2015 as the year of consecrated life and to focus on ecological issues, in addition to “continuing with our ministries in a collaborative and participative way which we believe makes a meaningful contribution to a just and free society,” Sr Wigley told The Southern Cross. Sr Simmonds ended her presentations with a moving meditation using the art of Sieger Koder, reminding each participant once more of “God’s great love for all of us and that our call is to love God and the world,” Sr Simmonds said.

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The Southern Cross, April 23 to April 29, 2014

INTERNATIONAL

Catholic Israelis: We are Palestinian Arabs By JUDITh SUDIlOVSKy

ESPONDING to a law which would distinguish between Christian and Muslim Palestinians in Israel, the Catholic bishops of the Holy Land have said that it is not the place of civil authorities “to tell us who we are”. The Assembly of Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land and the Justice and Peace Commission of the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem reaffirmed their identity as Palestinian Arabs. The bishops called Israeli Christians who are trying to distance themselves from their Arab identity a “small marginal minority”. The Catholic leaders’ statement comes in response to a campaign by the Galilee-based Israeli Christian Recruitment Forum whose members define themselves as Christian rather than Arab, and an effort by a member of the Israeli Knesset to introduce legislation that would distinguish between Christians and Muslims serving on an equal opportunity committee that addresses workplace discrimination. Forum members are working on a variety of fronts, including the recruitment of Christians, to serve in the Israeli Defence Forces—despite being exempt by the government— and the formation of a Christian political party. “We, the heads of the Catholic Church in Israel, would like to clar-

Pilgrims from Nazareth, Israel, hold a poster advertising Pope Francis' May 24-26 trip to the holy land during the pontiff’s general audience in the Vatican on April 9. The bishops of the holy land have condemned a proposed law which would give Israeli Palestinian Christians more rights than their Muslim neighbours. (Photo: Paul haring/CNS) ify that it is not the right or the duty of the Israeli civil authorities to tell us who we are,” the leaders said in the statement posted on the official website for Pope Francis’ May visit to the Holy Land. “In fact, most of our faithful in Israel are Palestinian Arabs. They are obviously Christians too. They

are also citizens of the state of Israel. We do not see any contradiction in this definition of identity,” the statement said. “We address our words to all Christian Palestinians, whether in Israel or in Palestine and wherever they are in the world. They are, all, wherever they are, Palestinians and Christians and citizens,” it said. The few who support the campaign, “whether they do so out of self-interest, fear, dreams of having full equality”, cannot pretend to speak for Christian Palestinians in Israel, the leaders said. “This campaign clearly has as its aim to divide Christians from their Muslim compatriots. However, it is equally dangerous because it will divide Christians among themselves even further,” they added. “If the Knesset [Israel’s parliament] indeed seeks the good of the citizens of Israel, it should invest every effort to legislate laws that remove discrimination, whether it be against Jews or Arabs, Christians, Muslims or Druze,” the bishops said. “In creating a society that unites all citizens in equality and strives for justice and peace, there will remain no reason to fear for anybody and Israelis and Palestinians, Christians, Muslims and Druze, can live together in mutual respect and dignity, working together to build a better future.”—CNS

Sisters’ mission of mercy in South Sudan camp By PAUl JeFFRey

HEN South Sudan’s fledgling democracy suddenly unraveled in December, what started as political infighting within the country’s ruling party quickly ripped along ethnic fault lines. Within a few days, thousands of people were dead, and tens of thousands more were seeking shelter from the violence. In Juba, the dishevelled capital city, many of those from the Nuer tribe, feeling at a disadvantage to the dominant Dinka, sought safety on two sprawling bases of the United Nations peacekeeping mission. Almost four months later they remain. From the first moments of the violence, camp residents have been accompanied by a group of ten Daughters of Mary Immaculate sisters from India. “We’ve been working in the bush with war-affected people, but when we heard the cry of the people here, we came on the first day to provide trauma counselling and to work with the women and children,” said project coordinator Sr Amala Francies. The sisters return daily, bringing food, counselling women and organising activities for children. There are no formal schools in the camp.

Sr Suja Francis greets children inside a United Nations camp for internally displaced families in Juba, South Sudan. (Photo: Paul Jeffrey/CNS) “We want to give the children an opportunity to leave their trauma behind for a few minutes, to give them some freedom. We teach them English and some of their letters,” Sr Amala said. The nuns also work for reconciliation. “The people focus on their tribe, not on the development of the whole country,” Sr Amala explained. “So we work with the children to quit thinking about just me, but rather about us, about the larger community, which is the only way you can develop this country. As we make headway with the children, they go home and teach their parents.”—CNS

Pope apologises for sex abuse scandals By CINDy WOODeN

‘I

FEEL called to take responsibility for all the evil some priests—large in number, but not in proportion to the total—have committed and to ask forgiveness for the damage they’ve done with the sexual abuse of children,” Pope Francis has said. “The Church is aware of this damage” and is committed to strengthening child protection programmes and punishing offenders, he told members of the International Catholic Child Bureau during a meeting at the Vatican. The remarks appeared to be the pope’s first apology for the sex abuse scandal, following earlier statements affirming the Vatican’s work investigating and punishing perpetrators, and encouraging bishops to support abuse victims. The pope has also said the Church deserves to be forced to make monetary settlements to victims. In December, Pope Francis estab-

lished a Vatican commission to promote improved child protection policies throughout the Church. Meeting with leaders of the International Catholic Child Bureau, an organisation based in France and dedicated to defending children’s rights, Pope Francis said it was hard to believe “men of the Church” would commit such horrors. Pope Francis also spoke about the importance of defending children’s right “to grow in a family with a mother and father able to create a healthy environment for their growth and affective maturity”, which includes “maturing in relationship to the masculinity and femininity of a father and a mother”. Parents have a right to determine the appropriate “moral and religious education” of their children, he said, and should not be subject to school curriculums that are thinly veiled courses of indoctrination into whatever ideology is strongest at the moment.—CNS

Iraqi cardinal mourned By CINDy WOODeN

OPE Francis praised the dedication of the retired patriarch of the Chaldean Catholic Church, Cardinal Emmanuel-Karim Delly, 86, who died on April 8. In a telegram of condolence to Patriarch Louis Sako of Baghdad, Pope Francis recalled “with deep gratitude the late patriarch’s dedication to his people and to the promotion of respectful, just and peaceful relations with followers of other religious traditions”. He was elected patriarch just eight months after the US-led invasion of Iraq. He became one of the most notable voices of suffering Iraqi Christians and repeatedly pleaded with countries to take pity on Iraqi refugees and not send them back home. Patriarch Sako, who succeeded Cardinal Delly, told the Vatican’s Fides news agency, “Cardinal Delly served the Chaldean church with dedication for more than 60 years, first as a priest, then as a bishop and

as patriarch. He went through very difficult periods, including after the revolution in 1958, the wars of recent decades and the persecution of Christians that followed the US invasion.” “Throughout that whole time, he remained faithful to his country and his people, and not abandoning his flock, he remained with his faithful praying, helping and encouraging,” Patriarch Sako said. Born in Telkaif, near Mosul, in 1927, Cardinal Delly was ordained to the priesthood in Rome in 1952. Ordained a bishop in 1963, he attended the second, third and fourth sessions of the Second Vatican Council. He was named an archbishop in 1967 and Pope Benedict XVI made him a cardinal in 2007.—CNS

ANALYSIS

The Southern Cross, April 23 to April 29, 2014

Lessons from Pope Francis’ leadership As we celebrate the canonisation of two recent popes, AL GINI, professor of ethics at Loyola University Chicago, reflects on the lessons in leadership that we can learn from Pope Francis.

