The
S outhern C ross
April 22 to April 28, 2015
Reg No. 1920/002058/06
No 4921
www.scross.co.za
Survey: What SA Catholics say on Church and family
Special focus on Vocations Sunday
Page 8
Pages 10-12
R7,00 (incl VAT RSA)
Is Christianity a colonial religion?
Page 7
Today’s Eskom crisis has roots in 1987 decision BY STAFF REPORTER
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SKOM’S opening of a marketing division in 1987 to sell off its surplus electricity has proved “highly consequential” to South Africa’s current energy problems, a Catholic Parliamentary Liaison Office research paper has noted. The parastatal’s marketing department was created after it found that it had over-invested in infrastructure during the 1970s ‘80s, and that it had to revise its electricity demand projections. “Although it was engaged in building more power plants, a decision was taken to mothball or shut down older, less efficient power stations,” says the paper by researcher Palesa Ngwenya. “It was during this period that a seemingly inconsequential resolution was made to introduce a marketing division to Eskom. It in fact proved highly consequential to our current energy predicament” Eskom’s marketing team offered municipalities cut-price rates, provided that municipalities shut down their own power stations. Oil refineries were incentivised to use electrical energy, and off-peak tariffs were offered to people who could use power out of normal working hours. Farmers, who had for years used diesel generators, signed up to be connected to the grid. The marketing department made deals with smelters, mines and industrial steam consumers to switch to electricity. All were enticed with “dirt cheap power”. When apartheid ended in 1994 South Africa Eskom was tasked with electrifying the nation, with the aim of helping to rectify centuries of social inequality. By 1998, Eskom had shed capacity by closing older power stations and yet it had committed itself to supply on “a mammoth scale”, Ms Ngwenya said. Despite various projects coming online, such as Majuba in 1996, and some stations being de-mothballed, the country still needed new power stations to meet the power demands of post-apartheid South Africa. The government was warned in 1998 that investment was needed in new power stations, but it refused to provide the money,
something which former President Thabo Mbeki later apologised for. At the time that Eskom made the application for funding, the government was set on privatising it and other public utilities and selling them off to the highest bidder. This strategy, however, was never followed through. By the time new generation projects such Medupi and Kusile power stations were approved in 2005, it was already too late for the utility to guarantee sufficient supply to meet the growing anticipated demand. At a CPLO discussion in February on the energy crisis, Sisa Njikelana, chairman of the South African Independent Power Producers Association, said that a “Technical Implementation War-Room on the Electricity Crisis” had been established at Eskom. The government had resolved to implement a five-prong stabilisation plan, with interventions by Eskom to stabilise the system. The focus would be on raising the availability of its coal-fired plant to more than 80%, from its current 72%. Coal and cogeneration IPP procurement programmes would be launched by the end of January. Demand would be managed through “energy efficiency projects” within households, municipalities and commercial buildings. The load-shedding power blackouts, which have cost South Africa’s economy billions of rands, are not entirely Eskom’s fault and can be attributed to a failure to competently plan by parastatal and the government, Ms Ngwenya said in her paper. The fact that industrial players are offered confidential electricity prices which are substantially cheaper than average residential prices, “crystallises” the need for a more equitable, genuinely accountable system, she said. The possibility of allowing private electricity companies to compete with one another to provide cost-friendly and adequate electricity supply must be considered, the paper recommended. It also said that future plans must ensure that the energy sources must be chosen on sound scientific and commercial grounds, combining the best interests of people, the environment and the economy.
Vocations banner in the chancery of Cape Town. This year, April 26 is Vocations Sunday.
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The Southern Cross, April 22 to April 28, 2015
LOCAL
Jesuits launch workshop for parents and teachers BY DYLAN APPOLIS
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HE Jesuit Institute South Africa has launched a new workshop entitled “Living with Integrity in the Digital World”, which is available throughout South Africa. The workshop will be led by Fr Russell Pollitt SJ, director of the Jesuit Institute, and Justine Limpitlaw, adjunct professor of communication at Wits University in Johannesburg. Prof Limpitlaw said the recent luring of a 15-year-old South African girl by the Islamic State through social media has highlighted the need to reflect more deeply on the effects that technology has on young people. Fr Pollitt told The Southern Cross that many parents might be unaware of just how dangerous social media can be. While social media are a beneficial means of keeping in
touch with people and act as a source information, “the dark side of online access needs to be explored”, he said. “Many parents give their children smartphones and may not be aware of the just how dangerous this is. Children can access undesirable material, like porn, but they can also be accessed by people whose intentions are less than desirable—as the ISIS case reveals,” he said. “Parents will say that they trust their children online, [but] the problem is that those who have evil intentions are professional enough to lure others, especially young people. They are manipulative and very often one step ahead of those they prey on,” Fr Pollitt said. The workshop will look at the benefits and dangers of online access, the legal implications of online engagement, the effects of
social media on young people, what parents should know, the spiritual effects and also suggest ways parents may best respond to this modern challenge. “Simply banning online engagement is not the answer, and so it is important that we look at appropriate responses to the world of technology,” Fr Pollitt said. “The workshop is aimed at parents and teachers, and soon, the Jesuit Institute hopes to have a workshop that can be presented to children and young people,” he said. The workshop can be conducted anywhere in South Africa. The Institute team will travel to present the workshop in parishes, schools or any other place it is requested. n For more information about the workshop and the cost, please contact the Jesuit Institute 011 482 4237 or email admin@jesuitinstitute.org.za
Radio Veritas consultant for Mrs South Africa BY DYLAN APPOLIS
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HE event and advertising consultant of Radio Veritas, Mahadi Buthelezi, has made it into the Mrs South Africa Pageant Top 100 semi-finalists for 2015. Mrs Buthelezi said that reaching the Top 100 of the pageant was “a milestone for me, as I am passionate about marriage and in promoting good, healthy marriages”. She is also a motivational speaker on interpersonal relationship and lifestyle cleansing, premarriage, marriage and family life coach Speaking for herself and husband Robert, Mrs Buthelezi said: “We love the idea that people are the masters of their own destiny, that everyone has something to teach you, no matter what their consciousness or knowledge.”
Mahadi Buthelezi of Radio Veritas, who made the Mrs South Africa Pageant Top 100. The couple has been coaching for just over three years. “The healings we have done have changed
our family and others’ lives in the most profound and positive ways,” Mrs Buthelezi said. Her family encouraged Mrs Buthelezi to enter the pageant. She was very surprised to learn that she had made the Top 100. “Should I win or not win; I will continue promoting marriages in the country.” The 100 semi-finalists were to go on to compete at the semi-final weekend, with gruelling judging sessions by a panel of judges headed by former Miss South Africa and TV presenter Cindy Nell-Roberts. The 25 finalists will be announced at the annual CANSA Gala Dinner on April 24 at Emperors Palace in Johannesburg. All proceeds of this event will go to the Cancer Association of South Africa.
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The Malawian community at the main entrance of the St Augustine church in Paarl.
Malawian Community celebrates first Mass BY DYLAN APPOLIS
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HE Malawian community of the archdiocese of Cape Town has celebrated its first Mass as a community at St Augustine parish in Paarl. The community’s chaplain, Fr Kizito Gugah, told The Southern Cross: “This was a very special Mass for me being a Malawian and also for the Malawian community in the sense that St Augustine parish priest, Fr Paul Taylor, joined the Mass celebration with us. His contributions to the Mass meant a lot to the Malawian community.” Fr Gugah noted that a number of
Catholic visitors from Belgium were also in attendance. “At the Mass we prayed for the repose of the soul of one of the Malawian bishops, Bishop Joseph Zuza, who tragically passed away in a car accident in January,” Fr Gugah said. The next Malawian community Mass will be take place at St Anthony’s parish in Hout Bay. “It must be said that we have a very strong Malawian Catholic community in the archdiocese of Cape Town and we hope to have more successful Masses in the future,” Fr Gugah said. n Contact Fr Kizito Gugha on kizgu gah@hotmail.com
Workshop to support single child carers BY DYLAN APPOLIS
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PRO-LIFE group will host a workshop in Cape Town to support single mothers or fathers, divorced parents and grandparents caring for children. Women of Light (WOL) will run the workshop at the church of the Resurrection in Table View on May 16. WOL is dedicated to the ministry of women in the Church, said Ellie Lawrence, the group’s organizer. It aims to foster strong relationships between members of the faith community, encourage spiritual growth among parishioners and serve the community, while members discover and exercise their spiritual gifts. Events are held once a quarter and funds raised are donated to organisations “that make a differ-
Franciscan Missionaries of Mary
The Mission of the FMM springs from a life of union with Christ centred on the EUCHARIST
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ence in people’s lives”. The group's outreach has primarily focused on Mater Domini, a home that offers sanctuary to women at risk, especially pregnant women in need of help. Funds have also been donated to the Society of St Vincent de Paul, parishes in Paarl and further afield and several other charities. The four-to-five-hour-long workshop in May is intended to motivate single parents and grandparents and to discuss child-rearing methods to give direction to “what God wants for them and their children”, Ms Lawrence said. “This is the third time we have presented the Single Parenting workshop. It has been very well received where we previously presented it,” she said. n For further information contact 072 261 5777 or ellie-l@mweb.co.za
UMHLANGANO WAMAFRANCISCAN MISSIONARIES OF MARY
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Contacts: Franciscan Missionaries of Mary, Pax Christi, Post Net Suite 36, Private Bag X6603, Newcastle 2940, Kwa-Zulu Natal, Sister Helena Coragem, fmm: 076 762 3125 and 034 312 1957 helenacoragem@gmail.com, Sister Ana Tonela, fmm: 073 542 0910 Sharafmm.tonela@gmail.com
LOCAL
The Southern Cross, April 22 to April 28, 2015
Fresh talent for Radio Veritas Protect kids from predators A BY STAFF REPORTER
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arliament must do “everything possible” to protect minors from older predators, the chief executive of a moral coalition of churches, corporations and individuals has said in a submission. John Smyth, who leads The Justice Alliance of South Africa (JASA), said in a paper given on the Sexual Offences and Related Matters Amendment Bill that many children in the country come from a background where they simply do not realise they have the right to say “no”. “It is vital that Parliament should do everything to ensure the protection of a young child from an older ‘predator’,” he said in the document addressed to the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Justice and Correctional Services. “Very few, if any, children understand the legal doctrine of ‘informed consent’,” Mr Smyth said. In its submission to the committee, JASA attached an affidavit of David de Korte, the principal of Camps Bay High School in Cape Town, that is supported by 50 other school heads in the Western Cape. The importance of this evidence, Mr Smyth said, to is to show that
teachers and parents need “some form of sanction” to control the present pandemic of child penetrative sex “with all its grave risks”. JASA wants the committee to make four changes to the Sexual Offences and Related Matters Amendment Bill. The first is that the lower age of consent for penetrative sexual intercourse should be raised from 12 to 13 years for both boys and girls. Second, kissing should be removed from the definition of sexual violation where both parties are children. There is no doubt that its inclusion undermines respect for the legislation, he said. Third, a parent or guardian who knowingly permits a child under 14 years to engage in penetrative sexual intercourse shall be guilty of an offence. This type of sanction already exists in South African law in respect of parents who fail, without any good reason, to ensure their children attend school. Fourth, Section 54 of the Principal Act shall be amended to allow a person who has knowledge of an offence taking place to report the matter to a child protection agency.
FTER a long search for fresh, young talent to join Radio Veritas’ flagship youth programme, Youthwise, the station has announced Reabetswe Tloubatla, 24, as the new presenter to co-host the show with Akani Malobola every Friday. The search began as Kananelo Buthelezi, who had been the main presenter of the show for the last seven years, was preparing to bow out in February. After a stringent process of elimination—which included a catechism test, on-air audition, a panel interview among other things—the candidates were reduced to a top 3 in March. Ms Tloubatla, who works for the Jesuit Refugee Service, emerged as the appointee, ahead of the similarly talented Akhona Khumalo, an 18-year-old learner at Brescia House School, and Thobile Ndimande, 19, a law student at University of Witwatersrand. Youthwise is a variety youth show that has in the past been presented by a chain of talented pre-
Reabetswe Tloubatla, a new addition to the Radio Veritas team, presents the varity youth show Youthwise senters, some of whom are now with the country’s biggest commer-
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PRETORIA parish will be hosting a panel discussion on depression, anxiety and suicide in May. “Through his pastoral work, Fr Chris Townsend has identified a need to address the topics of suicide and depression,” said Sheila Houghton, chair of the Family Life Ministry at Christ the King parish in Queenswood The panel members for the discussion include Fr Russell Pollitt SJ, the director of the Jesuit Institute who has experienced personal loss of a family member to suicide; Tracey Feinstein from the South African De-
pression & Anxiety Group (SADAG), who will distribute material to cover the topic of depression and anxiety; Johann Mills from the Depression & Anxiety Support Group in Pretoria, which is affiliated to SADAG; and Sandy McDonough, a member of parish’s Family Life Ministry and an experienced relationship therapist. At the panel discussion, there will also be an opportunity for attendees to register for three free Saturday morning workshops on “Self Awareness & Growth”, Ms Houghton said. The event will be on Monday, May 4 at 7pm in the Denis Adami Centre. n For further details, please email familyministry@christking.org.za
cial radio stations. It airs on Fridays for an hour from 19:00. “Young people these days are more confident, more technologically savvy, and more open to conversation”, said Khanya Litabe, production manager at Radio Veritas, which broadcasts in Gauteng on 576AM and on 870 DStv audio. “Through Youthwise we want to help them use these elements— confidence, conversation, technology—to grow and nurture their faith, without building bridges between them and the Church,” Mr Litabe said. Paying tribute to Ms Buthelezi, he said: “Kani’s committed service to the Catholic youth of South Africa goes beyond the microphone. We are grateful to her for her dedication in proclaiming the Good News through stimulating conversations with the youth, the inspirational annual youth camp, and the regular visits to parishes all around the country.” n For more information on Youthwise call Radio Veritas at 011 663 4700.
