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Special focus: Five years of Pope Francis

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Pages 7-9

SA gives Pope Francis thumbs up at milestone By NeReeShA PAtel

ARCH 13 marks the five-year anniversary of Pope Francis’ pontificate. Born and raised in Buenos Aires, Argentina, he made history in 2013 when he became the first non-European pope in over 1 000 years, the first Jesuit pope, and the first pope to come from the Southern Hemisphere. Since his election, the pope has enjoyed immense popularity among Catholics and non-Catholics alike, due to his humility, his ability to communicate on a colloquial level, his diplomatic efforts, and his working towards making the Church more welcoming. Pope Francis’ concern for those living in poverty is especially noteworthy: it has become a significant theme of his papacy, and he has urged Catholics to devote more time to the alleviation of poverty. “In the poor, we find the presence of Jesus, who—although rich—became poor,” the pope said on the first World Day for the Poor last year. Because of this, “in their weakness, a saving power is present. And if in the eyes of the world they have little value, they are the ones who open to us the way to heaven.” South African Church leaders have offered their congratulations to the pope for reaching this milestone as well as thoughts on his tenure and achievements thus far. “In many ways, Pope Francis has exceeded my expectations,” said Cardinal Wilfrid Napier, archbishop of Durban. “He not only set about reforming the Church as mandated, but he also made sure that the reform would be carried out by a structure, and so would not depend on the goodwill of even well-disposed and supportive individual heads of dicasteries.” Fr Chris Chatteris SJ of the Jesuit Institute said Pope Francis comes from a tradition of a preferential option for the poor, and the poor are the majority of the Church. “This has had the effect of putting on the backburner some of the issues dear to the Church in the developed world of the United States and Europe. “I think ordinary people really appreciate

The

having a pope who is filled with pastoral concern and compassion. They don’t necessarily read his documents, but they can sense that here is a man who is truly concerned about them,” Fr Chatteris added. Veteran media priest Fr Ralph de Hahn commended the pope for being “fearless in attacking the frigid, static, legalistic Church of Rome, just as Jesus attacked the Pharisees for their legalism”. “He spoke harshly against those in the conservative camp who, adorned with titles and rich garments, stifle the flow of compassion and relief to the poor,” said Fr de Hahn. Although there have been times when Pope Francis has lacked diplomacy, he noted, the pope has never lacked sincerity and love. “He is considered by millions to be bold, outspoken and adventurous, but not stupid,” said Fr de Hahn. Archbishop William Slattery of Pretoria described Pope Francis as an “accessible person”. “I think the pope has had a huge and positive impact on the presence of the Catholic Church today,” the archbishop said. “I am impressed by the emphases which have emerged from his papacy: mercy, tenderness, humility, service and closeness to people.” He added: “On his visits, the pope gives special place to the poor and the prisoners. His actions have been dramatic and have drawn attention to where there is poverty, marginalisation and migration.” Archbishop Slattery praised the pope for highlighting the importance of family, a topic Pope Francis explores in his apostolic exhortation Amoris Laetitia (On Love in the Family). He also lauded the pope for calling on Catholics to live their baptism and evangelise. “He emphasises the spiritual foundation of the Church found in the Gospel and in the person of Jesus,” the archbishop said. Pope Francis, the above clergy believe, has accomplished a great deal during his five-year papacy, cementing his legacy in the Church, a legacy rich in hope, fidelity and mercy. n See also Pages 6-9.

S outher n C ross

A woman wears lipstick in the colours of the irish flag during last year’s St Patrick’s day parade in dublin. the feast day of St Patrick, the 5th-century apostle of ireland and the primary patron saint of ireland, along with St Brigid of kildare and St Columba, is on March 17. (Photo: Clodagh kilcoyne, Reuters/CNS)

Church of Holy Sepulchre shut for three days to protest taxes By Judith SudilovSky

HRISTIAN leaders in the Holy Land, who closed the church of the Holy Sepulchre in protest against three days later after the Israeli government set up a committee to resolve the dispute. The closing of the church during Lent, close to Easter, the busiest time for pilgrims, drew international attention. The heads of Christian churches, following the establishment of the committee, expressed their “gratitude to all who have worked tirelessly to uphold the Christian presence in Jerusalem and defend the status quo”. The churches are opposed to the Jerusalem municipality’s plan, announced in early February, to tax church property, such as hotels and convention centres, not used for worship purposes. The municipality said it would begin collecting $186,4 million (about R2,2 billion) in taxes from some 887 church-owned properties. The proposal runs contrary to the unofficial historical tax-exempt status Christian churches have enjoyed for centuries.

In addition, the Church leaders are opposed to a bill in the Israeli parliament that would limit the ability to sell Church-owned land to private owners. Catholic, Greek Orthodox and Armenian church leaders said earlier they believed there was a “systematic campaign ... against the churches and the Christian community in the Holy Land ... in what seems an attempt to weaken the Christian presence in Jerusalem”. Jordan’s minister of state for media affairs had also called on “the Israeli government to immediately reverse the decisions taken against churches and respect its obligations under international law as an occupying power in East Jerusalem”. Under a 1994 peace accord with Israel, Jordan is recognised as the legal custodian of Christian and Muslim holy sites in Jerusalem. Church leaders said they looked forward to engaging with the government committee “to ensure that our holy city, where our Christian presence continues to face challenges, remains a place where the three monotheistic faiths may live and thrive together”.—CNS

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LOCAL

Bishops seek personal testimonies of racism By eRiN CARelSe

HE Justice and Peace Commission of the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference has prepared a discussion guide parishes can use to have a conversation on race and economic inequality, with the aim of collecting stories and publishing them. The guide offers ordinary South Africans the chance to share their experiences and views of affirmative action, the land reform programme, and education/health reforms. These will be collated into a book and, with other material, used as an advocacy tool to challenge the government to do more about

racism and economic inequality. The guide covers six themes: 1. Inequality in land ownership Was your family a victim of forced removals; your experiences (positive and negative) as a mineworker or farmworker during apartheid; your experiences of corruption regarding access to land. 2. Inequality in education and health services Your experiences about difficulties accessing health services during apartheid; young people dropping out of school (primary and high) during apartheid; difficulties in access to university studies during apartheid; your experiences as par-

ents regarding fees for high school and university during apartheid. 3. Inequality in accessing jobs How has the ANC government’s affirmative action programme affected you and your family; during apartheid, what were your and your family’s experiences about difficulties in getting a job; what are your experiences of corruption in relation to access to job opportunities. 4. Experience of racism in the workplace and at school Your personal experiences of racial prejudice; negative stereotyping of people belonging to particular races/ethnic groups/nationalities; racist remarks, jokes and com-

the diamond jubilee celebration of holy Cross Sisters Mary Gabriel Solomons and Alfreda Reil was held at the provincial house in Parow valley, Cape town. Bishop edward Adams of oudtshoorn was the main celebrant, with Fr Ralph de hahn the homilist, and deacon Arthur Johannes also on the altar. twelve priests concelebrated, including Fr Matthew Gormley oFM.Cap, a former parish priest in langa, where Sr Alfreda has served for 60 years. the two Sisters, flanked by Srs Gerardine Barry and Maria Plach, are shown renewing their vows before Bishop Adams.