HEN I first started teaching at Loyola, the Jesuit university in Chicago, two recently deceased leaders dominated our models of leadership: Pope John XXIII and President John F Kennedy. While the leadership of that 1960s president rightly has been reviewed and re-analysed, I am pleased to see the leadership of that 1960s pope being celebrated this weekend in his canonisation, alongside Bl John Paul II. Scroll forward 50 years and again a pope and a president are regularly cited by people like me who write about leadership. President Barack Obama, whom I have met personally, I will leave for another day. But let me offer instead some thoughts about the leadership lessons we can learn from Pope Francis. There is no denying the fact that Pope Francis has become an international cultural icon and role model. Time magazine dubbed him “Person of the Year” for 2013. He has been featured as the cover story in America’s entertainment magazine, Rolling Stone. The BBC has called him a “superstar”. International media watchers claim that

Professor of ethics Al Gini (left) believes that Pope Francis embodies servant leadership and one of his most important traits is that he offers hope in his demeanour, his message and his smile. he is the most photographed and the most admired celebrity in the world. Why these accolades? Why this attention? Frankly, I think the answer is simple. Pope Francis has an engaging personality, a humble demeanour, and a countercultural leadership style. Francis has eschewed papal symbols, the cult of personality, and political pomposity. From day one of his pontificate, Pope Francis has made it clear that he sees his job as a pastor and servant of others. For Francis “leadership is not about the leader”. Like St Augustine, he believes that the first and final job of leadership is the attempt to serve the needs and well-

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being of the people they lead. “Authentic power”, says Pope Francis, “is service”. Beyond doctrine, beyond canonical rules, beyond sacred teachings, “the Church” says Francis “and its pope must offer service to others”.

irroring the words of Nelson Mandela, Francis believes that “what counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. Rather, it is what differences we have made in the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead.” For Francis, the Church and the pope must not just teach, preach and command. Rather, he says, “today’s world stands in great need of witness, not [just] teachers, but

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rather witnesses. It’s not so much about speaking, but rather speaking with our whole lives.” As Pope Francis has placed himself at the core of the central problems of our time: wealth and poverty, fairness and justice, transparency, globalisation, the role of women, the temptations of power. The true job of the Church, says Francis, is its commitment to something more than itself. It should rather be committed to the wants, needs, and aspirations of those they both lead and serve. Napoleon once said that “leadership must offer hope”. In his demeanour, his smile and his message, Jorge Mario Bergoglio— Pope Francis—offers, all of us, hope!

n This is the first in a series of four articles by Prof Al Gini. He will deliver this year’s Winter Living Theology programme on the theology and philosophy of leadership, in business, in politics and in the Church. The threeday course is designed for priests, religious, business and community leaders and anyone concerned about leadership in South Africa today. Johannesburg: May 20-22, Paulines Centre, Kensington; Durban: May 2628, Glenmore Pastoral Centre; Cape Town: June 3-5 Schoenstatt, Constantia. (All from 9:30 to 15:30). To register or for more info e-mail: WLT@jesuitinstitute.org.za or call 011 482 4237. There will also be evening workshops in parishes and business schools—see local advertising for details.

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The Southern Cross, April 23 to April 29, 2014

LEADER PAGE LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Editor: Günther Simmermacher

Two saintly popes

F the College of Saints could meet in a consistory, as the world’s cardinals periodically do, then surely they would be delighted to welcome among their numbers Popes John XXIII and, perhaps especially, John Paul II, who canonised more than half of them. The canonisation of Blesseds John XXIII and John Paul II on April 27 will be a source of great joy to the Church. Both men are excellent archetypes of personal holiness, an attribute which one does not immediately associate with people who have great power—and, for centuries spanning the medieval and renaissance periods, even with the papacy itself. As Pope John Paul II knew so well, the saints serve to inspire the faithful. The holiness of the two new saints, who led the world’s largest institution, should serve as a model for all who occupy leadership position—in politics, in religion, in society, in business, in management, and so on. Some rules were waived in the cause for Pope John Paul’s canonisation, and those who suggest that an undue haste in which the pontiff was promoted to sainthood deserve a hearing. At the same time, the speed of the process recalls earlier methods by which holy people (and some who were not so virtuous) became saints—by public acclamation. This public acclamation was evident at John Paul’s funeral in April 2005, when crowds spontaneously chanted the slogan “Santo subito”, or “Saint now”. The Southern Cross had anticipated that demand. Our frontpage editorial in the memorial edition for John Paul II, published only two days after the pope’s death, concluded: “It will be fitting when the pope who created more saints than all of his predecessors combined shall one day formally enter the college of saints himself.” That day is arriving on April 27. And joining him on the ticket will be Pope John XXIII. In the case of “Good Pope John”, Pope Francis waived the second miracle, which is usually required for a canonisation, the second time he has done so in a

year (the previous such case was that of St Peter Faber). We may be grateful for this, because there is no doubt that John XXIII is in the presence of God, even in the absence of a miracle. Indeed, we can safely assume that most popes of the modern era, and the many virtuous ones who preceded them, are in the presence of God. And this may raise the question of whether it is necessary to canonise popes. For more than 600 years the Church did not think it was. Between 1313, when Pope Celestine V was beatified, and 1950, when Pope Pius X became a saint, not a single pontiff was canonised. Currently there are causes, in various stages of the process, for Popes Bl Pius IX, Pius XI, Pius XII, Paul VI and John Paul I (though none for Leo XIII nor Benedict XV). Popes attain sainthood only for the qualities of their personal virtue, not on the basis of their performances as popes. Pope John Paul II himself made that clear when he said: “The Church does not celebrate the specific historical decisions [a saint] may have made.” And yet, at the 2000 beatification, the conservative Pius XI was matched with John XXIII, who is beloved especially by progressive Catholics. That decision was widely understood to be a political expedient which ultimately pleased neither camp. That there needed to be such a compromise indicated that in the saint-making of popes, personal holiness is not the only consideration. There always is a risk that the sainthood of popes might be seen as a political act. Certainly the opponents of the cause of Pope Pius XII take little interest in his private pieties, but judge him on his record as pope, probably unfairly so. The dual canonisation on April 27 has none of the character of the 2000 beatification. Pope Francis’ evident interest is to let the ceremony be a unifying and happy event in the Church. And in that spirit, we may direct our call: Saints John XXIII and John Paul II, pray for us.