Archbishop’s book to launch
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Depression, anxiety panel for Pretoria parish STAFF REPORTER
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The 75 members of the Leadership Conference of Consecrated Life in South Africa elected their new executive: (Back from left) Sr Felicity Cunningham OP, Fr Emmanuel Waful AJ, Fr Francois Dufour SDB, Sr Kathy Rule RSM, Fr Pius Afiabor SMA (president). (Front) Sr Biddy Rose Tiernan, apostolic nuncio Archbishop Mario Roberto Cassari, Fr Michael Murphy SSP (behind the archbishop). The theme of the AGM was “Embracing our present Reality”. Br Pinto CFC in his address spoke of the breakdown of many of the structures within society and the Church: “There are three main responses to this collapse. The first is to deny that it is happening. The second is to frantically try to shore up the foundations of the old thing. The third, which I invite us into, is to ask, what is trying to be born that requires a radical reorientation of our vision? What is the new thing that is trying to emerge from deep within us and from deep within the collective soul of Christianity?”
HE memoirs of Archbishop George Daniel, who headed the archdiocese of Pretoria from 1975- 2009, will be launched on April 27 in Pretoria. The memoirs of the archbishop, a convert from Anglicanism, is titled That They May Be One. It is being published by Cluster Publications in Pietermaritzburg. It is the third in the “Christian Lives in Africa” series. The April 27 launch will be at Sacred Heart cathedral in Pretoria, and it will also celebrate the 50th anniversary of Archbishop Daniel’s ordination to the priesthood as well as the 40th anniversary of his episcopal ordination.
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The Southern Cross, April 22 to April 28, 2015
INTERNATIONAL
Pope: Year of Mercy will be time to heal BY CINDY WOODEN
less, clothing the naked, visiting the sick, visiting the imprisoned, giving drink to the thirsty and burying the dead. The spiritual works are: converting sinners, instructing the ignorant, advising the doubtful, comforting the sorrowful, bearing wrongs patiently, forgiving injuries and praying for the living and dead. The date the pope chose to open the year—December 8—is the feast of the Immaculate Conception and the 50th anniversary of the closing of the Second Vatican Council. Both dates, he wrote, are related to the Year of Mercy.
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ERCY is what makes God perfect and all-powerful, Pope Francis said in his document officially proclaiming the 2015/16 extraordinary Holy Year of Mercy. “If God limited himself to only justice, he would cease to be God, and would instead be like human beings who ask merely that the law be respected,” the pope wrote in Misericordiae Vultus, “The Face of Mercy”, which is the “bull of indiction” calling a Holy Year to begin on December 8. Standing in front of the Holy Door of St Peter’s basilica, Pope Francis handed copies of the document to the archpriests of the major basilicas of Rome and to Vatican officials representing Catholics around the world. Portions of the 9 300-word proclamation were read aloud before Pope Francis and his aides processed into St Peter’s basilica. In his homily at vespers, the pope said he proclaimed the Year of Mercy because “it is the favourable time to heal wounds, a time not to be weary of meeting all those who are waiting to see and touch with their hands the signs of the closeness of God, a time to offer everyone the way of forgiveness and reconciliation”. The boundless nature of God’s mercy—his willingness always to forgive anything—has been a constant subject of Pope Francis’ preaching and is explained in detail in the document, which outlines some of the specific projects the pope has in mind for the year. The Old Testament stories of how God repeatedly offered mercy to his unfaithful people and the New Testament stories of Jesus’ compassion, healing and mercy demonstrate, the pope said, that “the mercy of God is not an abstract idea, but a concrete reality through which he reveals his love”, just like mothers and fathers love their children. “How much I desire that the year to come will be steeped in mercy, so that we can go out to every man and woman, bringing the goodness and tenderness of God,” he wrote. “May the balm of mercy reach everyone, both believers and those far away, as a sign that the kingdom of God is already present in our midst.” Nothing in the Church’s
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Pope Francis processes into St Peter’s basilica.The pope released a 9 300-word document officially proclaiming the 2015/16 extraordinary Holy Year of Mercy. (Photo: Stefano Spaziani/ pool/CNS) preaching or witness, he said, can be lacking in mercy.
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ope Francis asked that all dioceses around the world designate a “Door of Mercy” at their cathedral or another special church or shrine, and that every diocese implement the “24 Hours for the Lord” initiative on the Friday and Saturday before the fourth week of Lent. In Rome for the last two years, the pope has opened the celebration with a penance service in St Peter’s basilica and churches around the city were open for the next 24 hours for confessions and eucharistic adoration. The pope said he will designate and send out “Missionaries of Mercy” to preach about mercy; they will be given special authority, he said, “to pardon even those sins reserved to the Holy See”. Under Church law, those sins involve: a man who directly participated in an abortion and later
wants to enter the priesthood; priests who have broken the seal of confession; priests who have offered sacramental absolution to their own sexual partners; desecrating the Eucharist; and making an attempt on the life of the pope. Usually, the Apostolic Penitentiary, a Vatican court, handles those cases. He urged all Catholics to spend more time practicing what traditionally have been called the corporal and spiritual works of mercy. The corporal works are: feeding the hungry, sheltering the home-
ercy, he said, is “the bridge that connects God and man, opening our hearts to a hope of being loved forever despite our sins”. That bridge was made concrete when God chose Mary to be the mother of his son. The Year of Mercy, Pope Francis wrote, is also a way to keep the Second Vatican Council alive. “The walls which too long had made the Church a kind of fortress were torn down and the time had come to proclaim the Gospel in a new way,” he said. The council recognised “a responsibility to be a living sign of the Father’s love in the world”. The life and action of the Church, he said, “is authentic and credible only when she becomes a convincing herald of mercy”, a mercy that “knows no bounds and extends to everyone without exception”. While some people try to argue that mercy, even God’s mercy, is limited by the demands of justice, Pope Francis said mercy and justice are “two dimensions of a single reality that unfolds progressively until it culminates in the fullness of love”. Preaching mercy, he said, is not the same as ignoring sin or withholding correction. Instead, mercy invites repentance and conversion and ensures the sinner that once God forgives a sin, he forgets it.
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he pope addressed direct appeals in the document to members of the mafia and other criminal organisations as well as to officials and others involved in corruption. “For their own good, I beg them to change their lives,” he wrote. “I ask them this in the name of the Son of God who, though rejecting sin, never rejected the sinner,” he added. “Violence inflicted for the sake of amassing riches soaked in blood makes one neither powerful nor immortal,” he continued. “Everyone, sooner or later, will be subject to God’s judgment, from which no one can escape.” At the same time, Pope Francis wrote, many of those who insist first on God’s justice are like the Pharisees who thought they could save themselves by following the letter of the law, but ended up simply placing “burdens on the shoulders of others and undermined the Father’s mercy”. “God’s justice is his mercy,” the pope said. “Mercy is not opposed to justice, but rather expresses God’s way of reaching out to the sinner, offering him a new chance to look at himself, convert and believe.” Recognising that they have been treated with mercy by God, he said, Christians are obliged to treat others with mercy. In fact, the Gospel says that Christians will be judged by the mercy they show others. “At times how hard it seems to forgive,” he said. “And yet pardon is the instrument placed into our fragile hands to attain serenity of heart. To let go of anger, wrath, violence and revenge are necessary conditions to living joyfully.” Pope Francis also noted that God’s mercy is an important theme in Judaism and Islam, and he urged efforts during the Year of Mercy to increase interreligious dialogue and mutual understanding with followers of both faiths.— CNS
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The Southern Cross, April 22 to April 28, 2015
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Religious should turn to the Gospel BY LAuRA IERACI
C Pope Francis greets Catholicos Karekin II of Etchmiadzin, patriarch of the Armenian Apostolic Church, during a Mass in St Peter’s basilica at the Vatican to mark the 100th anniversary of the Armenian genocide. (Photo: Tony Gentile, Reuters/CNS )
Pope’s use of the term ‘genocide’ angers Turkey BY CAROL GLATz
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OMMEMORATING the 100th anniversary of the Armenian genocide, Pope Francis said atrocities from the past have to be recognised—not hidden or denied— for true reconciliation and healing to come to the world. However, Turkey’s top government officials criticised the pope’s use of the term “genocide”—citing a 2001 joint statement by St John Paul II and the head of the Armenian Apostolic Church—in reference to the deaths of an estimated 1,5 million Armenians during their forced evacuation by Ottoman Turks in 1915-18. Turkey rejects the accusation of genocide, and the government called its ambassador to the Holy See back to Turkey “for consultations” the same day Pope Francis made his statement. The government also summoned Archbishop Antonio Lucibello, nuncio to Turkey, to lodge a complaint. Before concelebrating the Mass in St Peter’s basilica, Pope Francis greeted the many Armenian faithful
who were present, including Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan. “It seems that the human family refuses to learn from its mistakes caused by the law of terror, so that there are still today those who try to eliminate their own kind with the help of some and with the complicit silence of others who act as bystanders,” he said. Addressing Armenian Christians, the pope said that recalling “that tragic event, that immense and senseless slaughter, which your forebears cruelly endured”, was necessary and “indeed a duty” to honor their memory “because wherever memory does not exist, it means that evil still keeps the wound open”. Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said the pope used “inappropriate” and “one-sided” language by describing the deaths of Armenians during World War I as genocide. He said: “Only highlighting one side’s suffering during wartime and discriminating the others’ pain is not appropriate for the pope,” adding that it would fuel racism and antiTurkey sentiments in Europe.—CNS
ONSECRATED men and women can face their current challenges by turning to the Gospel, the teaching of the Second Vatican Council and papal teachings for guidance, said Cardinal João Braz de Aviz. The prefect of the Congregation for Consecrated Life and Institutes for Apostolic Life spoke at the opening of an international conference in Rome of about 1 200 religious formation directors. The theme of the conference was “Living in Christ according to the Way of Life of the Gospel”. It was drawn from Perfectae Caritatis, the 1965 conciliar decree on the renewal of religious life. Cardinal Braz told those present they must embrace the future with hope, despite the challenges of fewer vocations, aging memberships, economic difficulties, globalisation, relativism, marginalisation and feelings of being socially irrelevant. He also spoke of the challenge to be the Good News in new places and cultural contexts. It is in these difficulties that consecrated men and women must “activate their hope, fruit of the faith in the Lord”, he said. This hope is not based on “numbers or works but on the one God in whom we have placed our trust”, he said. The Gospel must be the vade mecum or handbook of consecrated life, and the documents of the Second Vatican Council and the teachings of the popes can serve as guidelines on how to face these challenges, he said. But religious orders and their members are not living just for themselves, he said. “In a society of confrontation, difficult coexistence among different cultural groups, the subjugation of the weakest and inequality, we are called to offer a concrete model of community that, in recognising the dignity of every person and sharing the gifts each
Franciscan Sisters of the Immaculate Conception We Franciscan Sisters of the Immaculate Conception are an International Congregation
A nun prays during a Mass in St Peter's basilica at the Vatican. The Mass was for participants in an international congress organised by the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life. (Photo: Massimilia no Migliorato/Catholic Press Photo/CNS) brings, allows us to live fraternally.” The cardinal invited those present to reflect on whether they truly refer to the Gospel daily, as their founders did. Their founders’ experiences, he said, must be looked upon as inspiration to take on the complexities and current challenges. He recalled that Pope Francis exhorted them to live the present with passion and to become experts and artisans of communion.