ments (both overt and covert); treatment of people belonging to particular groups as outsiders. 5. Experience of racism within the Church In your parish and diocese, your personal experiences of prejudice and fear of people belonging to particular groups; treatment of people belonging to such groups as outsiders; privileges and opportunities made available only to people of one group; gossiping and negative stereotyping directed against people of particular groups. 6. Experience of racism in schools/universities Your personal experiences of

racial prejudice and fear of people belonging to a particular group; negative stereotyping of such people; racist remarks, jokes, and comments (both overt and covert). Parishes or parish groups are encouraged to do theme 5 on racism within the Church. Catholic schools and ACTS branches are encouraged to do theme 6 on racism in schools and universities. n Stories shared at these discussions, and stories in your personal capacity, can be sent to fax 012 326 6218, email tchepape@sacbc.org.za For the full guide, and with help implementing it in your parish, please contact Fr Paul Tatu on ptatu@sacbc.org.za

Late theologian Brian Gaybba remembered By eRiN CARelSe

RIAN Gaybba, former priest, Rhodes University dean, and one of South Africa’s foremost Catholic theologians, passed away on February 25 in Grahamstown after a long struggle with Parkinson’s disease. Mr Gaybba, who was ordained a priest in 1962 in the Cape Town archdiocese, was also appointed to the first-ever Theological Advisory Commission for the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference. He was the only secular priest on the commission, which was made up of Catholic academics who would discuss contemporary issues and serve also as ad hoc advisors to the bishops. He later left the ministerial priesthood and the commission in 1977, and joined the teaching staff of the newly established Theological Education by Extension College, Johannesburg. His son Richard Gaybba sent The Southern Cross extracts from his father’s reminiscences, wherein he spoke of his love for theology. “Theology came to be my first love. Learning about our Catholic beliefs, where they came from, how they developed into the form we know today, how to distinguish between the core essence of a doctrine and the particular ideas that specific cultures clothe such a doctrine in—all of this and more I found fascinating,” Mr Gaybba wrote. From 1957-62 he attended St John Vianney Seminary in Pretoria where he studied philosophy and theology. From 1963-67 he studied at the Urban University in Rome, obtaining a licentiate in theology in 1964 and a doctorate in theology (summa cum laude) in 1967. In 1978 he was appointed a senior lecturer in systematic theology at Unisa, the first Catholic theologian to be given such a post in its faculty. He was later promoted to associate professor and then full professor.

e and his wife Monika Gaertner then moved to Grahamstown where he became head of the department of divinity at Rhodes University. In 2003, he retired and was appointed emeritus professor of systematic theology. Mr Gaybba’s published works include The Spirit of Love; Aspects of the Development of Theology as a Discipline: 12th-14th Centuries; and God is

Retirement Home, Rivonia, Johannesburg Tel:011 803 1451 www.lourdeshouse.org

Brian Gaybba, former priest, Rhodes university dean, and renowned theologian, has died. a Community: A General Survey of Christian Theology. Veteran journalist Sydney Duval, a friend of Mr Gaybba’s, remembers him from their student days at St John Vianney onward. “He was one of the Church’s brightest intellects. His mind was always on the go—like the knotted string he carried about with him which he twirled and swung to his own inner beat. “Brian was there the day the consul from Taiwan addressed us as ‘honourable gentlemen of the cemetery’. He was also there the day an English lecturer from Unisa brought Gerard Manley Hopkins into our lives with his reading of ‘The Windhover’.” Mr Duval said they caught up with each other at times through their lives, one of them being in 2001. “I was asked to write a section of Joy Brain’s history of the seminary. Brian was generous with time, input and wit. Our chats were a celebration of shared memory,” he said. Retired Bishop Reginald Cawcutt recalls Mr Gaybba as a great student. “I remember the night before our exams began. While all the other students relaxed in our recreation room, Brian would go upstairs and study. “We often wondered why, since he was brilliant, and if anyone should have been relaxed it was him.” Fr Larry Kaufmann celebrated Mr Gaybba’s Requiem Mass on March 1 at St Patrick’s church in Grahamstown.

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LOCAL

N response to President Cyril Ramaphosa’s cabinet reshuffle, Fr Peter-John Pearson, Catholic Parliamentary Liaison Office director, said it was inevitable that a measure of realpolitik would intrude and that the cabinet reshuffle might well have been such a moment, and probably the first of many. Mr Ramaphosa, announcing his new cabinet at the Union Buildings in Pretoria, made significant changes, to ensure national government is better equipped to implement this administration’s mandate and specifically the tasks identified in the State of the Nation Address. Fr Pearson said it appeared to be a case of getting rid of the worst and bringing back the best, with some questionable performers left alone or shifted sideways. Some of former President Zuma’s closest allies were out: Mosebenzi Zwane, David Mahlobo, Des van Rooyen, Faith Muthambi, Bongani Bongo, and conversely, people with a track record of diligence and hard work were in: Pravin Gordhan, Nhlanhla Nene, Zweli Mkhize, Derek Hanekom, Gwede Mantashe. “Somewhat surprisingly, Bathabile Dlamini has been retained, though shifted to the women’s portfolio in the Presidency. This signals Mr Ramaphosa’s enforced sensitivity to ‘constituen-

Memorial Mass celebrates justice pioneer Fr Ted Rogers

Ramaphosa cabinet ‘more competent’ By eRiN CARelSe

the Southern Cross, March 7 to March 13, 2018

ARDINAL Wilfrid Napier celebrated a special Memorial Mass for the late Jesuit Father Ted Rogers, a great pioneer of social causes in Rhodesia and Zimbabwe, at Mariannhill Monastery. The cardinal concelebrated with Mariannhill provincial Fr Bheki Shabalala, Jesuit regional superior David Rowan, as well as Frs Cas Paulsen CMM, Sibusiso Mkhize CMM and Chris Richmond OMI. In his tribute, Cardinal Napier described Fr Rogers as always alert to new social needs and ever-ready to rally all to tackle initiatives such as establishing the School of Social Work at the University of Rhodesia, and starting the Jesuit Aids Network throughout Africa. Fr Rowan in his homily presented Fr Rogers as a fine example of a Jesuit who responded to the three questions put to his followers by St Ignatius: “What have I done for Christ?” “What am I doing for Christ?” “What will I do for Christ?” Fr Rogers, he noted, always answered these questions with energy and creativity. Fr Shabalala reminded those gathered that St Anne’s Hall, where the Mass was celebrated, had a special significance for Fr Rogers. This was where in the late 1980s he had urged a plenary session of the bishops of the SACBC to take up the Aids ministry in each of their dioceses.

cies’ within the ANC; in this case the Women’s League, of which Ms Dlamini is president.” Perhaps a similar consideration explains the survival of Nomvula Mokonyane, he said, whose tenure as Water and Sanitation minister was so bad that a committee chair described her department as having “totally collapsed”. Evidently, high-profile departure Fikile Mbalula lacked such a place-saving constituency. “Quite why he was sacked while his fellow Youth League veteran, Malusi Gigaba, was merely moved from one senior post [Finance] to another [Home Affairs] is unclear,” Fr Pearson said. “With a reputation every bit as low as Mr Zuma’s, and some say more so, David Mabuza becomes our new deputy president,” he said. “This is a deep and worrying shadow that looms over the new cabinet, and over Mr Ramaphosa’s vision of renewal. Mr Mabuza will not necessarily wield much direct power as deputy president, but there is no reason to think his political ambitions have been exhausted. We may find ourselves creeping towards the brink again in ten, or even five, years’ time.” All in all, and despite the questionable retentions, Fr Pearson felt this was a much stronger, much more competent and—above all—much more dependable executive than the one Mr Zuma cobbled together.

the Zimbabwean Choir from emmanuel Cathedral, durban, singing their national anthem at the Memorial Mass for Fr ted Rogers SJ. It was also the venue where his memoirs were launched in 2012, and where his last book, Missionary Martyrs of Rhodesia and Zimbabwe: 1976-1988 was launched just weeks before his death. The Zimbabwean Choir of Emmanuel cathedral led the singing, including Shona and Ndebele hymns and a rousing rendering of the Zimbabwean national anthem. n Ted Rogers: Jesuit, Social Pioneer and AIDS Activist in Zimbabwe and Missionary Martyrs of Rhodesia & Zimbabwe: 19761988 can be ordered from Paddy Kearney at pkearney@saol.com, 031 201 3832, or 072 806 4417.