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Bishops’ visit should focus on Africa

OME readers requesting “Prayer for Africa” leaflets have been reminded of the many years when we all prayed for the conversion of Russia. Shouldn’t we pray like that for Africa today? Popes John XXIII and John Paul II will be canonised on April 27. In February 2005 a report stated that “Africa was among [John Paul’s] preoccupations before his failing health saw him readmitted to hospital”. His message to the synod of African bishops in Rome mentioned Africa’s conflicts. Poverty, illnesses, insecurity and corruption, which “weaken Africa, drain its energies, decimate its generations and mortgage its future”.

Racial notes

HE rating by Antoinette Padua (April 2) of the archdiocese of Cape Town as “poor” because of the racial composition of the congregation at Archbishop Lawrence Henry’s funeral Mass is ill-advised. I knew the late Archbishop Henry for more than 60 years. He spent much of his ministry in parishes such as Nile Street and Matroosfontein, and prior to becoming a priest, he worked as a bookkeeper in Elsies River, where we first met each other. His contact with people in his parish work was mainly with coloureds, like himself, and not by choice. When he became bishop and then archbishop his interaction with other races was occasional and he no longer had a parish, but a diocese. Whites met him briefly at confirmations and various religious affairs, but it was in his work as a parish priest that he forged strong friendships, and this was evident at his funeral. Had he been a parish priest in “white” parishes he would have made more white friends. Please do not dwell on race issues or quotas. Think and promote non-racial. Archbishop Henry knew that and he would have prayed for your understanding. Abe Alexander, Cape Town

Few white faces

CONCUR with Antoinette Padua (April 2) on the issue of a lack of “white faces” at Archbishop Lawrence Henry’s requiem Mass in Cape Town, and admire her courage in formally voicing her concern. I have noticed this too at archdiocesan catechetical events over many years. Patricia Ravells, Cape Town

A January 2014 meeting of the African Union planned to discuss agriculture/food security and other matters, but was “logjammed” by conflicts and humanitarian crises which seem almost without solution. The Southern African Catholic bishops will make their ad limina visit to Pope Francis and various curial departments in Rome from April 24-26, and their Mass on April 30 in the basilica of St Paul Outside the Walls will also be attended by the participants in the Southern Cross/Radio Veritas canonisation pilgrimage. As it happens, April 30 is the day on which Mass is celebrated in Ghana, Kenya, Botswana, South

Africa, Swaziland and Nigeria in honour of Our Lady Mother of Africa, with beautiful liturgy and prayers. Wouldn’t this be a wonderful grace-filled opportunity to discuss with so many others from Africa who will be in Rome at that time the promotion of “Prayer for Africa” throughout our continent. Perhaps it can use the same St Francis Prayer used by the SACBC in 1985, adapted for Africa, as it expresses so well that “in forgetting ourselves we shall find unending peace with others”. Perhaps it would also be a Godgiven opportunity for asking Pope Francis to consider the dedication of Africa to Our Lady Mother of Africa. Let us pray. Athaly Jenkinson, East London

Breastfeeding yes Breastfeeding WRITE as a permanent deacon, Iwho is both a father and a grand- misinterpretation father, in reply to Lucy Rubin’s letter (April 2). While acknowledging the naturalness of and benefits derived from breastfeeding, Ms Rubin attacks those women who for good reason breastfeed their children in public. It seems that she also questions that Pope Francis saw no harm in it happening during a baptism that he was celebrating. It has happened, too, in my ministry, and I see no wrong in it either, because it is perfectly natural to feed a hungry baby. In the baptism ceremony to which I refer I asked the mother to please carry on for the child’s sake. No one was gawking at her breasts. We live in a multi-cultural society and we need to recognise that the standards and expectations of one ethnic group will not necessarily be those of another ethnic group. Perhaps Ms Rubin should consider the nature of the society in which we live and speak out against the educationists’ attitude of sex education in primary schools and to speak out against their attitude of condomising, as well as speaking out against advertising that relies on the exploitation of women’s bodies, and pray for all those people with perverse minds. Deacon Tony Bishop, Johannesburg 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. Letters can be sent to PO Box 2372, Cape Town 8000 or editor@scross.co.za or faxed to 021 465-3850

UCY Rubin (April 2) has misinterpreted my article in the March 19 issue headlined, “Pope’s right: Give the baby the breast”. This “Point of View” article was not about the etiquette of breastfeeding—The Southern Cross is not the platform for this type of debate. Rather, it was lauding Pope Francis for supporting and encouraging a Catholic ethos that’s quickly becoming obsolete—which, incidentally, also includes virginity until marriage and natural family planning. The article I wrote also stressed the physiological, emotional, physical and nutritional benefits of breastfeeding. If today’s young Catholics truly understood the medical benefits of these traditional practices, they would happily put them into practice. Burgie Ireland, Johannesburg

Missal confusion

AM sure I am not the only Catholic concerned about the new wording in the order of Mass. In the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed it states, “he descended into hell” and then “on the third day he rose again from the dead”. Why was the word “dead” changed to “hell”? I know the meaning of the word “hell” in that context is not the same as the hell of our Catholic teachings, but when I recite the Creed, I use the term “descended to the dead”. Another worry is that we interrupt the Lord’s Prayer after the words, “but deliver us from evil” for the priest to say, “deliver us Lord from every evil…”. Is that not adding to the Lord’s Prayer, which we are forbidden to do? I remain very confused and worried. Lou Corbitt, Pietermaritzburg

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The Southern Cross, April 23 to April 29, 2014

PERSPECTIVES

There is Easter hope for SA D

URING Lent I started reading Pope Francis’ apostolic exhortation Evangelii Gaudium. One line caught my attention: “There are Christians whose lives seem like Lent without Easter.” Lent is over! Do we know this? Of course, you might say. We’ve set aside our Lenten sacrifices and have gone back to eating chocolates and chips, drinking wine and coffee, watching our favourite TV series and talking to our friends on Facebook. But does anything in our interior disposition change that says to others that we have entered wholeheartedly into this Easter season of joy and celebration? Lent is about reflecting on our human brokenness. Easter is about celebrating our healing through Christ’s resurrection. Lent is about lamentation. Easter is about praise. Lent focuses on the past. Easter looks forward to the future. So then, do we look at our country through the prism of Lent or in the light of Easter? Too often, we spend many hours complaining about everything that has gone wrong in our country—and there is no denying that many of the things we hoped for in 1994 have not come to fruition. I’m not saying that we should keep quiet about these things. On the contrary, it is our duty as Christians to speak out against injustice and oppression of any kind. But perhaps in our lamentations, we forget the great good we have achieved. Twenty years ago the freedoms we have today were restricted to a small minority. Today there’s no restriction of movement. Who would have imagined in 1990 that people of all races, all cultures, would be flocking to the FNB stadium in Soweto for a football match with the world watching us, uniting us—even if for a brief moment—

under one flag and one identity? These victories take on a far greater meaning in the light of Resurrection. This was possible because South Africans of all religions, all races and all walks of life spent decades on their knees praying to God for the miracle of a new dawn. And it happened.