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ope Francis told novice directors at an audience during the conference that despite fewer vocations to consecrated life, those responsible for formation in religious institutes must know how to say no to unsuitable candidates, so as to avoid a “graver crisis of quality” down the road. Seeing consecrated people “in such great numbers” would give the impression “that there is no vocations crisis”, the pope said.
“But in reality, there is an indubitable decrease in quantity, and this makes the work of formation— one that might truly form the heart of Jesus in the hearts of our young people—all the more urgent,” he said. The pope described consecrated life as “beautiful” and “one of the most precious treasures of the Church”. He called it is “a privilege” to be in formation work and to “participate in the work of the Father, who forms the heart of the Son, in those whom the Spirit has called”. Novice directors and others responsible for formation must have “a great heart for the young, so as to form in them great hearts, able to welcome everyone, rich in mercy, full of tenderness,” he said. The conference is one of several events organised by the congregation for the Year of Consecrated Life, which Pope Francis opened last November.—CNS
Spreading the Good News We invite young men to apply We Dominicans are priests and brothers, known as the Order of Preachers. We live a Religious life together in communities, dedicated to contemplative prayer and the study of God’s good news, with the aim of communicating it to the world, so that all people may benefit. We preach everywhere and anywhere. Contact: The Vocations Promoter, PO Box 815, Springs, 1560 or email us at vocations@zaop.org Check our website www.zaop.org
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The Southern Cross, April 22 to April 28, 2015
LEADER PAGE LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Editor: Günther Simmermacher
God’s call to service
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HIS year’s World Day of Prayer for Vocations, observed by the Church throughout the world on April 26, has a special resonance since it coincides with the current Year of the Consecrated Life. Pope Francis called this special year as an occasion to create awareness of the work of religious orders as well as of their joys and anxieties. It is a year in which those in the consecrated life are called to discern the future direction of their congregations and orders. Of course, the year is also intended to attract young people to the option of living the religious life, vocations to which have been in sharp decline globally. In this week’s edition, many religious congregations and orders are advertising their respective charisms, giving young people who are considering the consecrated life a wide range of options to meet their particular spirituality. Some offer a contemplative life of prayer, withdrawn from the daily chaos of worldly life; others are found in the streets to bring God’s kingdom to the people. The diocesan priesthood is an option for men who hear God’s call but don’t wish to enter the consecrated life. It is good news for the Church’s future that St John Vianney National Seminary in Pretoria continues to record increasing enrolments over the past three years, to the point that space at the institution is becoming tight. It is right and necessary that we pray for vocations to the priestly and religious life. At a time when half of the world’s Catholics do not have weekly access to the celebration of the Eucharist, we must pray and work to increase the numbers of our priests worldwide. And if God does not answer our prayers, then the Church must consider with seriousness and due prudence alternative models of parish ministry which invest responsibility in the laity. Internationally there has already been a dramatic rise in lay ministry, especially through movements. These are becoming so potent that the Holy See is concerned about their hegemony, emphasising that the
movements must work within the conventional structures of a local Church—parish and diocese—and not replace these. With the numbers of priests declining, or failing to grow at the rate of the Catholic populations they serve, the laity must discern how God is calling them to serve his Church. There is a vocation in the Church for every Catholic to exercise the gifts God has given them. But the role of the laity in the mission of the Church must not be limited to chairing parish pastoral councils or conducting the church choir, inestimable though these services are. The well-formed laity must engage itself in the mission of the Church, not leave it exclusively in the hands of priests and bishops (who, in turn, must encourage the laity with open hearts and ears). Vatican II’s decree on the laity, Apostolicam actuositatem (1965), said as much when it noted that “modern conditions demand that [the laity’s] apostolate be broadened and intensified”. The document rightly stresses the laity’s call to evangelise in the secular world, individually and as part of Catholic associations. Simply by living the faith in love and charity and by giving public witness to Christ—or as Vatican II’s Dogmatic Constitution On the Church put it, “to make the Church present and fruitful in those places and circumstances where it is only through them that she can become the salt of the earth”—the laity is involved in that mission. It is the laity which must lead the moral regeneration of society, not only in the sense of reforming its ethics, but also in addressing all that does not sanctify, especially poverty. None of these aims can be accomplished by a laity that takes little interest in the teachings, activities and dialogues of the Church. Let the 19th century English Cardinal John Henry Newman guide us: “I want a laity…who know their religion, who enter into it, who know just where they stand. I want an intelligent, well-instructed laity. I mean to be severe, and…exorbitant in my demands.” May we hear and discern God’s call on all of us to serve his Church.
Sisters of Our Lady Mother of Divine Love
How to support The Southern Cross
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WHOLEHEARTEDLY support Mervyn Pollitt’s powerful urging of clerics and laity to support The Southern Cross (April 8). We simply cannot afford to lose our one and only weekly Catholic newspaper, one which provides such interesting material in a highquality format – and a valuable forum for discussion in which to air our news and views. There are at least two other
Where’s the proof?
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URELY the title and the concluding question in Deacon Greg Garnie’s Easter guest editorial (April 1) are wrong for the current generation. The “facts” as presented in the editorial are shaky and the traditional interpretation by gentiles of the Gospel accounts written by Jews, primarily for Jews nearly 2 000 years ago, needs rethinking for Christianity to survive today. Mathew, Mark and Luke do not claim that their stories were based on eyewitness accounts. Only John claimed eyewitness contact, but since his gospel was the last to be written, the writer would have to have been 100 years old—an unlikely age at that time. Mark’s was the first gospel to be written and definitely for Jews. It is the shortest gospel. Mathew, a scribe living in Syria, rewrote Mark’s story for Jews, incorporating 90% of Mark’s gospel. Luke writing for a Jewish Diaspora and Gentiles gave a more universally acceptable slant to the story, such as tracing Jesus’ lineage back to Adam. We cannot treat their stories as historical accounts and the fact that they vary in significant detail only confirms that they are stories written in the midrashic genre for the Jews of the time to illustrate a spiritual experience. Virgin birth, raising the dead, walking on water, bodily assumption into heaven and many other “facts” have to be believed by “this generation” before the resurrection story is accepted literally—an impossible ask in the 21st century. Jesus did live and the Romans did crucify him. His life did have a profound effect on the lives of his followers. He did preach a Gospel of love that if followed by mankind today would certainly ensure universal peace on earth. Is that not the Christian message to be put to this generation who must surely be looking out for their future survival on this earth and indeed the survival of the planet itself? Michael Bouchier, Stanford, WC
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ways to actively show support: by joining the Associates Campaign (scross.co.za/associates-campaign) and/or by Catholic businesses placing their advertisements in The Southern Cross, which many already do. On hearing of the detrimental effect of the postal strike, my little business, Healthy Alternatives, chose the latter route with our Reflex-o-Board advert and we have n Christ’s Sacrifice and Resurrection are central tenets of the Catholic faith. Without belief in the Resurrection there cannot be a Catholic faith. Faith demands no proof. Mark’s gospel was, in fact, written for Gentiles, as shown by his careful explanation of Jewish practices. While scholars differ about the authorship of John’s gospel, it is not impossible that St John wrote or dictated it. If he was in his 20s at the time of the crucifixion, he would have been in his 80s when the gospel was written between 90-100AD.—Editor.
Kasperian pontiff
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HE idea that vital bimillennial Catholic belief and practice could now be changed is astonishing. Furthermore the claim that the radical changes proposed are only “pastoral” and will not change “dogma” contradicts logic and experience. The push by the “Kasper Kartell” for radical change has been favoured by Pope Francis in the most blatant manner, prior to, during, and in the last synod’s wake. The pope, while claiming that he wants everyone to express themselves freely, promotes and praises Cardinal Walter Kasper’s ideas and simultaneously stifles, reprimands and punishes those who oppose these views, as exemplified by his appalling treatment of Cardinal Raymond Burke. Cardinal Lorenzo Baldisseri, secretary to the synod, admitted that Pope Francis had specifically instructed him to alter the documents of the synod in favour of the Kasperians. Cardinal Baldisseri also reportedly confiscated and destroyed books, Remaining in the Truth of 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
been very pleasantly surprised at the results. As an additional incentive to those who might be hesitating, let me compliment your staff on their helpful and professional attitude— nothing is too much trouble for Elizabeth Hutton, whose years of experience are invaluable. Thank you, Southern Cross, for the wonderful job you do of keeping us informed and up-to-date. Geoff Harris, Rooiels, WC
Christ, that had been posted to members of the synod in order to prevent them from being influenced against the Kasperians. The pope seems determined to go full-steam ahead with Kasperianism. Four days after his election he told those in St Peter’s Square and a worldwide television audience that Cardinal Kasper was “very sharp theologian” and that the cardinal’s book has done him so much good. Reportedly, after this a senior cardinal said to him: “Holy Father, you should not recommend this book! There are many heresies in it!” The pope smiled as he told Cardinal Kasper the story, and reassured him: “It goes in one ear and out the other.” So why ask Catholic laity for their views on these matters? Given the behaviour of the pope, his suppression of opposition and admission that advice “goes in one ear and out the other”, what is the point of it all? If the pope wants these changes, and so far he has shown his determination in this, then why not simply change it on his own authority and thereby drop his tragic charade of free and open debate, including listening to the opinions of the laity? This all reminds me very much of those “democratic” votes in various countries where there is only one candidate on the voting paper and not to vote for him or to spoil or destroy the ballot paper is a crime. Claude Newbury, Johannesburg
Cellphones off!
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THINK and know that there was a message that Jesus expected us to get when he chased everybody out of the temple, because they were using it as a marketplace. Just for one hour a week, we can distance ourselves from the marketplace (that is, cellphones, tablets and laptops) and spend time with Jesus in prayer concentrating on the Eucharistic celebration. Otherwise, if you make exceptions for one cellphone or tablet, it will eventually become something else, perhaps a real barnyard effect. J Jansen van Rensburg, Cape Town
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The Southern Cross, April 22 to April 28, 2015
PERSPECTIVES
Is Christianity a colonial religion? Emmanuel Ngara T HERE is a challenge that faces many young adults in Africa and other countries that were once colonies of European nations: it is the question whether Christianity is a colonial religion or not. The issue is discussed briefly in my book Christian Leadership: A Challenge to the African Church (Paulines Publications Africa, 2004). Putting the matter simply and bluntly, can African Christians defend the Christian Church against the argument that the Christian faith is a European colonial religion? There are strong reasons why some politicians and some of the young men and women of our time can argue convincingly that Christianity is a Western religion that was used by Westerners to further the aims of colonialism. In many countries Christianity and colonial domination came at the same time historically. At times it was difficult to make a distinction between the missionaries who came to preach the word and the colonialists whose principal aim was to control the territories and resources of Africa. You may be aware of the famous statement: “When missionaries came to Africa, they told the African people to pray, and while the Africans were busy praying with their eyes closed, white people came and took their land and cattle!” Unfortunately, Christianity initially came clothed in a Western garment—it was conveyed from the perspective of Western culture, with all that was African being considered pagan and barbaric. Some churches went to the extent of making it a rule that one could not take an African name at baptism. To make matters worse, in South Africa the Bible was used to support the policy of apartheid, with Africans being condemned as the children of Ham, whom Noah condemned to slavery for seeing his father’s
nakedness (Gen 9:18-28). To add to the complexity of the problem, one only needs to refer to the slave trade which resulted in thousands, if not millions, of Africans being uprooted from their continent and shipped to the Americas and other parts of the world—by Christian Europe! The question is how can the leaders of the Church of tomorrow—the youth of today—be taught to counter these and other arguments?
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his is a complex question, but the following is part of the answer: First, it is necessary to acknowledge the evils of colonialism, slavery and apartheid. Second, it is important for those who are being prepared to lead the Church of tomorrow to know something about the history of the Chosen People and the history of the Church. The Jewish people, of whom Jesus was one and from whom we the gentiles have received the faith, were for a large part of
The North African saints Augustine and Monica in a detail of a painting by English artist Ary Scheffer from 1846.
Christian Leadership
their history a subjugated race. They actually grew numerically as a nation when they were in slavery on the African continent—subjugated by the ancient Egyptians whom scholars now believe were black people. Even after Moses led them back to the Promised Land they were conquered and taken into exile on a number of occasions. At the time of Jesus’ birth Palestine was a colony of Rome. That is why many who followed him initially thought he had come to liberate them from Roman colonialism. And for the first 300 or so years of its existence Christianity was a religion of the downtrodden, low-class people and slaves. It was these despised, low-class and persecuted Christians who converted mighty Rome to Christianity. It is also pertinent to note that Egypt and North Africa (now mostly Islamic) became Christian before many of the countries that brought the faith to Sub-Saharan Africa were converted to Christianity. The great saint of the Church, St Augustine of Hippo, was brought to the faith by his African mother, St Monica, who belonged to the Berber ethnic group. It can indeed be argued that after the conversion of Rome the Christian faith was propagated by missionaries from ruling races, but this does not make Christianity an essentially European religion. The European races that subsequently brought the faith to Africa during the era of Western imperialism were, like African races, originally pagan races that worshipped false gods.