ACTS student group visits Castle in Cape Town By NeReeShA PAtel

M St Agnes parish in Woodstock, Cape town, holds an annual festival. this year it will include a talent show.

Parish to host first talent show By eRiN CARelSe

T AGNES parish in Woodstock, Cape Town, is hosting its fifth annual festival on April 29 to raise funds for the church, and this year will include a talent show called “Churches Got Talent”. The show, which will have various rounds, will start with closed auditions on March 24 at St Agnes church, 13 Dublin Street, Woodstock. Gates will open at 9:00. Acts will then be chosen for the festival round on April 29. There will also be four opportunities to win the “Golden Buzzer”, which will see acts progress straight to the grand finale on June 3. The winner will walk away with R15 000 and the winner’s church will receive R10 000. If a child who wins attends a Catholic school, then the R10 000 can go to their school, or half to St Agnes and half to the school. The festival will offer stalls, a wheel of fortune, a bar, a play area for children with jumping castles, and the chance to win “Mrs St Agnes” for women aged 25 and older. There is no entry fee. Previous festivals have been a big success, and the funds raised have allowed for the completion of the church’s parking project, and many other smaller projects. Funds raised at this year’s festival will be going towards fixing the wall of remembrance, further securing the property, and maintenance that needs to be done at the church. St Agnes was established in 1882, and blessed and opened in 1898. It is shared between three communities: English, Portuguese and French. In the past couple of years, it has opened its doors to refugees and migrants, and also shares space with Lawrence House orphanage, right next door and named after the late Archbishop Lawrence Henry who loved to visit the house. n For pre-registration forms for “Churches Got Talent”, contact Octavia on 076 460 0360 or via e-mail at churchesgottalent@gmail.com

EMBERS of the Association of Catholic Tertiary Students (ACTS) in the Western Cape embarked on an intimate tour of the Castle in Cape Town. Completed in 1679 by the Dutch East India Company, the Castle is the oldest surviving colonial building in South Africa. Touring this heritage site was not only to showcase the province’s history, but also to give ACTS members from different universities the chance to get to know each other, said media secretary Meleza Tengimfene. “The tour was a great experience,” said Ms Tengimfene. “It enabled fellow members to meet and also get a sense of the importance of being a Catholic student on campus.” The group of 35 were from tertiary institutions in the province, such as the University of Cape Town, Stellenbosch University, the University of the Western Cape, and the

Cape Peninsula University of Technology. Highlights of the tour included observing a cannon-firing demonstration, viewing the governor’s private pool and rooms, and being shown the dungeons and torture chambers where slaves had been imprisoned. The students heard from the Castle guide of how slaves were treated by the Company. For many, it was an eye-opening tour. Tanyaradzwa Chiza praised it for being intriguing yet sombre. “I never really knew about the history of the Cape until now,” she said. “However, it was very sad hearing how people of colour were treated back then. It was demeaning and inhumane.” Fellow ACTS member Kirsten Miller agreed: “It was sad when the tourist guide informed us how slaves were tortured for following a different religion. The chamber will make you emotional.”

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the Southern Cross, March 7 to March 13, 2018

INTERNATIONAL

German bishops: Communion in mixed marriages allowed By ZitA BAlliNGeR FletCheR

HE German bishops’ conference continues to develop its recent decision to allow nonCatholic spouses in mixed-denomination marriages to receive Communion in limited cases. The document, primarily addressed to pastors, contains specific guidance about whether Communion is possible in particular cases for married couples of different Christian faiths. The document has been developed over several months, based on Pope Francis’ apostolic exhortation Amoris Laetitia and previous Catholic doctrine. It is now undergoing revisions. The bishops have yet to agree on a final version, which will be published in the coming weeks. “There are still possible additions,” Daniela Elpers, spokeswoman for the German bishops’ conference, told Catholic News Service. The initial announcement, made by Cardinal Reinhard Marx, conference president, following the bishops’ plenary conference, stated that the bishops deem it possible in certain cases to allow the Eucharist to be given to a non-Catholic spouse in a mixed-denomination marriage. “The background is the high proportion of mixed marriages and families in Germany, where we recognise a challenging and urgent pastoral task,” said Cardinal Marx, stressing the special responsibility

A dump site in Accra, Ghana. A Ghanaian bishop urged Catholic leaders from around Africa to use Pope Francis' environmental encyclical Laudato Si' as the basis of their work and to encourage others involved in ecological work to do the same. (Photo: tunza ecogeneration)

German bishops celebrate Mass in trier cathedral. A document is being prepared by the bishops to allow for mixed-denomination marriages to receive Communion at Mass in limited cases. (Photo: thomas Frey, ePA/CNS) of the German bishops’ conference in this matter. “This assistance will give help in concrete cases of mixed-denomination marriages and create a greater clarity and security for pastors and married people,” he said. Ms Elpers said the bishops’ conference cannot release more details about the working effects of the decision until the document is released. “To what extent couples are happy about this decision, we cannot say,” she said. The Catholic Church continues to insist that sharing the sacrament of Communion will be a sign that Christian churches have reconciled fully with one another, although in some pastoral situations, guests

may be invited to the Eucharist. In 2016, Cardinal Kurt Koch, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, noted that pastoral situations vary from country to country. He made a distinction between “eucharistic hospitality for individual people and eucharistic Communion”. The term hospitality is used to refer to welcoming guests to the Eucharist on special occasions or under special circumstances, as long as they recognise the sacrament as the real presence of Christ. Eucharistic Communion, on the other hand, refers to a more regular situation of the reception of Communion by people recognised as belonging to the same Church family.—CNS

Ghana bishop: Africans learn from Laudato Si’ By FRANCiS NJuGuNA

GHANAIAN bishop urged Catholic leaders from Africa to use Pope Francis’ environmental encyclical Laudato Si’ as the basis of their work and to encourage others involved in ecological work to do the same. “There is much we could learn from the papal document,” said Bishop Emmanuel Kofi Fianu of Ho, Ghana, who opened the conference, sponsored by the moral theology department of Tangaza University College and the Missionaries of Africa. “If you like, you can qualify the encyclical as ecumenical, as it cuts across existing religious beliefs,” the bishop said. The three-day conference was at-

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Confessional: Forgiveness, not threats By JuNNo ARoCho eSteveS