nd we know that this was a gift from God. My favourite liturgical text says so: “The sanctifying power of this night dispels wickedness, washes faults away, restores innocence to the fallen, and joy to mourners, drives out hatred, fosters concord, and brings down the mighty” (Easter Proclamation sung at the Easter Vigil). As we celebrate our 20th Freedom Day this weekend and look forward to the elec-

“The future of this beloved land does not lie in the hands of a few politicians who can decide our fate on a whim. This future we longed for 20 years ago lies in each of our hands. It lies in our vote.”

character, such as being a bit astute, ability to adapt to circumstances, and being a bit naive, but emphasises: “Yes, but the best summary, the one that comes more from the inside and I feel most true is this: I am a sinner whom the Lord has looked upon.” Later on, referring to his limitations as a Jesuit superior, he says: “My authoritarian and quick manner of making decisions led me to have serious problems and to be accused of being ultra-conservative.” hese statements and others remind me of St Augustine of Hippo and can rightfully be described as “The Confessions of Pope Francis”. They are an example of the humility of this pontiff. They also echo the words of St Paul to Timothy: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense pa-

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tions in less than two weeks, will we hide behind the fruitless criticism and cynicism that express a certain hopelessness for a better future? Or do we shine out as people of the Light, people of the Resurrection, people of Hope? The future of this beloved land does not lie in the hands of a few politicians who can decide our fate on a whim. This future we longed for 20 years ago lies in each of our hands. It lies in our vote. It lies in our responsibility to speak truth to power. It lies in our actions and our words, no matter how insignificant and unnoticed, towards one another, irrespective of what is happening in the political fabric of the country. Above all it lies in our commitment to once again join hands and pray for a better way. At the conclusion of Evangelii Gaudium, Pope Francis reminds us that it is through our joy and the Easter light of Resurrection that we carry within us, that we can truly be missionaries of change in our world today: “Some people do not commit themselves to mission because they think that nothing will change and that it is useless to make the effort[…] If we think that things are not going to change, we need to recall that Jesus Christ has triumphed over sin and death and is now almighty. Jesus Christ truly lives. “We are invited to discover this, to experience it. Christ, risen and glorified, is the wellspring of our hope, and he will not deprive us of the help we need to carry out the mission which he has entrusted to us.”

Christian leadership

Pope Francis has said that he is literally a sinner. In our sinfulness, we need God’s mercy. (Photo: Paul haring/CNS)

The Mustard Seeds

Emmanuel Ngara

The grace of God’s mercy W HEN I wrote the column entitled “How I didn’t become a Jesuit” (February 26), all I wanted to do was to produce an article that would enable me to meet the deadline for my column. I did not realise then that the spiritual journey that I said started at St Michael’s mission in Mhondoro, Zimbabwe, was something I was going to pursue in the immediate future. But there, at Charles De Gaulle Airport in Paris where the article was written, I had in my briefcase a hard copy of A Big Heart Open to God: A Conversation with Pope Francis (HarperOne). A few weeks later, I started on the long road to recovery from a prostate cancer operation in Pretoria. I began to read the book in earnest. I was really touched by what I learned about the pontiff and what the commentators said about the interview that Fr Antonio Spadaro SJ had with Pope Francis. I googled and downloaded a full English translation of the interview. There are many good things I learned from Pope Francis, but I have chosen to write about two aspects of his character which really stood out for me. First, here is a Christian leader, the head of the largest church in the world, who does not hesitate to talk about his weaknesses and failings. We call him “The Holy Father”, but this is how he describes himself. Asked by Fr Spadaro, “Who is Jorge Mario Bergoglio?”, he responds, in part: “I do not know what might be the most fitting description... I am a sinner. This is the most accurate definition. It is not a figure of speech, a literary genre. I am a sinner.” He refers to other dimensions of his

Sarah-Leah Pimentel

tience as an example for those who would believe in him and receive eternal life” (1 Tim 1:15-16). The second aspect of Pope Francis’ character that I have chosen to highlight is one that the commentators on his famous interview do not, in my view, project sufficiently. To me, Pope Francis is a radical reformer who inspires us to see the mission of the Church in a refreshingly new light, and yet there is something unique in this radicalism. Pope Francis is not a firebrand; his radicalism is couched in a manner which is not capable of offending even those of his predecessors who might have given a bad name to the Church. He speaks, not as a critic of what has been done wrong, but as a witness to the true message of Christ. How does he achieve this? He achieves this in part by emphasising that one of the most important qualities of the Church and Christians is to show mercy in all we do and say as Jesus states in Matthew 9:13. As the Catholic writer Kerry Weber puts it: “Francis calls us not only to have mercy or to show mercy, but to embody mercy.” In Can You Drink the Cup?, Fr Henri Nouwen said that “lifting our cup to life” means that we take all we have ever lived and bring it to the present moment “as a gift for others, a gift to celebrate”. Pope Francis and Fr Nouwen have persuaded me to tell the story of my failures as something that might be a humble gift for others. The next series of articles will attempt to tell this story of an anti-hero.

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Pray with the Pope

Let media bring truth General Intention: That the media may be instruments in the service of truth and peace.

O inform, to educate and to entertain are the classic raisons d’être of the media. It is a noble calling, but of course we all know that the media, like all of us, have to make a living. Newspapers especially are struggling financially and so editors are under pressure to keep up sales. What sells newspapers is the low-grade entertainment provided by the tawdry doings of celebrities. Even when these “celeb” stories are more or less true, there are always far more important true stories to tell. This month the Oscar Pistorius trial was the top story on the BBC website. Thus the more important news gets elbowed aside—the war in Syria, the crisis in Sudan, the fact that over 20 000 children die every day of hunger. Sometimes the media’s choice of what to publish actually conceals the truth! A certain spectacular type of bad news also sells. Disasters, horrific murders, lurid court cases and scandals have an abiding fascination for us. Part of this is Schadenfreude, the taking of pleasure in the misfortunes of others. In a dangerous world, the bad things that happen to others give us a sense of relief that they haven’t happened to us. Hence the media cannot get enough of the disappearance of Malaysian Airlines flight MH370. I suppose we could argue that there is in all this an implicit admission of our sharing of the human condition and original sin, and therefore a deep understanding that “there but for the Grace of God go I”. We are interested in the sins and misfortunes of others because we feel sympathy and solidarity with them. Perhaps we do, but given the voyeuristic way in which some of these reports are written, it is at least important for us to be aware of the lower instincts the media are appealing to within us. The media’s responsibility to work for peace in times of international tension cannot be overstated. Aggressive nationalism also sells papers, especially in a nation aggrieved by past humiliations. How to be a true patriot and a true seeker of peace and truth is the big challenge for a journalist when their country is on the march? It would be a brave journalist in Russia at the moment who questioned the partition of Crimea from Ukraine. “The media” is perhaps rather abstract; we should pray for journalists and for ourselves, for it is we who read, watch and listen to what they report.