How we can purify our memory L ATELY South Africans from all camps have been caught up in the raging debate of whether the symbols of a bygone age can coexist with the values we espouse today. It all started with the Rhodes memorial at the University of Cape Town. Since then a South African war memorial in Uitenhage has been necklaced and on Easter weekend, a 1905 memorial dedicated to horses was vandalised, where the horse was left standing, but the soldier watering the horse was toppled. The Economic Freedom Fighters party has said that “economic liberation must be accompanied by the falling of these colonial statues and we would want to see them replaced by liberation hero statues.” I don’t think that anyone denies the need for memorials dedicated to both the famous and unsung heroes who contributed to the freedom struggle, from Madiba to the children running with the dead Hector Peterson in their arms on June 16, 1976, and the many more who died in prison cells, in exile, as well as those who returned home and led us all to the polls for the first time on April 27, 1994, the 21st anniversary of which we celebrate this week. But is there a place for these so-called “colonial statues”? I’ve had interesting conversations with friends in the last month. I initially argued that by toppling these statues, we risk obliterating a part of our history and corrupting our memory. If our history does not stand as a lesson to us, we are in danger of one day repeating the intolerance and injustice of our forefathers. Speaking about the now removed Rhodes statue, one of my friends argued
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The Mustard Seeds
The faces of subjects on paintings in the university of Cape Town’s Jameson Hall are covered up during a protest against colonial symbols. (Photo: Günther Simmermacher) that a university coud not speak about transformation if it honoured the memory of a man who amassed a fortune by exploiting black labour, adding that the statue is an insult to black students at the university.
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understand and respect that position. Nevertheless, I felt that both of our arguments was missing something vital. Until I happened upon a Catholic text entitled “Memory and Reconciliation: The Church and the Faults of the Past”, written by the International Theological Commission that met in Rome in 1998-99 ahead of the Jubilee in 2000 (read it at www.bit.ly/1Dj2cqP). In the document pronouncing the Jubilee year, Incarnationis Mysterium, Pope John Paul II wrote that “the Church should kneel before God and implore forgiveness for the past and present sins of her sons and daughters”. A question in this text caught my attention and reminded me of the conversation with my friend: “Isn’t it a bit too easy to
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judge people of the past by the conscience of today?” There is no way we can compare the morality and values we hold sacred today to those of 1900 South Africa in the throes of a war with parts of itself, or even the South Africa of 1960 that claimed independence from the British. If anything, those statues show us how far we have come. Today that we have a constitution that proclaims we are all equal before the law and have right to equal opportunities irrespective of our race or creed. And despite the most progressive of constitutions, we are still learning how to apply that in practice in our daily relationships, in our workplaces, in our education system, in every aspect of our common life as South Africans. With varying levels of success and transformation. But we are trying. This is something to celebrate. However, it is also important to recognise that reconciliation is a process that takes time. The Theological Commission stated that part of that process—within the context of the Church’s own faults and failings over the centuries—is that the “recognition of the past faults of the Church’s sons and daughters of yesterday can foster renewal and reconciliation in the present”. Similarly, as South Africans we need to Continued on page 11
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Chris Chatteris SJ
Pray with the Pope
Reject indifference! General Intention: That, rejecting the culture of indifference, we may care for our neighbours who suffer, especially the sick and the poor.
Pope Francis tosses a wreath of flowers into the sea off the coast of Lampedusa, Italy, in July 2013. (Photo: L’Osservatore Romano)
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N July 2013 Pope Francis made a dramatic visit to the Italian island of Lampedusa, which is situated off the North African coast. He went there to highlight the plight of the thousands of African migrants who risk everything, including their lives, to sail in battered boats to the island. They come as the first step to Europe, fleeing either from oppression or poverty or both. At that time of the pope’s visit it was estimated that 20 000 had lost their lives at sea. By now the figure must surely have grown. Among those who survive, all are poor and many sick. “We have fallen into globalised indifference,” Pope Francis said. “We have become used to the suffering of others: ‘it doesn’t affect me; it doesn’t concern me; it’s none of my business!’” In the same address the pope suggested that it was a “culture of comfort” that has made us deaf to the cries of the poor. Too much comfort and security can lead to indifference to the plight of others, because if we are comfortable and secure we fear that our comfort and security will be disturbed by the importunate stranger. I was in Zimbabwe recently. The country’s infrastructure seemed to me to have deteriorated markedly since my last visit three years ago. Posh cars ride over potholed roads but many pedestrians look lean and demoralised. Local people are not optimistic about the state of the economy. It’s clearly economic forces that propel so many Zimbabweans across the Limpopo. Once we grasp that, especially by seeing the problem close up, it is difficult not to be sympathetic to Zimbabweans and other foreigners seeking work in South Africa. We counter the “globalised indifference” by our “localised concern”.
The credible word Missionary Intention: That Mary’s intercession may help Christians in secularised cultures be ready to proclaim Jesus. HE words “be ready” in the pope’s missionary intention I take to mean “ready and willing”. If we are not ready to proclaim Jesus this would suggest that we are afraid or lacking confidence to proclaim him. To be fair to those of us who live in a secularised society, the fact is that such a culture does tend to limit the traditional spaces in which the Gospel could be proclaimed and therefore it is not so easy to proclaim Jesus. Talking about God is not considered to be good manners at social gatherings in the secular city. Increasingly, religion is identified with irrationality or, worse, fanaticism. These negative views of faith only serve to underline the need to find ways of breaking out of our silence, either self-imposed or forced upon us by our social environment. The challenge of how to speak a “credible word” was the way in which the Jesuit superior general, Fr Adolfo Nicolas, put it recently. Mary, of course, does not immediately strike us as one who goes out into the highways and byways preaching. We do hear her proclaiming her Magnificat, but as far as we know only her cousin Elizabeth and the two unborn babies were witnesses to it. For the rest Mary is mostly a contemplative figure, “keeping all these things in her heart”. But it was through this very contemplation that she brought forth the Word. Her inner life meant she was able to be the one who would carry the Word in her womb and, in the fullness of time that word made flesh would be heard. But the process started in contemplative silence, as did the Church, gathered around Mary, prayerfully awaiting Pentecost. Prayerful people intrigue and attract others. People want to know what gives them their aura of stillness, peace and wisdom. Contemplation and proclamation are by no means mutually exclusive: on the contrary, they make a powerful combination.
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The Southern Cross, April 22 to April 28, 2015
COMMUNITY
Easter in our Catholic Communities
Archbishop George Daniel, retired of Pretoria, washed the feet of residents at Little Eden home in Johannesburg during Holy Mass. The archbishop’s memoires That They May Be One will be launched on April 27 at Sacred Heart cathedral in Pretoria. (See page 3)
Regina Coeli parish in Madadeni, archdiocese of Durban, celebrated Holy Week with a re-enactment of Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane after the Last Supper (above) and the way of the Cross (left) by the children of the parish.
Holy Redeemer parish in Bergvliet, Cape Town, held its Easter vigil during which RCIA candidates became members of the Church. (From As St Joseph’s parish in Goodwood, Cape left) Graig Arendse, Jean-Pierre Vigis, Gavin Daries, Shane Biggar, Town, celebrated Easter Sunday Mass, Lee Biggar, Kurt St Clair and Br Richard Maidwell CSsR. (Front) Fr parish priest Fr Mari Joseph OCD gathSean Wales CSsR, Mary Runnalls, Terri Naidoo, John Wheeler, Robin ered a large group of his catechism chilHankey, Marcelle de Freitas, Claudia Davids, Adele Naidoo, Nicole dren, teaching them about Easter Arendse and Fr Gerard McCabe. (Photo: Brandon Paulse)
St Augustine’s cathedral in Port Elizabeth held its Easter vigil with Bishop Vincent zungu who initiated RCIA candidate Carol Sodien.
Eleven baptism and confirmation candidates and their sponsors from the Robertsham and Booysens parishes of Johannesburg, received sacraments at St John Bosco church in Robertsham at their Easter vigil. The group was led by Sr Patricia Finn (back left) and assisted by Iris Seabrook (second left, middle), Deacons Mike Nolan and Victor Ho, and Fr John Thompson with his fellow Salesians, Frs Eugene Hennessy, Francois Dufour and Robert Gore. (Photo: Roy Newton-Barker)
St Anthony’s parish in Sedgefield, Oudtshoorn diocese, celebrated the Paschal Supper in a private home with Dave and Fay Jones representing the mother and father lighting the candle during the Paschal Supper.
Catholic Welfare and Development visited Themba Educare in Delft, Cape Town to hand out Easter eggs to the children.
FOCUS
The Southern Cross, April 22 to April 28, 2015
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What SA Catholics say on family issues The Jesuit Institute SA has conducted a survey on the attitudes of local Catholics on issues facing the family. The institute’s director Fr RuSSELL POLLITT SJ summarises the survey report.
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N a survey conducted by the Jesuit Institute, 80% of Catholics who responded believed that divorced and remarried Catholics should be allowed to receive the Eucharist. This was one of the findings in the Jesuit Institute’s report of its findings made in a survey on family life in preparation for the Synod on the Family in October 2015. The report summarises results from both a questionnaire and focus groups. It was based on the Lineamenta that was issued after the Extraordinary Synod of Bishops in Rome in 2014. The survey also discovered that many people believe that clergy need more training in the area of ministering to those touched by what the Church terms “unconventional families” to be effective. Priests, respondents said, were “too busy” to give adequate care to individual families and cannot always help them with emotional and practical support. The Institute questionnaire, which was available online, gathered information from South African Catholics in different contexts—townships, suburbia and the inner city. The report summarises what both individual respondents and focus groups said. Focus groups were held in parishes in which people were invited to come together and discuss the questionnaire. The discussions were noted and reproduced verbatim, without identifying people by name. The Institute report was divided into five sections: the first gave an outline of the structure of the Institute’s questionnaire, two, three and four summarised the information gathered, and five offered a summary of major trends that were
identified. The Institute established that many South Africans found the definition of “family” problematic. The Eurocentric view of family—father, mother and children (nuclear family)—is foreign to African traditional understandings. The increasing trend of children who grow up in the absence of biological parents under the care of extended family was highlighted. A number of respondents said that they consider the extended family to be mother and father and therefore family is not a “nuclear family”. Despite the fact that the family is often spoken of as important in the Catholic Church—Pope John Paul II called the family “the domestic Church”—Catholics did not know of support programmes for family life because of the lack of communication. People had some idea about premarriage formation, but 46% of respondents did not know of any initiative at parish level to support couples in the early stages of married life. Many Catholics said that they were not aware of any specific promotion of marriage or parenthood by the Church. Linked to this was the view that priests were too busy to minister to individual families and that many struggling families get more support from faith-sharing groups than from their priests. Many emphasised the need for lay people to be more involved in family ministry. This is curious —if family life is a priority for the Church, one might have assumed that this would be a priority for clergy in their own pastoral practice. A number of respondents did not think priests were equipped to practically support families emotionally. Questions were asked about the effectiveness of priestly formation in the area of family ministry. In some formation centres it was reported that no practical training is given; the only training received was in the legalities of marriage—in Canon Law for example. The survey revealed that 80% of Catholics reported that they knew of no pastoral care for those in what
A survey on family issues has confirmed that the traditional nuclear family is changing, especially in Southern African contexts. was termed “unconventional families”. This included single parents, divorced parents (regardless of whether they have married again or not), separated parents, parents who are of the same sex and families that relied on uncles and aunts and other family members for support.