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tended by 250 delegates, including priests, nuns and laypeople. “In our country, Ghana for example, our main focus is on pollution and deforestation,” Bishop Fianu said. Sr Teresa Okure, a member of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus and a professor of New Testament and gender hermeneutics at the Catholic Institute of West Africa in Port Harcourt, Nigeria, said human interference with God’s creation had led some people in her country to suffer from pollution. Laudato Si’ been translated into Kiswahili by the Tanzanian bishops’ conference as part of the local Church’s commitment to implementing the document’s contents.— CNS

RIESTS must be mindful that the confessional is a place where people can find forgiveness and mercy, not threats and condemnation, Pope Francis said. God “does not want to beat us and condemn us”, but rather “he always looks for a way to enter the hearts” of those who are repentant, the pope said in his homily at morning Mass in the Domus Sanctae Marthae. “When we priests—in the Lord’s place— hear confessions, we also must have this attitude of goodness like the Lord, who says, ‘Come, let us talk, there is no problem, there is forgiveness’, and not with a threat from the beginning,” he said. Reflecting on the day’s first reading from the prophet Isaiah, the pope noted God’s merciful call to conversion and his willingness to forgive even “though your sins be like scarlet”. The relationship between God and his people, the pope said, is like that of the father of a teenager who has done something foolish and must be reproached. The father “knows that if he goes with a stick, things won’t go well; he must enter with confidence. The Lord in this passage calls us like this: ‘Come now. Let’s grab a coffee. Let’s talk. Don’t be afraid, I don’t want to beat you”, Pope Francis said. Through the sacrament of reconciliation, he added, Jesus “does not threaten but rather calls us with kindness, having confidence in us”, which allows people seeking forgiveness to take “a step forward on the path of conversion”. Recalling the example of a cardinal who, in the confessional, would not say much when someone confessed a great sin, Pope Francis said God also does not dwell on sins and instead gives “a receipt of forgiveness”. The pope said he finds it helpful to see the Lord’s attitude as that of “a father with a son who thinks he’s big, who believes he’s grown up, but instead is really just halfway there. The Lord knows that we are all halfway there and many times we need this, to hear this word: ‘Come, don’t be frightened, come. There is forgiveness.’ And this encourages us to go to the Lord with an open heart. It is the Father who awaits us.”—CNS

INTERNATIONAL

the Southern Cross, March 7 to March 13, 2018

Iraqi Christians urged: Remain steadfast in Lent By dAle GAvlAk

RAQI Catholic leaders are urging Christians to remain steadfast in this Lenten season as they encounter the challenges of ISIS’s legacy in their historic lands. Chaldean Catholic Patriarch Louis Sako of Baghdad urged Iraqi Christians to pursue unity with other Christians at this sacred time with “open hearts”. “Many Christians today live in a crisis of faith and intellect because of the circumstances of war, instability, migration and the dominance of social media on the details of their daily lives,” he wrote. Many Chaldean Catholics lost their homes, properties and other possessions as they fled ISIS militants in 2014. Many are destitute, still living in camps for the internally displaced or sheltering abroad. “However, these challenges should not discourage their determination and dissuade them from

renewing their faith and deepening it, to witness to the Lord and his Church,” the patriarch said, calling on Christians to “increase within themselves strength, confidence and enthusiasm”. Chaldean Catholic Archbishop Yousif Mirkis of Kirkuk and Sulaimaniyah estimates that “40-45% of the Christians have returned to some of their ancestral villages, particularly Qaraqosh”. But he and other Catholic leaders said there are many challenges to those Christians hoping to return home after ISIS occupation and expulsion. “There are problems with Bartella. Although Bartella is not far from Qaraqosh, the Shiites have been imposing themselves and using the force of Iran to take over territory, etc. The Christians of Bartella are very upset by this situation. So, these people are still sheltering in Irbil or in the camps for internally displaced people in Kirkuk and Sulaimaniyah,” Arch-

bishop Mirkis said of the northern Iraqi cities providing Christians with refuge. “Qaraqosh is a little bit better. There, houses are being repaired. Now, the people are returning, but many houses are burned and are completely destroyed. These Christians cannot afford the prices to reconstruct the houses,” he said. The archbishop and his dioceses have been helping displaced Christians with material and spiritual support as well as providing transportation for hundreds of their university students. But Fr Emanuel Youkhana, archmandrite of the Assyrian Church of the East who heads the Christian Aid Program Northern Iraq, said that so far, the planned “return, reconstruction and rebuilding movement has not met our expectations and hopes. Thousands of families are hesitating and/or unable to return, and they are still displaced in Kurdistan”.— CNS

A man carries an injured boy amid destroyed buildings in rebel-held eastern Ghouta, a suburb of damascus, Syria. Pope Francis has called for an end to the fighting, immediate access to humanitarian aid for those in need and the evacuation of the injured and infirm.(Photo: Bassam khabieh, Reuters/CNS)

Pope to visit Geneva, Switzerland in June Faith meets fashion: Exhibit shows P Catholic inspired garments By JuNNo ARoCho eSteveS

By CARol GlAtZ

HEN Pope Benedict XVI’s custom-made red leather loafers became a signature part of his wardrobe after his election in 2005, Newsweek labeled him “a religious-fashion icon” and Esquire named him “Accessoriser of the Year”. While some critics saw the media’s sudden fixation on papal fashion as frivolous and a way of trivialising the true meaning behind elegance in ecclesial dress, one top art curator said he saw this spotlight as actually raising “deeper, more profound considerations—namely, the role that dress plays in the Catholic Church and the role that the Catholic Church plays” within the world of fashion’s imagination. Andrew Bolton, head curator of the Metropolitan Museums of Art’s Costume Institute in New York, has now, over a decade later, turned those considerations into its most extensive exhibition ever. The exhibit, “Heavenly Bodies. Fashion and the Catholic Imagination”, includes more than 100 pieces from top designers inspired by Catholic symbolism and art, as well as 40 vestments and accoutrements from the papal office of liturgical celebrations. Surrounded by statues, frescoes, tapestries and paintings of biblical or bucolic scenes, Mr Bolton said at the preview of the exhibit: “Dress is central to any discussion about religion.” While religious wear and fashion

Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, president of the Pontifical Council for Culture, speaks during a press presentation for the exhibit, “heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic imagination”, at Galleria Colonna in Rome. (Photo: Paul haring/CNS) are two distinct worlds, he said they are both “inherently performative” when it comes to the ritual of runway shows or the rite of a liturgy. And they both utilise “visual language” or “subtle visual codes” that often indicate, for example, the wearer’s identity, function or position within a hierarchy or social status, he said. Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, head of the Pontifical Council for Culture, who wrote the introduction to the exhibit’s catalogue, said at the press preview that “God is not just the creator, he is also “a tailor”, as seen in the Genesis account of how the Lord made Adam and Eve, recently banished from Eden, “garments of skin”, Clothing carries with it not just the

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essential task of providing needed covering or protection from the elements, it can also carry social, cultural, moral and even spiritual and sacred meaning. For example, liturgical vestments and ornaments are often crafted, Cardinal Ravasi said, to exalt a kind of “richness” and opulence so it stands out from the everyday and the merely functional. The ornate represents “the transcendent, religious mystery” because the divine is “splendid, marvelous, sumptuous, glorious”, he said.—CNS