Evangelise with Mary Missionary Intention: That Mary, Star of Evangelisation, may guide the Church in proclaiming Christ to all nations. E never hear of Mary preaching to the crowds or healing or multiplying loaves, so the idea that Mary was an apostle might be a little surprising. But the one who physically brings forth the incarnate Word is clearly the one who brings the Good News into the world. She is an evangelist because she makes evangelisation itself possible. Without her fiat the Gospel would not have happened, or at least not in the way it did. Mary knew that her son had a special mission and purpose on this earth and she must have known that she had a contribution to this through the way she formed him and brought him up. This knowledge was accompanied with the pain of a heart pierced for she knew that eventually he had to leave home in order to carry out this mission and that his leaving would mark the moment when she could no longer protect him. The finding in the temple is a foretaste of what is to come for her. Even so, Mary is not seen preaching at street corners. On the contrary, she “kept all these things in her heart”. There’s an important paradox here: the one who truly cherishes the inner experience of God is also the one who does not keep it to herself, but puts it out there for the sake of others. The experience cannot be kept secret, cannot be contained and at some point it must flow out to others. Mary’s “Magnificat”, in which she sings of the greatness of God’s power and God’s wondrous works, is her Gospel.

The Southern Cross, April 23 to April 29, 2014

Pope John Paul II

PAPAL CANONISATION

a chronological record of the life and accomplishments of Karol Wojtyla

How John Paul II reshaped the papacy Over 26 years, Bl John Paul II changed the papacy so much that one may describe him as The Pope of Firsts, as CINDy WOODeN explains.

AST month’s first anniversary of Pope Francis’ election highlighted the unique style which he has brought to the papacy. Maybe people have forgotten how much of what passes today for papal “tradition” was actually an innovation of Pope John Paul II. Frequent parish visits? Check. Joking with and leading a big crowd in a chant? Check. Sneaking out of the Vatican? Wait, that was Bl John Paul who’d head out to go skiing or hiking. Pope Francis categorically denied in February that he had ever snuck out of the Vatican. As John Thavis, the former Rome bureau chief of Catholic News Service, once wrote: “If there’s anything Pope John Paul II loved more than following traditions, it was inventing new ones.” The calendar of Pope Francis and of the universal Church is filled with annual appointments established by Pope John Paul, who will become St John Paul on April 27. The day of the canonisation is Divine Mercy Sunday—an observance Pope John Paul decided in 2000 to put on the Church’s universal calendar the Sunday after Easter. The Polish pope was a longtime devotee of the Divine Mercy

Pope John Paul II displays his familiar smile during a 1980 visit to Paris. (Photo: Catholic Press Photo/CNS) devotions of St Faustina Kowalksa, whom he beatified in 1993 and canonised in 2000. Meeting in March with priests from the diocese of Rome, Pope Francis said one of the greatest inspirations of Pope John Paul was his intuition that “this was a time for mercy”. “It is a gift he gave us, but one that came from above,” Pope Francis said. “It is up to us as ministers of the Church to keep this message alive, especially in our preaching and gestures, in signs and pastoral choices—for example, in deciding to give priority to the sacrament of reconciliation and, at the same time, to works of mercy.”

Pope John Paul also instituted the annual February 2 World Day of Consecrated Life, the February 11 World Day of the Sick, and a World Meeting of Families every three years. But welcoming hundreds of thousands of young people to the Vatican for a special Palm Sunday celebration in 1984, Pope John Paul launched what has become the biggest international gathering on the Church’s calendar: World Youth Day.

xplaining to the Roman curia the importance of World Youth Day and youth ministry in general, Pope John Paul said: “All young people must sense that the Church is accompanying them,

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therefore the whole Church in union with the successor of Peter increasingly must be committed, on a worldwide level, to the good of youth, their worries and concerns and their openness and hopes.” At the end of the UN-declared International Year of Youth in 1985, he said young people were hoping for change in society and in the world; the Church, which looks to youths with “hope and love”, must help young people realise that change by communicating the Gospel truths to them, supporting them as they seek God’s plan for their lives and educating them in living their faith. Of course, Pope John Paul left a mark on more than the Church’s calendar. Surprisingly for many people, St Peter’s Square didn’t have a Christmas tree or Nativity scene until 1982. Even after the College of Cardinals asked him to leave Krakow, Poland, and lead the universal Church, he continued to keep Polish Christmas traditions; for years, he would invite fellow Poles to the Vatican on Christmas Eve to break oplatek (a Christmas wafer) with him and to sing Polish carols. He had been pope for four years when he asked the Vatican governor’s office to put some Christmas decorations in the square under his window, thus a new tradition was born. Some of Pope John Paul’s innovations had a lot to do with the fact that he was a very outdoorsy, fit 58-year-old when elected to the See of Peter in 1978. He liked to ski and walk in the mountains and, apparently, didn’t think that

should change. As he grew older and weaker from Parkinson’s, the physical activity diminished, but he and a few aides never stopped slipping out of the Vatican on the occasional Tuesday for a drive to the mountains and a snack lunch al fresco. But he didn’t just head for the hills. Pope John Paul made the nine international trips taken by Pope Paul VI seem like a trifle; Pope John Paul took his message on the road, visiting 129 countries—several repeatedly—on 104 trips and logging more than 1,2 million kilometres in a papacy that lasted more than 26 years.— CNS

Read more about the new pope-saints on our website

• Biographies of Popes John XXIII and John Paul II • Pope John XXIII and Vatican II • how Pope John Paul II helped to bring down communism • how the two popes changed ecumenical dialogue • Popes John XXIII and John Paul II remembered by their private secretaries • Pages from our archives ...and more

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PAPAL CANONISATION

The Southern Cross, April 23 to April 29, 2014

The humour of John XXIII Pope John XXIII made his greatest mark in calling and opening the Second Vatican Council. But he is also remembered fondly for his warmth and wit. EMILY ANTENUCCI & CAROL GLATZ look at the humour of Good Pope John.