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UNICEF report in 2012 stated that 32% of children under the age of 18 are living with both biological mothers and fathers. This means that the majority of families in South Africa—68%—can be described as unconventional families. This highlights a significant challenge and pastoral gap in the practice of the Church in South Africa and suggests that much more work needs to be done if we are to be pastorally effective in ministering to families today. Some 60% of respondents said that clergy should be more welcoming to people and treat everyone equally, regardless of their state, while 30% said that they would encourage clergy to speak more about God’s love and mercy in the area of unconventional families. Language, the report says, should be used more sensitively. This is of utmost importance at school level. The picture that emerged was that priests do not know of uncon-
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ventional families, even though many of them exist in parishes. People in such states remain hidden for a number of reasons but mostly because they are afraid of being judged. Some simply stay away from the Church altogether. This suggests another big challenge for the Church if it wants to reach out to the majority of families in the South African context. Most South Africans do not fit what would be considered “the norm”. 40% of respondents said that priests and deacons should not communicate “judgemental attitudes” towards people living in unconventional families. The survey highlighted a huge clash between traditional African marriages and the Church’s practice. Many couples are married in traditional African marriages but not in the Church and therefore, although married traditionally, are “cohabitating”, as far as the Church is concerned. 46% of respondents said that they knew nothing of what the Church was doing to help couples in this state. Many respondents suggested that the Church look at and learn from other Christian churches in terms of family ministry. Mixed marriages (between a Catholic and non-Catholic) are a common feature these days; respondents said
that this was an opportunity for clergy to enter into ecumenical dialogue. It was stated that the Catholic Church ought to be “less arrogant” in its approach to ecumenical dialogue. The highly emotive and sensitive issue of divorced and remarried Catholics being allowed to receive Holy Communion was strongly supported. Some 80% of Catholics who took the survey said that the current practice should be changed. The current practice, respondents felt, unnecessarily marginalised people. It was felt that the Eucharist is a central part of Catholic identity and denying people this sacrament is an obstacle to the sensitive pastoral care of marginalised Catholics. An example of this, for parents, could be when they accompany their children to Mass and the children are encouraged to receive Communion but they do not go forward. 42% of people said that the parents of unconventional families should be allowed to participate fully in the life of the Church. The exclusion from the Eucharist of parents has the potential to confuse children and undermines the message of love and mercy that we preach. Uneven application of Communion admittance was a concern: an abusive spouse can receive Holy Communion but people in good, healthy second marriages are barred. 12% felt there should not be “wholesale” permission for divorced and remarried Catholics to receive Communion, but that this should be done case-by-case. Other findings in the survey included that the current annulment process was too cumbersome and was a practical barrier to people seeking help in the Church. Another suggestion was that Catholic scientists should be involved in the dialogue between faith and science. If this was done, there would be “equal grasp” of science and therefore the dialogue would be more beneficial. A significant number said that LGBTI (Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgendered Intersex) Catholics should be welcomed with respect and care. n The full report is available at www.jesuitinstitute.org.za
Cape Town Carmel PO Box 121 Retreat 7965 Tel: (021) 713 6744
Malawi Carmel PO Box 584 zomba MALAWI
Mafikeng Carmel Cr Twist & School Sts Danville, Mafikeng 2745 Tel: (018) 381 1023
Benoni Carmel PO Box 9193 Brentwood Park 1505 (011) 967 1813
The work of a Marist Brother To love Jesus and make him known and loved In the way of Mar y
For more information contact: Br Christopher At Marist Brothers, Box 1945, 6230 Uitenhage By email at: muth@telkomsa.net
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The Southern Cross, April 22 to April 28, 2015
VOCATION SUNDAY
Shepherding as internship for Church leaders Sheep husbandry—feeding caring and protecting animals is an ancient internship for God’s leaders. CAROL GLATz demonstrates that it still has invaluable application for the modern Church.
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ORE than just a good metaphor, the “good shepherd” is a concrete role model for Christian leadership. “The fathers of the Bible”— those, like Abraham, Jacob, Isaac, Moses and David—whom God chose to lead his people, “were all shepherds of sheep”, in the real sense that they spent years with staff in hand feeding, protecting and caring for wooley ruminants, said Sr Elena Bosetti, a member of the Sisters of Jesus Good Shepherd. Just as Jesus told the fishermen Simon Peter and Andrew to become fishers of men, God transformed his chosen shepherds of sheep in the Old Testament into pastors of people, she said, showing sheep husbandry as a kind of internship programme for God’s leaders. While the Old and New Testaments are replete with imagery of sheep and shepherds, Pope Francis has given these figures renewed emphasis, most notably with his memorable insistence to priests and bishops to spend more time among the people and be “shepherds living with the smell of sheep”.
Sr Bosetti, a professor and biblical scholar specialising in pastoral symbolism, said that, unlike the secular logic of power, the Christian model of leadership and authority is rooted in the process of making oneself similar to, not separating or differentiating oneself from, the people to be served. In fact, it takes a real shepherd years of being with the flock every day to gain their trust, said Fabrizio Innocenzi, who, with his fiancée, Virginia Tacchia, owns about 60 sheep in the hills of Roviano, 30km east of Rome. Sheep “at first glance seem docile, simple, but they’re not. They’re very complicated and need lots of care and attention”, he said. “They need a guide, a shepherd” because there is no natural leader or hierarchy within their group, he said. Their movements are dictated by what the others are doing around them, creating a kind of “domino effect” that can easily break into panic if just one sheep gets spooked, he said. The role of the shepherd and the sheep dog are essential then, he said, to keep the sheep calm and away from danger such as steep cliffs, roads, cars, wrong turns and predators. The sheep learn to trust the shepherd, Mr Innocenzi said, as “they hear and understand the voice, the smell, the behaviour of the person who is looking after them every day”. He said a shepherd needs to be someone who is “in tune with nature, decisive” and willing to lovingly bear the long hours, inclement weather, hard work and sacrifice and they should “not be
A Palestinian shepherd guides his flock through the streets of Bethlehem, birthplace of Our Lord in the West Bank. (Photo: Günther Simmermacher) afraid of anything”. The trust that develops is forged not out of fear, he said, but from the instinctual knowledge that the shepherd and the sheep dog are there not to punish, but to keep them safe. “For them, the dog represents security” and makes them “feel at ease and peaceful”. In a similar way, Sr Bosetti said, pastoral leadership is about offering “comfort, consolation and encouragement”, while being “in the midst of the sheep, defending them, assuring them, I am here, do not be afraid”. The shepherd’s staff, for example, “is not used for hitting”, she said. It provides the shepherd with the support he needs to clamber over rough and steep ground, and it lets the sheep, whose view is limited
with their low hanging heads and eyes focused on grass to graze, know their guide is there as the staff rhythmically strikes the ground. “If I hear thud, thud, it means that he is here. Maybe I don’t see him, but I hear him, his voice, his staff. In the Bible, it is not the eye, it’s the ear that’s fundamental. The sheep listen. The ear is the essential organ for knowing God,” she said. In Psalm 23, Sr Bosetti said, “The Lord is my shepherd”, who fulfils every need, who leads, restores and guides, and whose “rod and staff comfort me” because they are used to conquer evil and not to abuse one’s own flock. The saving power of the pastoral staff is further evident with Moses, she said. Through God’s intercession, Moses uses his shepherding stick to part the Red Sea and lead
his people to safety, as well as to split rocks in the desert so water gushes forth to quench people’s thirst. The humble shepherd’s stick “is turned into Gods presence, it performs miracles”, she said. The Catholic Church uses more than just a bishop’s crook or staff to communicate his role as shepherd. Archbishops receive a pallium, a narrow band made of wool with long strips hanging down the front and the back, tipped with black silk to recall the dark hooves of the sheep the archbishop is symbolically carrying over his shoulders. The pallium is meant “to restore, to actualise the symbol, to remember that its not about having another garment. No, you have to remember that pastoral ministry is carrying the flock on your shoulders”, she said. Sr Bosetti’s order, the Sisters of Jesus Good Shepherd, are also known as the “Pastorelle”, the little shepherdesses, to underline the importance of women religious in the pastoral mission of Christ. Women shepherds appear often in the Bible, she said; and encouraging their pastoral side isn’t about ordination to the priesthood, but about collaboration and complementarity. Taking care of God’s people “must not be reduced to the priesthood”, she said. “We need a prophetic pastoral ministry” made up all faithful modelling the Good Shepherd himself: encouraging, consoling and leading the way forward with hope.—CNS n A related video can be found at: http://youtu.be/NLLKl_pW5FY
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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 is 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) 551-1747, dpaarman@mweb.co.za
HOLY CROSS SISTERS
In the Cross is Salvation
We are an International Congregation whose members try to live the Paschal mystery and creating life in the midst of limits.
ARE YOU INTERESTED IN SERVING OTHERS?
For further information contact: Sr Phuthunywa C. Siyali, P.O. Box 48775, Hercules, 0030 Pretoria. Tel: 012 379 8559/ 072 855 2206 Email: phuthus@yahoo.co.za
Dominican Sisters of St. Catherine of Siena of King William’s Town
We are a multi-cultural, prophetic community of Dominican women, Aware of the interconnectedness and sacramental dimension of all life in a dynamically evolving universe. With God as our source, we respond creatively and compassionately to the cry of the wordl, witnessing to the unconditional loving-kindness of God.
Is God calling you to become a Vowed Religious sister, an Associate member, Lay Dominican or Volunteer?
For more information contact us at clt@kwtdominicans.org Sr. Mary Tuck marytuck@kwtdominicans.org Sr. Nobululi Bulurelo 076 365 0647
VOCATION SUNDAY
The Southern Cross, April 22 to April 28, 2015
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The path to priesthood What does it take to become a priest? For the World Day of Prayer for Vocations, STuART GRAHAM spoke to a priest who works in the training of our future clergy.
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OST people who have entered the ordained ministry or consecrated life speak of having followed a call which echoes Jesus’ invitation to the fishermen in Capernaum to “come, follow me” (Mt 4:19). But one must not expect God to “speak to you directly”, advised Fr Masilo Selemela, vice-president of the St John Vianney Seminary in Pretoria. You do not hear a voice from heaven but there is a desire in your heart put there by God himself, he explained, adding that this is when a man knows that he has been called to the priesthood. “If you feel God’s calling and believe that a life of celibacy and devotion to God is for you, this serious decision may be the one you are meant to make,” said Fr Selemela, who was speaking in his personal capacity.. “The life of a Catholic priest is a calling to serve God as well as those in need around you,” he said. For many men, a call to the priesthood does not occur in a spontaneous flash. It is a long journey that comes after many years of soulsearching, reflection and discernment. The calling may, for example, manifest itself as a desire for the man to serve in the parish where he grew up. Most dioceses have vocation weekends, camps and workshops where they talk about vocations. At these camps young people are exposed to the life of the priest, his ministry and his tasks. “We speak about the meaning of priesthood for the society we have today and the critical role the priest plays in the society,” said Fr Selemela. Many young people join the priesthood because they have witnessed very committed priests dedicate their own life to serving their parish. For instance, the experience of the washing of the feet that a young man experiences in his own parish with a priest who “loves, cares for and nourishes” his community, attracts vocations, Fr Selemela said. “In the end it is God who calls by using the situations and circumstances of one’s life to manifest himself. Our task is to respond,” he said. Once a young man feels that he has been called to the priesthood,
he should approach his parish priest who will then recommend him to the vocations director of the diocese. If the director is certain that the man has been called, he will introduce him to the bishop. The bishop will interview the man. If he is convinced, the young man may be admitted to study for the priesthood. Before being accepted into a seminary however, a student should have completed a year of preparatory post-school studies in the orientation seminary or in his own religious institute, based on a programme approved by the seminary. The student should have a competent knowledge of English to be able to pursue academic studies at tertiary level. Students registering for the priesthood at St John Vianney Seminary are required to enrol for the Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy programme. Life at the seminary starts at 6:30am with morning prayer, followed by Mass, breakfast and lectures, which involve a philosophy component and a theology component.
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uring the early stages, the men are taken through rigorous psychological profiling. “We put people through a psychological analysis which would reveal the personality of the person. This will show their strength and their limits,” Fr Selemela explained. “Through the whole process of formation we seek to help people discover their strengths. The young men will work on their weaknesses to become a whole person.” None of us are perfect, Fr Selemela noted, but there are certain intrinsic qualities needed to be a priest. Pope Francis wants seminaries to refocus on the basic Christian teachings of compassion, simplicity and humility. Priests should have “real contact with the poor” and other marginalised members of society. Formation, according to the pope, is a work of art, not a police action. We must form their hearts, otherwise we are creating “little monsters”, the pope warned. Fr Selemela said that if a person is prepared to be a disciple of Christ, he must be rooted in the Word of God and understand himself as a disciple. He must be open and able to reach out. He must be “thoroughly human”. One has to interact with people and so one must have human qualities and intellectual acumen, Fr Selemela said. “These are the qualities we require from [future priests], but we do not expect people to have all the qualities. We have to help people discover qualities they have and to reinforce them and deepen them.” Fr Selemela counselled against
looking at a man in terms of him being an extrovert or introvert. For example, an introvert may have a quality leadership capacity. In Southern Africa the majority of the young men who join seminaries are school leavers from rural areas. Few have experienced life outside before coming to seminary. Occasionally men with a mature vocation join the seminary, having experienced life in a secular professional field. “You have a few you come here who have experienced work and other things. We call these late vocations. Recently we had a man who was over the age of 50 who finished his studies,” Fr Selemela said. Another man had left the seminary and went to work for ten years before returning to study for the ordained ministry.