OPE Francis will visit Geneva in June, Swiss authorities confirmed. Andre Simonazzi, spokesman for the Swiss Federal Council, confirmed the visit and said the pope will be welcomed by Swiss President Alain Berset when he arrives on June 21, the Associated Press reported. The Pope has also been invited to visit to the World Council of Churches (WCC) headquarters in Geneva to participate in talks on a WCC peace initiative for Syria. His visit would coincide with the 70th anniversary of the council’s founding. Established in 1948, the WCC is an international organisation of Christian churches and has the goal of fostering unity in fellowship, service and mission. Its members are spread across 348 churches of the Protestant, Anglican, Orthodox and Old Catholic traditions. The Roman Catholic Church is

not a member but has an official dialogue with the council and cooperates with it in various programs. The most recent papal visit to Switzerland was in 2004, when Pope John Paul II came to Bern a year before he died. Almost 70 000 attended the Mass which he held in German. Some 38% of the Swiss population identifies as Roman Catholic, while about 27% of Swiss residents belong to the Protestant church. The Vatican has special ties with Switzerland—the Pontifical Swiss Guard is tasked with protecting the pope and has done so ever since medieval times.—CNS

the Southern Cross, March 7 to March 13, 2018

LEADER PAGE LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Editor: GĂźnther Simmermacher Guest editorial: Michael Shackleton

Popeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s five years

HRIST chose a small band of twelve everyday men and charged them with the awesome responsibility of teaching everyone on earth about him and his mission. He also chose a scholarly man, initially fiercely opposed to this mission, the converted Saul of Tarsus, and gave him the same vocation, that of preaching with them the Good News to every nation on earth. These apostles, including Peter whom Jesus chose to be the rock to stabilise their solidarity, could not accomplish this formidable task in their own lifetimes. They ordained their successors to carry on the mission and to remember Jesusâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; warning: â&#x20AC;&#x153;I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as dovesâ&#x20AC;? (Mt 10:16). The imagery of sheep among wolves is a fearful one. Jesus prayed that it would be Peter who would sustain the others against such adversities: â&#x20AC;&#x153;But I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothersâ&#x20AC;? (Lk 22:32). At this time, the man to strengthen his brother bishops is Pope Francis, now five years in his post. Although he was chosen from among the cardinals of the Roman Church, he was never a Vatican-shaped bishop or a member of the Roman curia. He came from the Southern Hemisphere, the first pope in history to do so. His formation as a Jesuit priest was in the environment of his home country Argentina. As archbishop of Buenos Aires he had to contend with the political strife of the 1970s when the Church and his Jesuit brothers were persecuted. He said later that he regretted not doing more to resist the injustices of those times. Perhaps this twinge of conscience was at the root of his response to an interviewer, Fr Antonio Spadaro, who in June, 2013, asked him to define himself. Francis replied: â&#x20AC;&#x153;I am a sinner. This is the most accurate definition. It is not a figure of speech, a literary genre. I am a sinner.â&#x20AC;? As archbishop of a city of very wealthy and very poor citizens, Francis made a point of being close to his flock, mixing with

them on the streets and on the buses. In identifying himself with ordinary folk, he did not hide his limitations. This fellow-feeling revealed itself immediately after his election. He saw past the grandeur of St Peterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s basilica, the magnificent architecture, the splendour of the robed clerics. We can guess that with this frame of mind he perceived the throngs in St Peterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Square below him as fellow humans who, like him, were in need of Christâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s redemption, rather than as enthusiastic fans. The Acts of the Apostles describes how the pious Cornelius, recognising that Simon Peter had been sent by God, fell at the apostleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s feet to worship him. Peter disarmed him abruptly by saying: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Stand up. I am a human being just like youâ&#x20AC;? (10:26). Here Peter appeared not only as a man given a divine mission to spread the Gospel but also as only a man. Such is Pope Francis. He is head of Christâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Church, bishop of the city of Rome with its long history of imperial might, military conquests, religious persecution, and the seat of popes. He can expect us to honour him and love him for his unique calling in the Church. Yet he wants us to realise that he is also one of us, the shepherd who smells like his sheep and who leads by walking with the flock rather than ahead of them. Unlike previous popes, he has not been influenced by the political and cultural pressures of Europeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s historical conflicts and geographical upheavals. He has not lived in cities and villages where the traditions of past royal rulers and nobility may still dominate the Church and its membership. He is a man of his time who, whatever the reaction to what he says and does, has set a firm course into the future. This is simply put in the first lines of his 2013 apostolic exhortation, Evangelii gaudium (The Joy of the Gospel): â&#x20AC;&#x153;The joy of the Gospel fills the hearts and lives of all who encounter Jesus ... I wish to encourage the Christian faithful to embark on a new chapter of evangelisation marked by this joy, while pointing out new paths for the Churchâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s journey in years to come.â&#x20AC;?

The Editor reserves the right to shorten or edit published letters. Letters below 300 words receive preference. Pseudonyms are acceptable only under special circumstances and at the Editorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s discretion. Name and address of the writer must be supplied. No anonymous letter will be considered.

Renew Ten Commandments

ATHOLICS, and other religions, accept the Ten Commandments as the basic rules of life. When these commandments were handed down, they were simple and easily understood, and related to the time. In 2018, and the very different world of today, the Church should revisit the â&#x20AC;&#x153;oldâ&#x20AC;? Commandments with a view to bringing them into the 21st century. It has the power to do so: â&#x20AC;&#x153;What is considered changed on earth will be changed in heaven.â&#x20AC;? Consideration should be given to ruling definitively on modern and possibly perceived problems and conformities: prejudice (one of the most egregious sins today); women and child abuse; specific murdering

Power of prayer conquers all

ORE than a year ago, my daughterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s divorced husband suddenly began action for custody of their 23-year-old mentally challenged daughter, after 20 years of apparently friendly separation. A legal battle ensued and we began praying to Our Lady for a just settlement. I also embarked on a campaign of prayer to Bl Benedict Daswa for my daughter and granddaughterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s peace of mind. I promised publication if my prayers were successful. Then my daughter phoned from the Netherlands to say that, after many ups and downs, the Dutch court threw the whole case out as wasteful of everybodyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s time, and the court-appointed mentor was dismissed as â&#x20AC;&#x153;ineptâ&#x20AC;?! Here is the promised publication. We continue our prayers, of gratitude. Special thanks to Our Beloved Lady and to Bl Benedict Daswa. Carmen Smith, Somerset West

Avoid harm to temple of the soul

VONNE Morgan of the Catholic Healthcare Association of South Africa responded (October 18, 2017) to my letter on organ donation (September 27, 2017) and I would like to reply. While I accept that a number of people, including some popes, believe there is nothing wrong with doing organ transplants, I feel the teachings of the Catholic Church and the Bible say the opposite. In my original letter, I quoted from the Catechismâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;which states that the body is sacred because it is the temple of the soulâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;and from St Paulâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;who says our bodies are members of Christ, they are not our own, so we should glorify Christ in our bodies. I also quoted professor Fr Paul Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Callaghan: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Because the

of the unborn (as opposed to the relatively passive, â&#x20AC;&#x153;You shall not killâ&#x20AC;?); racism and xenophobia; greed; selfishness and corruption; the taking of drugs; self-inflicted anorexia; body piercing and tattooing (is the body still â&#x20AC;&#x153;the temple of the soulâ&#x20AC;??); pornography; cyberbullying; participating in violent computer games, and many more. Gay unions and same-sex marriages seem to be a particularly grey area in our perception and interpretation of these modern practices. Which set of rules should provide for these variable societal activities? Are we sitting on the fence and leaving it to individual consciences? Do the â&#x20AC;&#x153;oldâ&#x20AC;? patriarchal

bodies of Christians have received the Eucharist during their lives, they have been carriers of God. A corpse should be seen ... from the religious point of view as something that is sacred.â&#x20AC;? So there is no doubt that the body is sacred, whether dead or alive. Yvonne Morgan said she thought I felt that organ transplants prevent the resurrection of the body after death. I assure her that this is not the case, simply because our faith teaches us that nothing is impossible for God. Rather, my concern is as follows: The Bible and the Church teach us that we have been placed on this earth to enable us to prepare ourselves to return to our Father in heaven. We are told that our trials will be left behind when we enter heaven. But to gain this reward, we have to die. That is why I said in my original letter that we need to accept Godâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s call when it comes because if we have taken our faith to heart we will be happy to return to our Father, and not try to prolong our lives on this earth, causing harm to the temple of our soul. Peter Hoar, Waterfall, KZN