LESSED John XXIII, who will be made a saint on April 27, is remembered by many for his warmth, simplicity, social conscience and sense of humour. Pope Francis, who will canonise “the Good Pope”, recalled his predecessor as being holy, patient and a man of courage, especially by calling the Second Vatican Council. “He was a man who let himself be guided by the Lord,” Pope Francis has said. But the Italian Pope John was also guided by his cheerful disposition, his simple, peasant background and tongue-in-cheek, wisecracking Italian culture. Here’s a look at some of this soon-to-be saint’s funny quips:

l Visiting a hospital he asked a boy what he wanted to be when he grew up. The boy said either a policeman or a pope. “I would go in for the police if I were you,” the Holy Father said. “Anyone can become a pope, look at me!” l “It often happens that I wake up at night and begin to think about the serious problems afflicting the world and I tell myself, I must talk to the pope about it. Then the next day when I wake up I remember that I am the pope.” l In reply to a reporter who asked, “How many people work in the Vatican?”, he reportedly said: “About half of them.” l When a cardinal complained that a rise in Vatican salaries meant a particular usher earned as much as the cardinal, the pope remarked: “That usher has ten children; I hope the cardinal doesn’t.” l When he went to visit a friend at the nearby Hospital of the Holy Spirit in the evening, the nun answering the door said: “Holy Father, I’m the mother superior of the Holy Spirit.” He replied: “Lucky you! What a job! I’m just the ‘servant of the servants of God’.” l Not long after he was

elected pope, Bl John was walking in the streets of Rome. A woman passed him and said to her friend, “My God, he’s so fat!” Overhearing what she said, he turned around and replied, “Madame, I trust you understand that the papal conclave is not exactly a beauty contest.” l He once wrote: “There are three ways to face ruin: women, gambling and farming. My father chose the most boring one.” l When he was cardinal and patriarch of Venice, the future pope was talking with a wealthy city resident and told him: “You and I have one thing in common—money. You have a lot and I have nothing at all. The difference is I don’t care about it.” l When a journalist asked the then-patriarch of Venice what he would be if he could live his life all over again, the future pope replied: “Journalist.” Then he said with a smile, “Now let us see if you have the courage to tell me that, if you could do it all over again, you’d be the patriarch!” l A Vatican official told the pope it would be “absolutely impossible” to open the Second Vatican Council by 1963. “Fine, we’ll open it in 1962,” he answered. And he did.—CNS

Ten notable popes who became saints By eMIly ANTeNUCCI

ROM St Peter to Pope Francis, there have been 266 popes; 78 of them are recognised as saints, and that number will jump to 80 on April 27. The earliest popes were martyred for their faith. Once the persecution of the Church ended, the clusters of pope’s names with the title “saint” before them got thinner. Over the past 701 years only four popes—Celestine V, Pius X, John XXIII, John Paul II—will have been declared saints. No pope who reigned between 1294 and 1903 is recognised as a saint. Here’s a quick look at some of the top 10 most interesting of the popes who are saints: 1. St Peter, who was first named Simon, was instructed by Christ to “feed the sheep”. He is considered the first pope. Early tradition says he was crucified at the foot of Vatican Hill in the mid-60s during the reign of Emperor Nero, martyred because of his Christian faith and preaching. His tomb is believed to have been found under St Peter’s basilica. 2. St Soter was Bishop of Rome from around 167AD to his death about seven years later. It’s believed St Soter formally introduced the annual celebration of Easter in Rome. 3. St Fabian (236-250) was famous for the miraculous nature of his election, in which a dove is said to have descended on his head to mark him as the Holy Spirit’s unexpected choice to become the next pope. 4. St Damasus’ papacy (366384) coincided with the establishment of Christianity as the official religion of the Roman Empire in 380, and he was a staunch advocate of the primacy of the bishop of Rome as being the direct successor of Peter. He is said to have

Top from left: Ss Peter, leo the Great, Gregory the Great. Below: Ss Gregory VII, Celestine V, Pius X

established Latin as the standard liturgical language in Rome. 5. St Leo the Great (440-461) was the first pope to be called “the great” and is a doctor of the Church. He confirmed the Church’s position on the incarnation of Christ—that Christ was both divine and human. He is best known for having met Attila the Hun in 452 and persuading him to turn back from his invasion of Italy. 6. St Gregory the Great (590604) was related to two popes, and his mother and two aunts were also canonised, leading him to be considered “a saint among saints”. He had been a monk and did not want to serve as pope upon his election. He put great emphasis on simplicity and charity and donated food to Rome’s poor as well as invited poor people to eat with him each day. 7. St Nicholas the Great (858867) worked to strengthen papal authority and denied anyone had the right to depose a bishop without papal authority. He staunchly upheld marriage laws and urged bishops of their duty to excommunicate a royal Catholic who left her spouse for another. 8. St Gregory VII (1073-1085) enacted many reforms, such as re-

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versing centuries of civil control over Church affairs and giving the pope of Rome full sovereignty over all Church affairs in the West. He promoted a more saintly episcopacy and priesthood and fought against simony, the buying and selling of Church offices. He introduced the legislation that locked in the observance of celibacy, despite frequent debates over the issue. He decreed the Roman rite for all of Europe and established November 1 as All Saints’ Day. He lifted the excommunication of Emperor Henry IV in 1077 after the emperor did public penance of walking barefoot in the snow. 9. St Celestine V, canonised in 1313, was a Benedictine monk and hermit who resigned from the papacy just a few months after his election in 1294 because he wanted to return to his humble monastic life. He issued a papal bull articulating the ability of a pope to resign and establishing rules for an abdication. In 2009 Pope Benedict XVI, the next pope in history who would voluntarily resign, placed the pallium he received when he was elected in 2005 on the saint’s tomb in L’Aquila, Italy, and left it there as a gift. 10. St Pius X (1903-14), the last pope to be canonised (by Pius XII in 1950) promoted greater piety among the faithful, encouraged the frequent reception of the sacraments of penance and the Eucharist. He highlighted the beauty and appropriateness of Gregorian chant, cautioned against using popular musical styles and encouraged efforts to ensure that the faithful could participate actively in the Mass by singing. When given the first papal car in 1909 by the archbishop of New York, the pope never used it, sticking with his horse and carriage.—CNS

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CAPE TOWN: Padre Pio holy hour 15:30 every 3rd Sunday of the month at holy Redeemer parish in Bergvliet. Helpers of God’s Precious Infants meet the last Saturday of the month except in December, starting with Mass at 9:30 am at the Sacred heart church in Somerset Road, Cape Town. Mass is followed by a vigil and procession to Marie Stopes abortion clinic in Bree Street. For information contact Colette Thomas on 083 412 4836 or 021 593 9875 or Br Daniel Manuel on 083 544 3375.