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hen somebody has acted on the desire to become a Catholic priest, the most important part in the early stages is the process of discernment. The seminary acts as a testing ground to discover what the men believe God is asking of them. The life of a priest is a lonely, celibate one, without the chance of starting a family. During this six years of training it is natural for men to experience doubts and anxieties
Priest in St Peter’s basilica at the Vatican. (Photo: Tony Gentile, Reuters/CNS) as they consider their futures. These anxieties and doubts can follow men throughout their priesthoods. Priests are also taught to handle the pressures that come with caring for a parish. Priests, like all men, are not perfect. Still, parishes often place them on pedestals, expecting them to be constantly holy and not subject of the foibles of normal men. It is the task of the priest to channel the gifts of those in his community, Fr Selemela said. “Unity in diversity is what we want to harness,” he said. Not everybody who feels called to the priesthood will become a priest. Some men are not accepted for the study to the priesthood, or
are found to be unsuitable for the clerical ministry during their studies or before ordination. Others drop out of their studies because the life of the priesthood proves to be not for them. However, Fr Selemela emphasised, there are many vocations that are exercised outside the priesthood. “You have to believe God has a plan for you, so even if you do not enter the priesthood, you can give your life in many ways,” he said. “You can become a deacon, for example,” or follow the myriad paths of lay leadership. “For me the Church is a communion,” Fr Selemela said. “It is made up of people with many gifts who are diverse.”
THE SERVANTS OF CHRIST THE PRIEST Secular Institute of Consecrated and Apostolic life: Founder: The Very Rev Fr André Joseph BlAIS OMI (1902—1992)
It was the intention of our founder to offer the Church priests and lay brothers servants who be in direct apostolate, living and working amongst the believing community of all cultures and become missionaries within their own communities
Maybe you are called and are destined to be part of this great apostolate. Do not be afraid of what God asks of you for it is worthy to say yes to God. In him we have our joy. - Pope Francis
“And you shall be my witnesses” - Acts 1:8 For more information write to: The Secretary General SCP, PO Box 8, Roma, 180 lesotho
HANDS UP!
SAlESIANS OF DON BOSCO – My lIFE – My WAy – WITH THE yOUNG – SAyS JESUS vocations@salesians.org.za / PO Box 2335, Southdale, 2135, RSA / + 27 11 6801235
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The Southern Cross, April 22 to April 28, 2015
VOCATION SUNDAY
The joy of Benedictine life In religious orders, jubilees are great occasions. Br EMMANuEL SuNTHENI OSB describes the big celebration of jubilees of six Benedictines at Inkamana abbey.
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HERE was great joy at the Benedictine Inkamana Abbey in Vryheid, northern KwaZulu-Natal, when six confreres celebrated their golden and silver jubilees. Brs Benedict Ntshangase and Clement Sithole celebrated 50 years in monastic vows, Frs Pius Paul and Leo Eireiner 50 years in priesthood, Br Ansfried reached 55 years of missionary assignment in Zululand and also cerebrated his 60 years of monastic vows last year, and Br Mark Govender celebrated his silver jubilee in monastic vows. In the tradition of the mission-
ary Benedictines of St Ottilien, jubilarians are remembered on the day the order’s founder, St Benedict of Nursia, died. The climax of the day was the Pontifical Mass celebrated by Bishop Thaddeus Kumalo of Eshowe, the diocese in which Inkamana is located. The Mass was concelebrated by the abbey’s prior, Fr John Paul Mwaniki, cellerar Fr Boniface Kamushishi, Abbot emeritus Godfrey Sieber, Fr Jeffrey Steele, the prior of St Benedict Abbey in Polokwane, Fr Edgar Friedmann, the former conventual prior of Digos in Philippines, all ordained monks of Inkamana, and priests of Eshowe and Dundee dioceses. It was exactly at 11:11 am, when the “Zululand Boys”, as the jubilarians were dubbed, renewed their commitment to monastic life which they promised 50 years ago to God in the hands of Archabbot Suso of St Ottilien abbey in Germany. They sung the solemn Benedictine prayer, the “Suscipe Me
The Benedictine Fathers and Brothers at Inkamana abbey, Kwazulu-Natal.
Domine”, which every monk of the order pronounces when making his first monastic vows. There is no Benedictine vow without the “Suspe Me Domine”. St Benedict stated in his Rule for monks that after novitiate, the novice places himself before God and sings: “Suscipe me, Domine, secundum eloquium tuum, et vivam, et non confundas me ab expectatione mea. Gloria Patri, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto, sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper, et in saecula saeculorum. Amen” (Receive me, Lord, as you have promised, and I shall live, do not disappoint me in my hope). The Sacred Heart abbey church, beautifully decorated by Inkamana High School learners, was packed to the brim. Outside the church a tent was put up to accommodate and cater for relatives who came to witnesses this greatest occasion of their sons of the soil but couldn’t find space in the church or refectory. In his sermon, Fr Mwaniki, the prior, acknowledged one of the greatest of the Benedictine ethos: Humility. He reminded Brs Benedict, Clement and Mark: “You began a journey with a simple and humble ‘yes’, beginning a journey which the Lord drew each one of you into a deeper relationship with himself, so that his word was deeply understood and cherished: ‘I have called you by name; you are mine.’” He encouraged the jubilarians to be an example to the young monks and to continue responding positively to their commitment to monastic life in prayer and work. He pointed out that “our South African bishops affirm with gratitude all that Pope Francis says in his apostolic letter to all consecrated people”, issued last November. “The bishops highlighted one of the pope’s appeals to consecrated men and women, and indeed, the whole Church, [when] they stated:
The “zululand Boys”: (from left) Benedictine Brothers Mark Govender, Benedict Ntshangase and Clement Sithole. (Photo: Br Bernard OSB) ‘We have to ask ourselves, Is Jesus really our first and only love, as we promised he would be when we professed our vows?’ Only if he is our first and only love will we be empowered to love, in truth and mercy, every person who crosses our paths,” Fr Mwaniki said. He asked the monks and the faithful to “embrace the future with hope”. This echoed Pope Francis’ counsel to those in the consecrated life: “Embrace the future with hope, look to the past with gratitude and the present with passion, joy.” He told the congregation that for the past 25 years Inkamana have had young people coming and no year has passed without new novices, a sign of hope for the abbey’s future. Fr Mwaniki told the congregation that the “Inkamana abbey community embraces and witnesses internationality and multi-cultural living which counteracts the tendency of extreme nationalism”. There are eight nationalities at Inkamana, all of whom encourage and respect one another. “We acknowledge each other as a gift not as a threat or a burden to one another,” the prior said. “We are for Christ and we live for Christ.”
The salt of the day was the words of encouragement and love from Bishop Kumalo who thanked the first missionary Benedictines who responded to the call to establish a local Church in Zululand and in some other parts of Natal. He commended the priests and brothers who worked tirelessly in developing and building up Catholic churches within his diocese. Bishop Kumalo also thanked and encouraged the “Zulu Boys” who responded positively to the call of serving God as monks, in particular Brs Benedict and Clement. It wasn’t an easy for the first African missionary Benedictine monk to join the monastery. Ask Br Benedict about how it was when he first joined, and what was his secret to reach 50 years in monastic vows, he often says: “You see, these boys wanted to chase me away, but prayer kept me here. “I am still here not through my own efforts but because of God.” These are words of encouragement to the junior and young monks who must put their trust in God because no way is easy, and we all need to pass through the narrow gate.
Sisters of The Holy Family of Bordeaux Missionary Sisters of The Holy Rosary Missioned to live and promote communion where we live and work so that the world may see and come to recognise that all on earth are but ONE family here to serve our God and each other.
Contact: Sr Breda 011 906 5392
sent to bring the Good News to all people
Will you join us in Mission? Contact Vocations Promoter
Together in Mission
PO Box 1097 Edenvale 1610
VOCATION SUNDAY
Nuns take on trafficking Talitha Kum is an international network of religious sisters working towards ending the horrors of human trafficking. VINNIE ROTONDARO spoke to their new coordinator, Sr Gabriella Bottani.
Yes, we don’t see it. We see a woman who has become a prostitute, but we can’t see if she was trafficked. We can see an adopted child, but we don’t know if the child was adopted regularly, legally, or was trafficked. It’s not something that you recognise quickly. And this is why we have to speak up about it. We have to inform the world that these are people who need help. For example, many trafficked people are refugees, and many are trafficked during the process of migration.
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HE stats and facts of modern-day human trafficking are shocking. According to the US Department of State, between 800 000 to 2 million people are trafficked each year, 80% of whom are women and girls. Human trafficking facilitates sexual exploitation, forced labour, domestic servitude; it leads to organ removal and forced marriage. It represents a new form of slavery, said Comboni missionary Sister Gabriella Bottani. Sr Bottani was appointed in as the new coordinator of Talitha Kum, a Rome-based international network of religious sisters working to end human trafficking.
What is the scope of human trafficking? It is a worldwide problem. We have statistics. But I think that we can’t only look at the numbers. We can’t say exactly how many persons are actually exploited, for sexual exploitation, labour exploitation, illegal or irregular adoption and organ removal. The numbers are important to understand that this is a huge problem, a worldwide problem— we can’t say that any country is free of human trafficking. But I think that we have to start to reflect on why. Why do we still have slavery? What are the causes? We have to start to reflect. What does it say about our world that a problem like this exists? Human trafficking [highlights] the model of development that we have in our society. It exploits life, both people and nature. And I think that we have to start having discussions about this model, about our economies. The majority of people who are exploited are poor. So we have to say: “What is this model of development that creates such inequities—the differences among rich and poor?” Before becoming the leader of Talitha Kum, you were working in Latin America. Tell me about your time there.
Comboni Missionary Sister Gabriella Bottani is the new coordinator of an international network of religious sisters working to end human trafficking. (Photo: Vinnie Rotondaro, courtesy NCR/CNS) I was working in Brazil. There was much discussion about producing energy at the time, and dams were being built along rivers. And this had not only an ecological impact, but also a social impact. Men came to construct the dams, and sexual exploitation came with that economic pull. And so sometimes we only see the possibility to produce more capital, to move more money, but we don’t see the other side, the human side and the social side and the cultural impact of this model of development. What did you learn from speaking with victims? The first thing I learned is that many persons can’t recognise themselves as exploited. People will say, “I was a slave and I didn’t know it.” They were used to it, from childhood. You are a young girl, you are living along a river, and someone says, “We will take you to the city to study.” But it’s not to study. They don’t see what happens to them as servitude. They say, “Well, I have to work because they give me something to eat.” They don’t realise they are exploited. It was very interesting and difficult to get the person to see what had happened to them in a different way. And to understand that everyone has rights and dignity that can’t be exploited for money. And yet, there is also exists a blindness to this reality out in the rest of society, correct?
Tell me more about Talitha Kum. Talitha Kum is a Gospel word. Jesus said to a young girl who was dead, “Wake up”, literally, in Aramaic, “Little girl, I say to you, arise!” And Talitha Kum is a project of the International Union of Superior Generals. We are now present in 81 countries and are more than 1 000 sisters strong. At first back in the early 2000s the idea was to train sisters and have them become leaders in this area—and to go from there to create a movement. So the first step was to organise training programmes in different countries. And the first goal was to inform and train sisters as to what human trafficking is. The second goal was to organise a network. In 2009, there was an international meeting that called all of the programs together. And it was decided to form this network, which was called Talitha Kum www.tal ithakum.info. As coordinator, what are your goals? To strengthen our identity. To help the local networks improve their capacity to confront human trafficking. And I think that we need, at this time, to share more information among us. We also need to update our website. What is the future of this issue for the Catholic Church? We are in a very positive place with the engagement of Pope Francis and his commitment against human trafficking. I think he is helping the Church to confront and to see this problem. And I think that now we can begin to reflect, to not see only the superficiality of the problem, but what is really happening, the “why?” And we can do many things as a Church. We need to see this problem, and not be indifferent.—CNS
Congregation of Christian Brothers WHO WE ARE – an
international family of brothers, celibate and living as communities.
OUR VISION – to be brothers to all,
modeling our dream for a world of justice and love.
OUR MISSION – to be and bring Jesus’
good news on the margins, especially through education and care of youth.
DO yOU FEEl CAllED TO BE A CHRISTIAN BROTHER?
WHERE TO FIND US: Rice House, 2 Albu Road, Parkdene. Boksburg. 1459 Tel: +27 011 917 2836 / Cell: 078 702 9259 Email: ricehouse@mweb.co.za / Website: www.edmundrice.net
DARE TO BE A CHRISTIAN BROTHER. BECOME HOPE FOR THE WORlD.