Reaching out brings us together

N the 1980s we were parishioners at Holy Trinity in Matroosfontein, Cape Town. On leaving the church grounds after Mass to take the bus home with three children, we noticed people rushing to get away in their cars, with a nod here and there. During Mass we turn to each other with the greeting, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Peace be with you.â&#x20AC;? Outside, we donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t even know who they are, just faces. Then it dawned on me to do something. We decided to approach a couple, whom we did not know, and invite them to our home. That afternoon they pitched up and we

commandments really suffice? Maybe the above situations are just human frailty and weakness, and should be tolerated with compassion and understanding; or whatever? No need for any condemnation or corrective rules. Because some of these contemporary idiosyncrasies are theologically difficult to fully comprehend, the Church should take the lead to â&#x20AC;&#x153;change on earthâ&#x20AC;? and proclaim new â&#x20AC;&#x153;you shall notâ&#x20AC;? rules for those modern-life habits which it deems to attract sinfulness. It should also instruct priests to preach and apprise the faithful more fully on its teachings thereof. Guide me, O thou great Redeemer! Tony Meehan, Cape Town had an enjoyable time. When they left, we suggested they do the same and invite a couple to their home. We, in turn, went along. This started to snowball, and we all went from house to house. We then saw the need for spiritual guidance and invited the late Fr John Callan to join us. He suggested that the group be called the League of the Sacred Heart. Home Masses were introduced, and large framed pictures of the Sacred Heart, with the names of family members entered, were blessed. (We were later joined by the late Fr Gabriel.) One of the members moved to Saldanha Bay for work. We were invited to attend Mass there, and a convoy of about eight cars headed up the coast. On one occasion I arrived late for a meeting, sat down and said: â&#x20AC;&#x153;What a wonderful day!â&#x20AC;? One of the very new members asked: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s so wonderful about this day?â&#x20AC;? Silently I asked the Holy Spirit for help. I turned to the new member and asked him: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Do you know this gentleman here next to you?â&#x20AC;? His reply was â&#x20AC;&#x153;Noâ&#x20AC;?, so I introduced them and told the new member that he would never forget the man sitting next to him. Silently I said: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thank you, Lord.â&#x20AC;? Out of the league came a priest, deacons, Extraordinary Ministers of the Eucharist, catechists, young altar servers, readers of the Word, and a Southern Cross writer. We have since moved out of the area but the church there is still vibrant. CN Robert, Cape Town 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 POâ&#x20AC;&#x2C6;Box 2372, Cape Town 8000 or editor@scross.co.za or faxed to 021 465-3850

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to be held in Dublin, Ireland, from 21 - 26 August 2018, This is a meeting for all families around the globe. The WMOF2018 theme, â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Gospel of the Family: Joy for the Worldâ&#x20AC;? This theme will also run strongly through all elements of the programme, including a dedicated Youth Programme and Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Programme. Final Mass presided by Pope Francis The price package for the trip is R25090 per person. Bookings: Coordinating couple Ali and Ignitia Motiang at 0780883799 or 0824906346 ntsako-m@hotmail.com or alimotiang@yahoo.com For more information visit: http://www.worldmeeting2018.ie/en/

the Southern Cross, March 7 to March 13, 2018

PERSPECTIVES Toni Rowland

Family Friendly

Why families must have rights

VERYONE knows the chicken and egg story. Which came first? The answer, of course, is: “Who knows? It depends.” Compare this to the question of rights and responsibilities, or rights and respect. Rights and responsibilities balance one another out, but when it comes to rights and respect, which comes first? Do rights flow from respect, or do rights lead to respect, or both? With the concept of ubuntu in mind, I would suggest that respect is ideally at the heart of human interaction. Described as “I am because we are”, ubuntu recognises that our common humanity should result in an attitude of respect for all. But does it? Respect is no longer a basic life view, as is clear in society today with the high incidence of abuse, violence, exploitation, neglect and many other ills. We are more focused on rights which tend to demand a standard of behaviour almost by force. “I have a right, therefore you have to…” This applies across the board to every relationship from the workplace to the home. This rights attitude is necessary to maintain a degree of order. This is seen in the Constitution which, while having at its heart the concept of ubuntu and respect, implements the Bill of Rights through laws, courts and policing. A consequence of this can be seen in the fact that we can too easily pass the buck and blame others when things are not as they should be. The right to life is built on respect for life and on the dignity of every human being or life form. Let’s apply this to family life. Society today is highly individualistic, and the Bill of Rights tends to concentrate on the rights of the individual. And yet African as well as Christian thinking is more communal: “I am because we are”, rather than “I am because you are”. The family as the smallest communal unit, with its particularly intimate and close bonds, should be recognised as having rights as a unit. This is in addition to the right to life and nurturance of its individual members at all stages of that life within the family as an interactive system of relationships.

fter Pope John Paul II established the Pontifical Council for the Family in 1983, one of the first documents it issued was the Charter of Family Rights. This charter promotes the right to life, to marry and to choose freely to marry a partner of choice, to have children, work, shelter and basic conditions for security, health, education and more. In Amoris Laetitia, Pope Francis refers to the responsibility of the state to provide for families and to meet their basic needs. The Church could be seen as a watchdog to ensure those practical needs are met in conjunction with its evangelising role. However, it cannot be left only to the state and the hierarchical Church to pass laws and protect our rights and welfare. We as citizens and Church members are expected to pursue our rights and live out our responsibilities, too. This is no easy task and demands commitment from everyone. Possibly the most important—and very difficult—task today is to go beyond this and promote the aspect of respect, of ubuntu, which is Jesus’ way of love, mercy and compassion for others. Clearly a family is much more than a legal, social and economic unit. It is also a community of love and solidarity. As the Charter of Family Rights put it: “It is uniquely suited to teach and transmit cultural, ethical, social, spiritual and religious values, essential for the development and wellbeing of its own members and of society.” Marfam’s March theme, “Family Rights do Matter”, is a Lenten invitation to promote life, family life and wellbeing within and beyond one’s own family. Various publications and the weekly e-newsletter provide suggestions in articles such as “Babies Do Matter” and “Which Jesus can you Love?” Promoting family prayer at this Lenten time is especially meaningful. (For information and Marfam resources visit www.marfam.org.za) Let me end with a Family Ubuntu Prayer: Come Holy Spirit, Spirit of Ubuntu, of humanity and care. Fill our minds with understanding, our hearts with love and our hands with mercy and compassion for the needs of those we love and for all those in need. As we learn and live, we offer our thoughts, words and actions of this day for the glory of God in Jesus’ name. Amen.