Good Shepherd, Bothasig. Perpetual eucharistic Adoration in the chapel. All

hours. All welcome.

NELSPRUIT: Adoration of the blessed sacrament at St Peter’s parish. every Tuesday from 8am to 4:45pm followed by Rosary, Divine Mercy prayers, then a Mass/Communion service at 5:30pm. PIETERMARITZBURG Couples for Christ “Behold and Ponder” Couples retreat on May 23, 24 and 25 at FeT College, Northdale, cnr Balambra Way and Olympia Way, Pietermaritzburg. Registration fee: R220 per head. Phone 031 302 1217 or email admin@cfcsouthafrica.co.za.

Our bishops’ anniversaries This week we congratulate: April 25: Bishop Valentine Seane of Gabarone on the fifth anniversary of his episcopal ordination. April 27: Bishop Stanley Dziuba of Umzimkulu on his 54th birthday. April 27: Bishop Sithembele Sipuka of Umtata on his 54th birthday.

CLASSIFIEDS Liturgical Calendar Year A Weekdays Cycle Year 2 Sunday, April 27, Divine Mercy Sunday Acts 2:42-47, Psalm 118:2-4, 13-15, 22-24, 1 Peter 1:3-9, John 20:19-31 Monday, April 28, St Louis Grignion de Montfort Acts 4:23-31, Psalm 2:1-9, John 3:1-8 Tuesday, April 29, St Catherine of Siena Acts 4:32-37, Psalm 93:1-2, 5, John 3:7-15 Wednesday, April 30 Acts 5:17-26, Psalm 34:2-9, John 3:16-21

Thursday, May 1, St Joseph the Worker Genesis 1:26-2:3 or Colossians 3:14-15, 17, 23-24, Psalm 90:2-4, 12-14, 16, Matthew 13:54-58 Friday, May 2, St Athanasius Acts 5:34-42, Psalm 27:1, 4, 13-14, John 6:1-15 Saturday, May 3, Saints Philip and James 1 Corinthians 15:1-8, Psalm 19:2-5, John 14:6-14 Sunday, May 4 Acts 2:14, 22-33, Psalm 16:1-2, 5, 7-11, 1 Peter 1:17-21, Luke 24:13-35

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PRAYERS

HOLY St Jude, apostle and martyr, great in virtue and rich in miracles, kinsman of 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

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return I promise to make your name known and publish this prayer. Amen. PN. O ST Gemma Galgani, how compassionate your love for those in distress, how great your zeal to help them. help me, also, in my present necessity and obtain for me the favour I humbly implore if it be profitable for my soul. The numerous miracles and the wonderful favors attributed to your intercession instill in me the confidence that you can help me .Pray to Jesus,your spouse. for me .Show him the stigmata that his love has given you. Remind him of the blood that flowed from these same wounds, the excruciating pain you have suffered, the tears you have shed for the salvation of souls. Place all this as your precious treasure in a chalice of love and Jesus will hear you. Amen. Our Father, hail Mary, Glory be. PN

tion, and sustain in me a willing spirit. Psalm 511 MY most loving Father, you have promised, “I am the God who heals you” (exodus 15:26) I place in your loving care my sick body, worried mind, my emotional wounds and sinful nature. I believe that only you have the power to heal me completely. loving Father, I trust in your love for me, help me to love you more. help me to increase my faith in you. I surrender to you (here mention your illness or emotional hurt) Cleanse me with the precious blood of Jesus, purify me and set me free from anger, resentment, hatred, unresolved hurts and greed. help me to remember that the power of the holy Trinity dwells within me and all power to forgive and overcome sin is in me. Fill me with your holy Spirit and your peace. Amen. Sacred heart of Jesus and Immaculate heart of Mary, please protect us.

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REMEMBERING OUR DEAD

“It is a holy and wholesome thought to pray for the dead, that they may be loosed from their sins” (II Macc XII,46) Holy Mass will be celebrated on the first Sunday of each month in the All Souls’ chapel, Maitland, Cape Town at 2:30pm for all souls in purgatory and for all those buried in the Woltemade cemetery.

For further information, please contact St Jude Society, Box 22230, Fish Hoek, 7975 Telephone (021) 552-3850

HAVE mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against you, you alone, have I sinned, and done what is evil in your sight, so that you are justified in your sentence and blameless when you pass judgment. Indeed, I was born guilty, a sinner when my mother conceived me. you desire truth in the inward being; therefore teach me wisdom in my secret heart. Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones that you have crushed rejoice. hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me. Do not cast me away from your presence, and do not take your holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salva-

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GOD BLESS AFRICA Guard our people, guide our leaders and give us peace. Luke 11:1-13

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Website: www.scross.co.za 3RD SUNDAY OF EASTER: May 4 Readings: Acts 2:14, 22-33, Psalm 16:1-2, 5, 7-11, 1 Peter 1:17-21, Luke 24:13-35

HE heart of the matter, in this Easter season, is the discovery that after all the old story is still true, that God is the God of Israel, and will never abandon his people. The story comes with a new twist: the resurrection means that God’s story is told, finally, in the person of Jesus, who is there, not only for Israel, but for all humanity, and at immense personal cost. The first reading is from Peter’s speech to the astonished Pentecost crowds, and addresses them precisely as people of God: “Men of Judea, and all you who live in Jerusalem”. And what he tells them is that the messiah has come, whom God authenticated by his “portents and signs, which God did through him in the midst of you”. And how did the people of God respond? “He was delivered up through the hands of the lawless, and you crucified him and killed him”. But because this is the story of God, it did not end there: “God raised him up, untying the pains of death.” And to prove that it is still God’s story, Peter quotes the psalmist (“David”) to show that it had to be so, and that David foresaw the whole thing: “This person Jesus God raised up from the dead; and we are all witnesses of this.” Which explains the remarkable phenom-

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N his letter to the Romans, St Paul writes: “The life and death of each of us has its influence on others” (14). This is certainly true for Pope John Paul II. He had a profound influence on our world, perhaps more than any other person in the last half-century. That influence too, as we know, was not merely religious. He helped shape history. But we must celebrate all of this correctly so that, in his death, we, friend or foe, can receive his spirit and blessing in a way that we were unable to do while he was alive. What’s meant by that? Fr Henri Nouwen, in his later writings, began to develop the idea of how each person’s death, like Jesus’ death, is meant to release his or her spirit more fully. Here’s how he puts it: “It was only after Jesus had left his disciples that they were able to grasp what he truly meant to them. But isn’t that true for all who die? “It is only when we have died that our spirits can completely reveal themselves [… ] I know this because I have seen people die in anger and bitterness and with a great unwillingness to accept their mortality. Their

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Recognising the risen Christ Nicholas King SJ

