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January 31 to February 6, 2018
10 ways to combat racism this Lent
Reg No. 1920/002058/06
No 5069
New column by Fr S’milo Mngadi
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St Josephine Bakhita (feast on Feb 8)
Interview with veteran Vatican II bishop
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Bishops sorry for Church’s past failures STAFF REPORTER
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HE president of the Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference (SACBC) has apologised for the local Church’s historical failures in the colonial and apartheid eras, as well as for the sexual abuse of minors by Church personnel, over the 200 years since the Catholic Church was established in South Africa. Addressing the bishops’ January plenary in Pretoria, Archbishop Stephen Brislin of Cape Town said: “We…apologise unreservedly for incidents of sexual abuse of minors which have occurred in the Church of Southern Africa. Thank God, today we have committed ourselves to rooting out this evil and to protecting children.” He expressed the Church’s “remorse for the times when we remained silent about— or even worse, were part of—the negativity of colonialism and apartheid”, acknowledging that “people have been hurt by the Church in this regard, and in other matters”. He called on Catholics to remain hopeful about South Africa despite current problems, and to work for the country they want. This, he said, includes confronting the problems of racism and economic injustice. He stressed that dealing with racism is “an essential ingredient to the healing and reconciliation that is needed in our country, without which I do not believe we will ever be able to achieve any true peace”. Archbishop Brislin strongly condemned corruption, noting that there is a general feeling of helplessness and despair. “If this is true, then the crime is enormous and those responsible should be brought to account and face the legal consequences,” he said. “Leaders in whom the electorate placed their trust have betrayed the country, and most especially betrayed the poor, for their own selfish and greedy interests.” Acknowledging the need to correct economic imbalances, Archbishop Brislin said that “we must accept and help others to ac-
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cept, and it will involve sacrifices on the part of some”. He pointed out that besides state-capture, corruption is rife in South Africa, referring to massive corruption in the corporate environment. “The corrupt include people who sit on the pews of churches, mosques, temples and synagogues for their weekly worship,” he noted. The Church needs to raise awareness among the faithful about corruption and challenge them where it occurs, he said. This also means that the Church must be transparent and accountable in its finances, stressing that “we use our temporal resources honestly, wisely and in the service of evangelisation”. Archbishop Brislin also addressed the formulation of a new draft Pastoral Plan for the local Church with a vision of an “Evangelising Community Serving God, Humanity and All Creation”. This, he said, has eight themes: evangelisation; laity formation and empowerment; life and ministry of priests and deacons; marriage and family; youth; Justice and Peace and non-violence; healing and reconciliation; and care of creation. Citing Pope Francis’ apostolic exhortation Amoris Laetitia, he said that priests are called to “accompany and support people, even if their life situations do not reach the ideal”. He emphasised the importance of the work done at the grassroots level, which he said is one of the Church’s strengths. With a view to the current bicentennial jubilee, which will culminate in countrywide celebrations in June, Archbishop Brislin said: “Together, as the Catholics of this country, united in our faith in Jesus Christ, we continue the tradition handed on to us over the past 200 years. “Because we believe, we continue to speak, to evangelise and to glorify God, in anticipation of the Resurrection and our meeting once again at the side of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.”
Fr Fannie Raymond Msiza of Pretoria with family and parishioners after his ordination by Archbishop William Slattery at Ekangala Community Hall. Fr Msiza celebrated his first Mass the following day at St Bartholomew church in Ekangala, which is about 60km from Pretoria. (Photo: Mathiebela Sebothoma)
More Dead Sea Scrolls decoded
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HE Dead Sea Scrolls, which are among the oldest extant biblical manuscripts, have been a topic of interest since they were discovered in the Qumran caves in the occupied West Bank in 1946. More recently, Israeli scholars have pieced together some of the last fragments of the ancient documents, revealing new information about the scrolls. Dr Eshbal Ratzon and Prof Jonathan BenDov of Haifa University decoded 60 previously unread fragments over the course of a year to discover a festival marking each changing season which was celebrated by the Jews. The researchers also found the name for the festival: the Hebrew word tekufah, meaning “period”. These fragments, some of which were smaller than a centimetre, identified the seasonal celebrations, which included the festivals of New Wheat, New Wine, and New Oil, which are linked to the Jewish festival of Shavuot. These celebrations were based on the 364-day Jewish calendar. Additionally, the researchers found that a second scribe made additional notes on the scroll, correcting some mistakes and omissions made by the original author. According to Dr Ratzon, these notes made it easier for them to decode the ancient scrolls. “What’s nice is that these comments were
A facsimile of Dead Sea Scrolls at Qumran in the West Bank, where some of the oldest extant biblical manuscripts were found. (Photo: Günther Simmermacher) hints that helped me figure out the puzzle— they showed me how to assemble the scroll,” said Dr Ratzon, according to the BBC. The writing of the ancient texts are attributed by many to the Essenes, a Jewish sect who lived in the desert. The scrolls, around 900 in number, contain Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic writing, and are thought to date to between 300 BC and AD 100.—CNA
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