To build communities T HIS Lent we have asked parishioners to put on name tags and to introduce themselves to each other at the beginning of the Mass. Generally, after an initial reluctance, most were happy to comply. Of course, there are always those whose vehemence in being anti-anything like this is really scary. But then, every family has those, don’t they? The idea behind this little exercise is that so many of our parishes are made up of core members—those who are always there and with whom the clergy tend to spend time. And then there are lots of occasional members who come to church for Lent. Our churches can be really intimidating. Artificial welcomes are never useful, but the more we practise an openness, the more chance we can make the little breakthroughs that make our buildings churches, and our churches communities. Pope Francis is uniquely able to conscientise us about our interactions. And we know that he is living his ideas by his simplicity and openness, from the sips of the Argentinian drink Mate in general audiences to his focus on refugees. It is this constant focus on the importance of a relational Christianity that is so crucial. Working in big parishes with multiple Masses over a weekend, one quickly realises how difficult it is to build this relationship. In old-fashioned territorial parishes (less prevalent in urban areas

now), we are increasingly finding a number of parishes sharing the same building and clergy. Cross-relationship is rare, especially if there is limited interaction space outside Mass.

ne of our other initiatives is to enO courage Lenten prayer partners. It’s an idea that encourages a deeper Lent. Prayer/charity/fasting takes on a new element if we add another person to the mix. Our programme is a prayer lottery: you put your name in a basket and draw someone else’s out. You can either be contacted by your partner or opt just to pray. Spiritually, this is a very important as it offers to a community a new way of interacting. Being in a spiritual relationship with someone makes interaction easier (in

‘the more we practise an openness, the more chance we can make the little breakthroughs that make our buildings churches, and our churches communities.’

Fr Chris Townsend

Pastor’s Notebook

most cases). One of the great sadnesses of our communities is that the larger they are, the less the real interaction. This stifles our communities as it is so much easier to disappear—either into the always active group or into total anonymity. Anonymous communities are easy communities. They don’t demand anything other than our presence at liturgy and the onerous donations to the parish, the Lenten Appeal and possibly the building fund. But aside from that (and bringing your child to the first three catechism lessons a year), there is no real need. In the early Church and in smaller communities, this interaction made and makes a community. It is this space that builds us into a community of support. Psychology tells us that most humans cannot function with more than 100 relationships at the most—most work best with fewer than that. Except the clergy… we have to hold so many more relationships. That is, I suppose, the gift and burden of ordination. Our communities need to be aware of this; we cannot all be on the same level of relationship with everyone. But we must be able to reach out to grow supportive communities that enable us to model a resurrection relationship rather than one of crucifixion.

The night we got a new pope Günther Simmermacher

HIS week five years ago, every Catholic journalist in the world was antsy as we awaited the white smoke to rise from the chimney of the Sistine chapel. Over the previous weeks we had covered Pope Benedict XVI’s shock resignation and speculated about the identity of the new pope. In that time, I was interviewed by world media about my reaction to the historic resignation of the old pope, and about who the new pope would be. On the latter point, the burning question, of course, was whether there would be an African pope. I couldn’t see that happening, though Ghana’s Cardinal Peter Turkson was counted among the favourites. But nobody could really predict what would happen. The Daily Telegraph in England confidently predicted that we’d get a “Pope Benedict clone”, but the same article also made reference to Pope John Paul II’s predecessor John VI—whose 27-month reign ended in the year 705. In times like these, it’s better to stick with Catholic journalism. Everybody knew that Cardinal Angelo Scola was the papabile (“popable”) of the conservatives. The name of Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle of the Philippines was traded as the middle-ground choice, but he was still young, in cardinal terms, and had received his red hat only recently. Other names mentioned were Cardinals Marc Ouellet from Canada (who reportedly would be in second place, behind Scola, after the first round voting) and Odilo Scherer from Brazil. In truth, many names were traded. It was going to be Scola vs Pretty Much Anybody. A day or two before the conclave, the widely respected Catholic journalist John Allen Jr began mentioning Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio of Buenos Aires. Surely not Bergoglio! He’d come second in the 2005 conclave, and at 76 was too old. His time had passed, surely. I was familiar with Bergoglio’s name and knew a few things about his reputation as a doctrinal conservative archbishop, and as a humble pastor. And I

Point of history

“Buona sera.” Pope Francis greets the faithful in St Peter’s Square and the world on tv on March 13, 2013. (Photo: Paul haring/CNS) knew that he always looked quite glum, or at least solemn, in photos. And so we awaited the white smoke. “Please elect a new pope before our deadline,” I implored the cardinals in my mind, maybe also issuing a nudging prayer to God.

he previous conclave in 2005 had been stressful. That had been my first real papal election (the time before that, in 1978, I was barely pubescent). Talk had been that Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger might be elected. I couldn’t imagine it. Too controversial and too divisive, I thought. No white smoke had appeared yet when I turned up at e.tv’s studios for an interview on the papal election. On my way to make-up (just a bit of powder so that the face won’t glare under the spotlight) I received a call: “Ratzinger is the new pope.” I had a few minutes to digest that news. Instead of talking about the possible popes, I now had to talk about one whose election, all indications to the contrary notwithstanding, I had thought unlikely. I might have looked good on TV, but I wouldn’t describe my appearance that night as the most sparkling of my career.

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Now, on March 13, 2013, almost exactly a month after Pope Benedict had announced his intention to resign, everything was more relaxed. That Wednesday evening I sat in my study at home and listened to Fr Russell Pollitt SJ and Chris Busschau discussing the conclave on Radio Veritas. When Fr Russell suddenly said there was white smoke, I had goosebumps. Within minutes the phone rang: eNCA, the 24-hours news channel, sought my opinion. I would stay on the phone with them for two hours, going on and off air, and on again. Eventually the doors on the balcony on St Peter’s basilica opened, revealing that amber background. Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, protodeacon of the College of Cardinals, announced the new pope. Still hanging on the phone, I could not hear the TV properly. “Did he say Bergoglio?” I asked my wife. “Yes, something like that.” Now I had to calculate quickly for talking points. The new pope had taken the name Francis. I knew that was a first, plus, you know, St Francis. Talking point. He’s Argentinian; recognition for southern hemisphere. Talking point. He is concerned about the poor. Talking point. Came second in 2005. Talking point. And so on. Then this new pope greeted the crowds with a rather bashful “Buona sera” (“Good evening”), and asked them to bless him before he would bless them. I knew instantly that I would love this pope, that this pontiff with the slightly goofy smile was going to be my kind of guy. And I knew that he’d be good copy for the newspaper In the five years since that euphoric night, Pope Francis has exceeded virtually all of my expectations, as a superb leader and as a newsmaker. May God bless him!