Jesus asked, “What are you looking for?” ( Jn 1:38)
The Southern Cross, April 22 to April 28, 2015
13
“I have come that they may have life and have it abundantly.” ( Jn10:10)
Are you searching for God’s desire for you?
We, as Sisters of Mercy, seek to be a compassionate presence of God wherever we are. Contact: Sr Mirriam Senatsi at mirsen9@gmail.com or at Box 55201 Northlands 2116
THE CAPUCHIN POOR CLARE SISTERS We are called to prayer, Adoration to the Blessed Sacrament, silence, penance, manual labour and joyful community life. Through this way of life, we join our lives to Jesus redeeming love, praying for the world and remaining hidden in the heart of Holy Mother Church.
For more information contact: Adoration Monastery "Bethania", P.O Box 43, Swellendam, 6740 Tel:( 028 ) 514-1319, Email: capuchin@telkomsa.net
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The Southern Cross, April 22 to April 28, 2015
FOCUS
Mom may not travel with family on some roads Israeli law is tearing Palestinian families apart, with some being separated in the land of their birth. JuDITH SuDILOVSKY reports on the experience of a Christian family in Jerusalem.
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N Good Friday, Abeer Atallah, who lives in the Arab neighbourhood of Beit Safafa in East Jerusalem, was unable to attend a prayer service marking Jesus’ Passion and death in the Old City as she would have liked. Her Catholic husband, Abdullah, could not drive her because he was studying for a university exam. And Abeer could not drive herself. It’s not that the social worker at St Joseph School does not know how to drive—she is not allowed to drive in Jerusalem. Originally from the West Bank village of Beit Jalla—a mere ten minutes from where she lives now—Abeer came to live with her husband elsewhere in Jerusalem when they were married in 2000. That’s when she became an outlaw of sorts. As a Jerusalem-born resident, Abdullah, 38, has the appropriate blue Israeli identity card; Abeer, 36, does not. Abeer and Abdullah have tried for more than 14 years to make her residency in Jerusalem official, but she has only been able to obtain a two-year temporary residency permit. It expires in 2016 and she must apply for a new permit.
“It is very hard to feel handcuffed and like a prisoner unable to move,” Abeer said in the apartment the couple bought in a housing project at the Latin Patriarchate. “If I want to go to the Old City, I have to think twice about how I will do it. I would like to go, but the [prayer service] starts at 18:00 and lasts till late and it will be hard to get back.” In Israel, where the Jewish Sabbath is observed, public transportation does not run on Fridays and getting to the main road to meet a taxi requires at least a 30minute walk from the as-of-yet unpaved, unlit, road leading to the housing project. Still, Abeer and Abdullah know their situation is better than that of others, including a cousin who, they said, must live separated from her West Bank husband. The cousin must travel back and forth on weekends and holidays with her children because the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has not approved a family reunification application. Other couples are reluctant to talk about their situation because they are afraid of repercussions on their permit status. Because she cannot drive and Abdullah is not home from work until the evening, the couple’s children are unable to participate in after-school activities in the Palestinian neighbourhood of Beit Hanina, 20 minutes away. “We can’t do things unless Abdullah is here and that is very frustrating,” Abeer said. “If they catch me driving, I will lose my permission to be here.”
Raffoul Rofa, executive director of the Society of St Yves, a legal organisation which advocates for families with Israeli officials, said government statistics indicate that from 2000 to 2013 more than 12 000 applications were filed for family reunification by couples with one spouse holding an Israeli identity card and the other spouse from the West Bank. He said that roughly half were approved for temporary permits only, while the other half were rejected outright.
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s of now, the temporary permit is as good as it gets for the Atallahs. “There is nothing more; we have reached the maximum,” Abdullah said. Friends contemplating marrying women from the West Bank often come to Abdullah for advice. “I won’t lie to them,” he said. “I tell them it is not an easy life, but we can’t let Israel tell us what to do with our life or who to fall in love with and who to marry.” The temporary permit also means Abeer can enter the West Bank only via one specific checkpoint, where the wait is long. Meanwhile, Abdullah and the couple’s two children, who were given Israeli identity cards through their father, can use other less difficult checkpoints. Abeer is forbidden to use certain roads as well, even if she is travelling with her family. “It is always very hard. We have to take into consideration before we leave the time it will take us, when we will get back, if she will be allowed to get back,” Abdullah said.
Palestinian Christian Abdallah Atallah sits with his Catholic wife, Abeer, and their two children, son Munir, 12, and daughter Janna, 8, in their apartment in the Beit Safafa neighbourhood in Jerusalem. Because Abeer is originally from the West Bank, just ten minutes from where she lives now, she is not even allowed to drive in Israeli-controlled areas—if caught Israel will expel her from Jerusalem—and may not travel with her family on certain roads. (Photo: Debbie Hill/CNS) On Easter, what should be a brief ride over to visit Abeer’s parents and siblings can turn into an ordeal lasting an hour or longer. One option is the Bethlehem checkpoint, where it will be less time consuming for Abeer to walk through and meet Abdullah and the children on the other side. As West Bank residents, Abeer’s parents rarely visit the family in Beit Safafa, although at Easter they get special permits to come to Jerusalem. She said since she and Abdullah were married her parents have been able to visit two or three times. And they will be unable to attend the first Communion ceremony of daughter, Janna, at St Saviour church in the Old City in May.
“I feel lonely here. My family can’t come here to share with my lovely moments,” Abeer said. Moving to the West Bank is not an option for the family because Abdullah and the children would lose access to medical help and Israel’s social security system. As a successful young couple, with a new apartment and wellmannered children, Abeer and Abdullah realise they have much for which to be thankful. But something is missing, they said, and it is not something material. “There is always a nagging, frustrating feeling,” Abeer said. “You can’t do things for yourself as a person. If we want to do something, it is not easy. We always have to do it the hard way.”—CNS
How refugee kids are feeling the trauma BY ELISE HARRIS
13 to 26 February 2016
The PIlGRIMAGE OF THE PEACEMAKERS is a special journey to the land of Christ which will include the great sites of Our Lord in the Holy Land as well as encounters with Palestinian and Jewish organisations working for peace. We will explore the roots of the conflict and see the situation first-hand to enable us to pray for justice and peace. In Cairo we will honour the 21 Coptic Martyrs slain by ISIS terrorists by visiting Coptic churches and monasteries, and meeting with local Christians to learn from their experiences and offer them our solidarity. The PIlGRIMAGE OF THE PEACEMAKERS is a journey of prayer for peace and of solidarity with our fellow Christians and all people of peace in the Holy Land and Egypt. Led by Archbishop Stephen Brislin, Catholic top guide Rimon Makhlouf, and Southern Cross editor and The Holy Land Trek author Günther Simmermacher, it will be a pilgrimage in the footsteps and in service of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Pilgrimage Highlights
• All the important sites of Our Lord’s life, death and resurrection in Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Nazareth, Cana, Jordan River, Sea of Galilee etc. • Encounters with peacemakers of the Holy Land, visits to an abandoned village, refugee camp, Yad Vashem memorial, Bethlehem University and more. • Visit to Coptic churches and monasteries, incl. Hanging Church of el Moallaqa. Encounter with Coptic Christians. Plus Pyramids of Giza, Sphinx, the famous Egyptian Museum and a Nile Cruise.
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PHOTO that went viral recently, depicting a young Syrian child “surrendering” in front of a camera she thought to be a gun, is but a mere hint at the trauma which displaced and refugee children face across the Middle East, an aid worker says. Many times children in refugee camps “look empty, or they just look numb,” said Zerene Haddad. Ms Haddad is in charge of Regional Advocacy and Communications for Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) in the Middle East and North Africa, based in Beirut, Lebanon. The regional office serves more than 2 000 Iraqi refugees in Jordan and Syria. In her experience the recovery process for a child affected by war and violence “comes down a lot to the ability of the child to express themselves”. The lack of vocabulary to express their emotions and the lack of emotional maturity needed to process what they are feeling and experiencing can have a very negative effect on children, Ms Haddad noted. This begs the question: “How do you help this child? What are you able to do when the child is so young?” Photographer Osman Sagirli said that he took the photo of the little girl in the heartbreaking surrender mode in December at the Atmeh refugee camp in Syria, which sits roughly 10km from the Turkish border. After taking the photo of 4year-old Hudea, who came to the camp with her mother and two siblings after travelling over 150km from their home in Hama, Mr Sagirli said he realised “she was
Little Hudea, 4, raises her arms in surrender as she mistakes a camera for a weapon. terrified…because she bit her lips and raised her hands”. “Normally kids run away, hide their faces or smile when they see a camera,” he told the BBC, but when he broke out his telephoto lens to capture the shot, Hudea “thought it was a weapon”. Ms Haddad said that in her experience of working with displaced and refugee children, there is a wide variety of reactions to their situation. Some children, she said, “are visibly traumatised and shaken up,” while others “are able to conceal it well, so they appear that they are coping well on the surface, but after a while signs begin to show”. The majority of children JRS works with in Lebanon have experienced some sort of trauma, Ms Haddad noted, saying that “they all have stories” of losing friends, family members or witnessing some form of extreme violence. “Even the act of having to be forcibly displaced is a traumatic event to occur in someone’s life, even without any violence having necessarily occurred around or directly in front of your eyes,” she said.—CNA
CLASSIFIEDS
Mary Fitzgerald
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ITH the death of Mary Fitzgerald, the Church lost a great friend to many. Ms Fitzgerald was born in Scotland on May 30, 1925. She had three sisters and one brother, who died tragically at the age of two. After school she trained as a nurse in Edinburgh Infirmary. Then her life journey brought her to South Africa, where she worked as a nurse in KwaZuluNatal and completed her training in midwifery. In 1960 she felt called to join the Good Shepherd Sisters. This brought her to the then-Transvaal. She stayed with them for a few years, and worked in Fatima House. At this time she also studied at the Wits University in Johannesburg for a master’s degree in social work. After these studies, Ms Fitzgerald became matron at Cotlands Babies Sanctuary in Johannesburg. Later she returned to the University as a member of staff and lectured in social work. Ms Fitzgerald also lectured at St John Vianney Seminary in
the assessment of seminarians. Another element of Ms Fitzgerald’s activity was her pioneering of “group and community development” in the Winterveldt, Johannesburg. In this project, called Betterment Trust (Self-help Programme), she was financially assisted by Anglo American. This self-help project began with the digging of a well, which led to several other projects, such as a clinic, kindergarten, vegetable gardens, brickmaking and house-building. Ms Fitzgerald became a very well known consultant and was available to all who worked for the poor and needy. Even in her retirement up to the age of 75, she continued as consultant and friend to many. In her later years, she retired to Port Elizabeth, where she made new friends, lived simply and was lovingly cared for by her long-time friend, Rosemary Luke. She also enjoyed the company of a rabbit named AGM and a little dog name Pip. In the last year or two of her life, Ms Fitzgerald’s strength
as an obstacle to the Church’s witness today. This is what the Theological Commission describes as a “purification of memory”. My friend was right when she spoke about the need to retell our history in a way that reveals both the faults and triumphs of all our national icons, including those that have fallen out of favour. In doing so, we purify our collective memory, while also “seeking at the same time a dialogue in mutual understanding with those who may feel themselves still wounded by past acts” of which we are the heirs, whether we like it or not. The students of UCT and the EFF have started a necessary dialogue which allows us the op-
BIRTHDAY
Mary Fitzgerald weakened and eventually she moved into a care unit called Home Sweet Home, in Newton Park, Port Elizabeth. Local parish priest, Fr Jerry Brown gave Ms Fitzgerald the last rites and she died peacefully on November 22. She was buried from the Church of San Francesco, Charlo, Port Elizabeth, and her ashes were interred in the Garden of Remembrance of that church. She is survived by her niece, Claire Dowling, who lives in England. By Rosemary Luke and Fr Matt Gormley OFM Cap
portunity to purify our memories. But in so doing, we must refrain from the kind of hysteria that has the potential to destroy both the dialogue and the bronzed icons. The inscription on the 1905 Horse Memorial in Port Elizabeth reads: “The greatness of a nation consists not so much upon the number of its people or the extent of its territory, as in the extent and justice of its compassion.” May compassion be the balm that helps us to purify our historical memory so that our past, present and future can be cleansed through Christ, who each day calls us to look at his crucified and resurrected Body and “do this in memory of me.”