Sunday Reflections

ena that they have just beheld, the Galileans speaking in the public square in Jerusalem, in all the languages of the entire world. The psalm for next Sunday is “a miktam of David”, and we hear the poet telling God’s story: “Keep me safe, O God, for in you I have taken refuge…you are my portion and cup.” The profound faith in Israel’s God (“I have kept the Lord always before me”) is something that never leaves those who sing the psalms, no matter how dreadful things have become: “You will not abandon my soul to Sheol.” That is what happened to Jesus, so he too is part of the story of Israel and the people of God. We get the same message in the second reading, which continues our hearing of the first letter of Peter. Here the author encourages us to “call upon the Father who judges without snobbery, in accordance with what

each one has done”. Now “Father” is the name Jesus gave to Israel’s God, who had led them down the years of the story, and has not ceased to “redeem” them, both from slavery in Egypt, and from the appalling consequences of having killed Jesus, “with the precious blood of a spotless, immaculate Lamb, Christ”; and it was “God who raised him from the dead and gave him glory—so that your faith and hope is in God.” It is the old story, but it has gone deeper. That same story is on offer in the gospel for next Sunday; a dramatisation, in liturgical form, of the fact that God’s story and the story of God’s people, has come to its fulfilment in the death and the resurrection of Jesus. The justly loved tale of the two who are walking to Emmaus on that first Easter Sunday begins with their sadness, like the story of the people of God down the ages. It starts with “behold” or “look!”, which is rather rare in Luke, and is the evangelist’s way of attracting our attention. Sadly it is not always reproduced in translation, so it may not be in your version. The key point to notice is how Jesus intrudes (without any request on their part) into the conversation, which is “about all these things that had happened”. They fail to

Celebrating Pope John Paul II As we prepare for the canonisation of Pope John Paul II, here is what Fr Ron Rolheiser wrote shortly after the pontiff’s death in April 2005.

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Fr Ron Rolheiser OMI

Final Reflection

deaths became sources of frustration and even guilt for those who stayed behind. Their deaths never became a gift. “Yes, there is such a thing as a good death. We ourselves are responsible for the way we die. We have to choose between clinging to life in such a way that death becomes nothing but a failure, or letting go of life in freedom so that we can be given to others as a source of hope.” John Paul II died as he lived, in a faith that flowed out to the world. His death stopped the world for a moment and everyone alike, powerful and poor, Christian and non-Christian, stood muted, silent. This was not the silence that came of frustration, guilt, or unfinished business, but in a hushed reverence one that spoke of a man and a life that blessed, and suggested that it’s wise to stand in silence for awhile and consider what that blessing might be. What might it be? What particular qualities in John Paul II should we let ourselves be blessed by? I

highlight three:  His moral integrity, consistency, and stubbornness: Both friends and foes agree on this, this man had a stubborn moral integrity and a rare moral consistency. He wasn’t a man for moral compromise and he showed a moral consistency that neither his disciples on the right or on the left approximate. He was pro-life beyond the more selective compassion of both conservatives and liberals, not just in his stand against abortion and euthanasia, but also in his views on war and capital punishment and, especially, in his stance against the conditions that make for these in the first place.  His openness to the world, other faiths, and other Christians: He was the most-travelled pope ever and those travels, among other things, tried to open Roman Catholicism to the world, to other religions, and to fellow Christians in a new way. He confronted communism, was sought in counsel by heads of state, embraced heads of other religions, gathered young people into the biggest crowds ever assembled, apologised to Judaism, and gave then British Prime Minister Tony Blair, not yet a Catholic, Communion in his own chapel. He kept opening doors. Neither a new Catholic intolerance nor a false ecumenism done in his name will receive his spirit and blessing.  His raw faith: Nobody, friend or foe, doubted his faith. For John Paul II, faith was neither a superstitious comfort (“an opium for the people”) nor just a set of symbols that inspire us towards what’s highest. For him, there’s a living God who is Lord of this universe, a Jesus who is divine, and a deep, unalterable, moral brand inside both the structure of the universe and the make-up of the human soul. There’s a life after death and there’s a life after birth and the latter is meant to be lived in self-sacrificing service of others. His faith was purer than the narrow (and self-serving) literalism of fundamentalism and deeper than the spiritual and moral vagaries of a liberalism not at its best. What John Paul II left us will not be received through an uncritical admiration that too quickly strips him of his sometimes obvious humanity. We knew too his faults. But, like Jesus, he has gone away and we are left with his spirit. That spirit, now given more purely than ever before, contains powerful nutrients that can both nourish and stretch our souls.

recognise him, but share their sadness “about Jesus the Nazarene”; and they echo the story of the people of God when they describe him as “a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people”. We know that this is a correct account of him; and we also already know that God has vindicated Jesus; so it is with different ears that we listen to them telling their tale, of how the authorities (“high priests and rulers”) of the people of God had put to death the one whom they had been hoping “was about to redeem Israel”. When they have finished their lamentation, including their disbelief in what the women have alleged, about an empty tomb, and angels. Then Jesus (still unrecognised) takes them through the story of the people of God (“beginning from Moses and the prophets”), to demonstrate that it was “inevitable” that the messiah should “suffer and enter his glory”. Then, in the ancient gesture, he breaks bread, and they recognise that it is he, and go rushing to Jerusalem to confirm, and to find confirmation, that after all the story of God’s people is still continuing in the person of Jesus. We need to rejoice enormously here.

Southern Crossword #599

ACROSS 1. Do them to get a total (4) 2. Blocks for your cooling drink (3,5) 9. Evangelical outreach for the parish? (7) 10. South African pilgrimage spot (5) 11. Cornucopia (4,2,6) 13. State in which Adam and Eve were created (6) 15. Heavy food from St Doge (6) 17. Deprive of status as a blest dish is (12) 20. He should know his Hebrew (5) 21. He repeals and makes you happy (7) 22. Were doing it together with eucharistic bread (8) 23. Make to go on a mission (4)

DOWN 1. The full orchestra plays it (8) 2. He’s a hoarder (5) 4. It may cover the altar or the throne (6) 5. Kinds of motorcars for pagans? (12) 6. Exalted, or jeers Edward (7) 7. Speed past (4) 8. Matter for the Last Rites (3,2,3,4) 12. Ted there has been roped in (8) 14. Drool when footballer does this (7) 16. Take a pace to take charge (4,2) 18. Topic for debate about publication? (5) 19. Seize the garb (4) Solutions on page 11

CHURCH CHUCKLE

OSES was leading the Hebrews to the Red Sea and the Egyptians were close behind. Moses turned to his PR agent: “Where are all those boats I told you to get?” The PR man said: “Boats? What boats? You never mentioned any boats to me.” “Just great,” said Moses. “And what am I supposed to do now? Lift my staff and part the waters?” The PR man thought for a minute and then answered: “If you can pull that one off, I can get you a whole section in the Bible.”