Our bishops’ anniversaries
Southern CrossWord solutions
This week we congratulate: 27: Bishop Stanley Dziuba of Umzimkulu on his 55th birthday 27: Bishop Sithembele Sipuka of Mthatha on his 55th birthday
SOLUTIONS TO 651. ACROSS: 3 Integrity, 8 Dour, 9 Avuncular, 10 Castle, 11 Windy, 14 Tempo, 15 Seed, 16 Fudge, 18 Nail, 20 Motet, 21 Dozen, 24 Hearer, 25 Pacemaker. DOWN: 1 Educating, 2 Nursemaid, 4 Nave, 5 Ennui, 6 Rounds, 7 Tsar, 9 Aloof, 11 Woden, 12 Yesterday, 13 Editorial, 17 Ember, 19 Loreto, 22 Enact, 23 Farm, 24 Heir, 26 Lava, 27 Impostor
Liturgical Calendar Year B Weekdays Cycle Year 1 Sunday, April 26, 4th Sunday of Easter Acts 4:8-12, Psalms 118:1, 8-9, 21-23, 26, 28-29, 1 John 3:1-2, John 10:11-18 Monday, April 27 Acts 11:1-18, Psalms 42:2-3; 43:3-4, John 10:110 Tuesday, April 28 Acts 11:19-26, Psalms 87:1-7, John 10:22-30 Wednesday, April 29, St Catherine of Siena Acts 12:24-13:5, Psalms 67:2-3, 5-6, 8, John 12:44-50 Thursday, April 30, Our Lady Mother of Africa Acts 13:13-25, Psalms 89:2-3, 21-22, 25, 27, John 13:16-20 Friday, May 1, St Joseph the Worker Acts 13: 26-33, Psalms 2:6-11, John 14:1-6 Saturday, May 2, St Athanasius Acts 13:44-52, Psalms 98:1-4, John 14:7-14 Sunday, May 3, 5th Sunday of Easter Acts 9:26-31, Psalms 22:26-28, 30-32, 1 John 3:18-24, John 15:1-8
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How can we purify our memory? Continued from page 7 recognise our former narrow understanding of who comprised the beneficiaries of our nation’s wealth and reject any official and unofficial policies that promote racism, exclude the poor, or resist transformation. As Christians, we should be leading this kind of transformation. We have had more than enough practice in our 2 000 years of lived experience. In two millennia of history, we have taken the Good News to every corner of the earth, but several times since Vatican II, the Church has asked forgiveness for “‘methods of violence and intolerance’ used in the past to evangelise;” these “scandals of the past” that still stand
The Southern Cross, April 22 to April 28, 2015
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IN MEMORIAM
ABRAHAMS—née Petersen. To our dearest daughter and sister Mandy, celebrating your second anniversary in Heaven with all the angels and saints. We miss you and will always remember you with fondest memories. May your soul RIP. From Mom, Dad, sisters, brother and son Carlisle. BLUNDEN and GUNTER —Trevor, Rochelle and William. Five years now and we still miss you so, Mom, Dad and William. May the Lord cradle you gently and grant you eternal rest with him. Lovingly remembered by your children Liz, Chris, Kathy, Mike, Genevieve, Shaun, Terry, David, grandchildren and great-grandchild Luke.
DOWLING—“Chummy” Charles Humphrey. In loving memory of a loving husband, father and grandfather who passed away seven years ago. Fondly missed and lovingly remembered by your wife Bridget and the Pasensie and Flores families.
PERSONAL
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mote your reign now and in the future. May your kingdom come, may your will be done. Amen”
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 return I promise to make your name known and publish this prayer. Amen. Thanks to Ss Anthony and Michael. CM. 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 return I promise to make your name known and publish this prayer. Pat. PRAYER FOR CONSECRATED LIFE
Loving Creator, we thank you for the gift that religious life has been within our church and society. Help us to nurture this gift so that the Congregations may continue to be a healing presence in our world. May we all respond to the realities of our present times, in ways that pro-
LORD, teach me to be generous; to serve you as you deserve; to give and not to count the cost; to fight and not to heed the wounds; to toil and not to seek to rest; to labour and to ask for no reward save that of knowing I do your will. Amen. St Ignatius.
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5th Sunday of Easter: May 3 Readings: Acts 926-31, Psalm 22: 26-28, 3032, 1 John 3:18-24, John 15:1-8
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E are still in the Resurrection time, and you are probably aware that this does not always mean that things are perfectly comfortable. That is the lesson of the readings for next Sunday. The first reading records the arrival of Paul in Jerusalem, just after his encounter with Jesus outside Damascus. You will recall that he had set off for Damascus with a plan to arrest every Christian, of either gender, whom he could find there; so it is not surprising that the Jerusalem Christians “were all afraid of him, not believing that he was a disciple”. So Barnabas, who was always very good to Paul (but with whom Paul later had a row), introduces Paul to the apostles, and confirms that he has indeed “seen the Lord, and had spoken boldly in Damascus in the name of Jesus”. So Paul has now some “street cred” among the Christians of Jerusalem, “speaking openly in the name of Jesus”. But it is still not comfortable, this time because of an encounter with Greek-speaking Jews, presumably very much the sort of people who had put Stephen to death; this causes a threat to
S outher n C ross
Paul’s life, so the Christians ease him out of the city, to Caesarea on the coast, and then back to his native Tarsus. Then, just in case we were getting uncomfortable, Luke gives us one of his reassuring “summaries”, to the effect that “the Church in the whole of Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace, getting built up and journeying in the fear of the Lord, and was filled with the comfort of the Holy Spirit”. But we know it will not be an easy ride. The psalm, as is the psalmist’s custom, is more aware of the cheerfulness than of the discomfort: “My vows I shall fulfil before those who fear [the Lord]; the poor shall eat their fill and be satisfied; they shall praise the Lord, those who seek him…they shall proclaim his deliverance to a people yet unborn.” Very cheerful, you say; but you should also notice that this is the second half of the lament placed on Jesus’ lips on the cross: “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” So there is discomfort here as well. So how are we to keep our comfort, when
so much threatens us, even though Jesus has indeed been raised from the dead? The answer offered by our second reading for next Sunday is “real love”; for “if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God” (the same word was used of Paul in our first reading, you remember). Our task is to “keep his commandments, and do what is pleasing in his sight”. And the commandment is a simple one: “That we should believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another.” And the one who keeps his commandments “remains in him, and he in that person. That is how we know that he remains in us, from the Spirit that he gave us”. Properly understood, this is deeply reassuring; but it is not going to be comfortable. The gospel is the famous parable of the Vine and the Vinedresser, the point of which is to take us to the heart of John’s gospel, the link between Jesus and his Father and between them and his disciples; but it is not going to be comfortable (you will not be surprised to learn): “every branch in me [that is
Living with other faiths W
Moreover each religion is to reject nothing that is true and holy in other religions. 3. No one religion or denomination has the full and whole truth. God is both infinite and ineffable. For this reason, by definition, God cannot be captured adequately in human concepts and human language. Thus, while our knowledge of God may be true, it is always only partial. God can be truly known, but God cannot be adequately thought. 4. All faiths and all religions are journeying towards the fullness of truth. No one religion or denomination may consider its truth complete, something to permanently rest within; rather it must see it as a starting point from which to journey. Moreover, as various religions (and denominations and sectarian groups within those religions) we need to feel secure enough within our own “home” so as to acknowledge the truth and beauty that is expressed in other “homes”. We need to accept (and, I suggest, be pleased) that there are other lives within which the faith is written in a different language. 5. Diversity within religions is a richness, willed by God. God does not just wish our unity; God also blesses our diversity which helps reveal the stunning overabundance within God. Religious diversity is the cause of much tension, but that diversity and the struggle to overcome it will contribute strongly to the richness of our eventual unity.
Conrad
E live inside a world and inside religions that are too given to disrespect and violence. Virtually every newscast today documents the prevalence of disrespect and violence done in the name of religion, disrespect done for the sake of God (strange as that expression may seem). Invariably those acting in this way see their actions as sacral, justified by sacred cause. And, if history is to be believed, it has always been so. No religion, Christianity no less than any other, has been innocent. Every one of the great religions of the world has been, at various times, both persecuted and persecutor. So this begs the question: What are some fundamental principles we are asked to live out apposite our relationship to other faiths, irrespective our particular faith? What's best in each of our traditions would suggest these ten principles: 1. All that is good, true, and beautiful comes from one and the same author: God. Nothing that is true, irrespective of its particular religious or secular cloak, may be seen as opposed to true faith and religion. 2. God wills the salvation of all people, equally, without discrimination. God has no favourites. All people have access to God and to God's Spirit, and the whole of humankind has never lacked for divine providence.
“Psst, Father, don’t mention the statues…”
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Nicholas King SJ
We must remain in Jesus
to say, in the vine] that does not bear fruit, he [the vinedresser] takes it off”, and if you are saying, “Well that’s all right, then”, Jesus continues, to our discomfort, “every branch that does bear good fruit, he prunes it, for it to bear more fruit”. Our task, and in many ways it is a comfortable one, is to “remain in me, and I in you”, like branches on a vine. Then the message is repeated: “I am the Vine, and you are the branches; the one who remains in me, and I in that person, that is the one who bears much fruit—because apart from me, you can do nothing.” Then the discomfort once more rears its ugly head: “If anyone does not remain in me, they are thrown out, like the branch; and they wither up, and people gather it, and throw it into the fire—and it is burnt.” No comfort here, you think, until you realise that it is simply an invitation to “remain in Jesus”. Let us pray to do that, this week.
Southern Crossword #651
Fr Ron Rolheiser OMI
Final Reflection
6. God is “scattered” in world religions. Anything that is positive within a religion expresses something of God and contributes to divine revelation. Hence, seen from this aspect, the various religions of the world all help to make God known. 7. Each person must account for his or her faith on the basis of his or her own conscience. Each of us must take responsibility for our own faith and salvation. 8. Intentionally all the great world religions interpenetrate each other (and, for a Christian, that means that they interpenetrate the mystery of Christ). A genuine faith knows that God is solicitous for everyone and that God's spirit blows freely and therefore it strives to relate itself to the intentionality of other religions and to other denominations and sectarian groups within its own religion. 9. A simple external, historical connection to any religion is less important than achieving a personal relationship, ideally of intimacy, with God. What God wants most deeply from us, irrespective of our religion, is not a religious practice but a personal relationship that transforms our lives so as to radiate God's goodness, truth and beauty more clearly. 10. Within our lives and within our relationship to other religions, respect, graciousness, and charity must trump all other considerations. This does not mean that all religions are equal and that faith can be reduced to its lowest common denominator, but it does mean that what lies deepest inside of every sincere faith are these fundamentals: respect, graciousness, and charity. Throughout history, great thinkers have grappled with the problem of the one and the many. And, consciously or unconsciously, all of us also struggle with that tension between the one and the many, the relationship between unity and diversity; but perhaps this not so much a problem as it is a richness that reflects the over-abundance of God and our human struggle to grasp that over-abundance.
St John Paul II Pilgrimage to Poland Southern Cross
Sunday Reflections
ACROSS 3. Tiny tiger shows his honesty (9) 8. Ardour that’s partly gloomy (4) 9. Like your mother’s brother (9) 10. Chess game’s stronghold (6) 11. Nervous when it’s draughty? (5) 14. Musical speed (5) 15. It is scattered in Matthew 13 (4) 16. Sugary sweet sold at parish bazaar (5) 18. Spike has a flat head (4) 20. Sacred chorus about totem (5) 21. Set of the Apostles (5) 24. One who heeds the Word (6) 25. Use it to keep your heartthrob steady 26. It’s hot from the underworld (4) 27. Pretenders (9)
DOWN
1. Can’t guide teaching (9) 2. She cares for the young child (9) 4. The body of the church (4) 5. Tedium of nun, i e moved (5) 6. Boxer’s circles? (6) 7. Some doubts arise for great Russian (4) 9. A fool becoming detached (5) 11. Scandinavian god (5) 12. The recent past (9) 13. Article I tailored in the newspaper (9) 17. It glows at the end of three months (5) 19. Place of Our Lady’s airborne house (6) 22. Make a cent into law (5) 23. Growing land area? (4) 24. He’s legally entitled after death (4) Solutions on page 15
CHURCH CHUCKLE
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NE day, Eve was walking in the garden with God when she told him that sometimes she felt very lonely. “No problem,” God replied, “I will make you a man for a companion.” And he took some mud and started shaping it when he suddenly stopped. “Oh, Eve, there’s just one thing about this man I’m making for you,” God said. “You’ll have to tell him he was here first.”
A journey to the places of St John Paul II’s life and devotions, led by a Bishop who knows Poland intimately.
Led by Bishop Stan Dziuba 13 - 21 May 2016
Kraków | Wadowice (on St John Paul II’s birthday) | Black Madonna of Częstochowa | Niepokalanów (St Maxmilan Kolbe) | Divine Mercy Sanctuary | Warsaw | Kalwaria Zebrzydowska (with miraculous icon) | Zakopane | Wieliczka Salt Mine (with Mass!)