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the Southern Cross, March 7 to March 13, 2018

CHURCH

Newly-elected Pope Francis leaves flowers in front of the “Salus Populi Romani” Marian icon in a chapel of the basilica of St Mary Major in Rome on March 14, 2013. he prays there before and after every foreign trip. (Photo: l’osservatore Romano/CNS)

Pope Francis receives his papal ring from Cardinal Angelo Sodano, dean of the College of Cardinals, during his inaugural Mass in St Peter’s Square on March 19, 2013. (Photo: Paul haring/CNS)

Pope Francis poses for a selfie with a mother and her child during his meeting with members of the italian Adult Catholic Scouting Movement in Nervi hall at the vatican, in November 2014. in his five years as pontiff, Pope Francis has enjoyed a closeness with the public. (Photo: ePA/CNS)

Pope Francis prays for justice in front of the israelibuilt separation wall in Bethlehem, West Bank. the unscheduled stop was a highlight of the pope’s three-day trip to the holy land in May 2014. (Photo: l’osservatore Romano/CNS)

Five years of Pope Francis in pics

Pope Francis leads a vigil in the little Chapel of the Apparitions at the Shrine of our lady of Fatima in Portugal in May 2017. (Photo: Paul haring/CNS)

A young girl sits next to Pope Francis during an audience with Special olympics athletes in october 2017. (Photo: l’osservatore Romano/CNS)

Pope Francis washes the foot of an inmate during a holy thursday Mass at a Rome prison for minors in 2013. At the pope’s request, the vatican issued a decree specifying that the holy thursday foot-washing ritual can include women. (Photo: l’osservatore Romano/Reuters/CNS)

Pope Francis embraces vinicio Riva, who is afflicted with neurofibromatosis, during his general audience in November 2013. (Photo: Claudio Peri, ePA/CNS)

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Pope Francis leads Benediction during the World youth day (Wyd) vigil on Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro in July 2013. in 2016 he led Wyd in krakow, Poland. the next Wyd is in Panama City in January 2019 (Photo: Paul haring/CNS)

Pope Francis opens the holy door of St Peter’s basilica in the vatican to inaugurate the Jubilee year of Mercy at the vatican on december 8, 2015. (Photo: Maurizio Brambatti, ePA/CNS)

Pope Francis holds a baby as he visits the neonatal unit at San Giovanni hospital in Rome in September 2016. the visit was part of the pope’s weekly Friday works of mercy during the year of Mercy. (Photo: l’osservatore Romano/CNS)

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Pope Francis sits next to imam tidiani Moussa Naibi during a meeting with the Muslim community at the koudoukou mosque in Bangui, Central African Republic, during his visit to the civil-wartorn country in November 2015. (Photo: daniel dal Zennaro, ePA/CNS)

A priest hears confession from Pope Francis in St Peter’s basilica in lent 2014. the pope has broken traditional protocol by going to confession during penance services. (Photo: l’osservatore Romano/Reuters/CNS)

Pope Francis blesses a cross made from wooden boards recovered from the wreckage of boats carrying migrants from northern Africa to lampedusa island, italy, in April 2014. (Photo: l’osservatore Romano/ Reuters/CNS)

the Southern Cross, March 7 to March 13, 2018

CHURCH

The five years of Pope Francis On March 13, 2013, the cardinal-electors of the Church decided on Argentine Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio as the new pope. CiNdy WoodeN reviews the first five years of Pope Francis’ eventful pontificate.

ARDINAL Jorge Mario Bergoglio was elected pope just a few days after telling the College of Cardinals that the Catholic Church faced a clear choice between being a Church that “goes out” or a Church focused on its internal affairs. After the cardinal from Buenos Aires, Argentina, was elected on March 13, 2013, and chose the name Francis, he made “go out”, “periphery” and “throwaway culture” standard phrases in the papal vocabulary. Catholics have a wide variety of opinions about how Pope Francis is exercising the papal ministry, and many of his comments—both in informal news conferences and in formal documents—have stirred controversy. But, as he wrote in Evangelii Gaudium, the apostolic exhortation laying out the vision for his pontificate: “I prefer a Church which is bruised, hurting and dirty because it has been out on the streets, rather than a Church which is unhealthy from being confined and from clinging to its own security.” But there are two areas of internal Church affairs that he recognised needed immediate attention: the reform of the Roman curia, and the full protection of children and vulnerable adults from clerical sexual abuse. The organisational reform of the curia has been taking place in stages, but Pope Francis has insisted that the real reform is a matter of changing hearts and embracing service. On the issue of abuse, nine months into his pontificate, Pope Francis established the Pontifical Commission for Child Protection to advise him on better ways to prevent clerical sexual abuse and to ensure pastoral care for the survivors. While Pope Francis has emphatically proclaimed “zero tolerance” for abusers and recently said covering up abuse “is itself an abuse”, as his fifth anniversary approached serious questions arose about how he handled accusations that Chilean Bishop Juan Barros, who was a priest at the time, covered up allegations of abuse against his mentor. The new scandal threatened to undermine the widespread popularity of Pope Francis and his efforts to set the Catholic Church on a new course.

Pope’s new course For Pope Francis, that new course involves evangelisation first of all. “Evangelising presupposes a desire in the Church to come out of herself,” he had told the cardinals just days before the conclave that elected him. “The Church is called to come out of herself and to go to the peripheries, not only geographically, but also the existential peripheries: the mystery of sin, of pain, of injustice, of ignorance and indifference to religion, of intellectual currents and of all misery.” Mercy is the first thing the Catholic Church is called to bring to those peripheries, he says. Although in 2013 he told reporters he would not be travelling as much as his predecessors, Pope Francis has continued their practice of literally “going out”, making 22 trips outside Italy and

Left: Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio in the vatican days before his election as Pope Francis on March 13, 2013. Above: Pope Francis walks to his seat during a meeting with the bishops of Southern Africa at the vatican during their ad limina visit in April 2014. (Photos: Bob haring/CNS, l’osservatore Romano) visiting 32 nations. But he also regularly visits the peripheries of Rome, both its poor suburbs and its hospitals, rehabilitation centres, prisons and facilities for migrants and refugees. His desire to reach out has inspired innovations that were noteworthy at the beginning of the papacy, but now seem to be a natural part of a pope’s day. For example, after beginning with Vatican gardeners and garbage collectors, the pope continues to invite a small group of Catholics to join him most weekday mornings for Mass in the chapel of his residence. The residence, the Domus Sanctae Marthae, is a guesthouse built by Pope John Paul II with the intention of providing decent housing for cardinals when they enter a conclave to elect a new pope. Pope Francis decided after the 2013 conclave to stay there and not move into the more isolated papal apartments in the Apostolic Palace. After the conclave, the newlyelected pope personally settled the bill for his stay there.

Pope of Mercy On Holy Thursday each year, he has celebrated Mass at a prison, care facility or refugee centre and washed the feet of patients, inmates or immigrants, both men and women, Catholics and members of other faiths. He also ordered the Vatican Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments to clarify that the feet of both women and men can be washed at the Holy Thursday Mass of the Lord’s Supper. During the 2015-16 Year of Mercy, he made a visit on one Friday a month to people in particular need, including those at a school for the blind, a neonatal intensive care unit, a community of recovering alcoholics, a children’s group home and a community for women rescued from traffickers who forced them into prostitution. Once the Year of Mercy ended, the pope continued the visits, although not always every month. In September 2015, as waves of migrants and refugees were struggling and dying to reach Europe, Pope Francis asked every parish and religious community in Europe to consider offering hospitality to one family. The Vatican offered apartments and support to a family from Syria and a family from Eritrea. Then, seven months later, Pope Francis visited a refugee centre on the island of Lesbos, Greece, and brought 12 refugees back to Rome on the plane with him. Less than three months into his pontificate, he began denouncing the “throwaway culture” as one where money and power were the ultimate values and anything or

anyone that did not advance money or power were disposable: “Human life [and] the person are no longer seen as primary values to be respected and protected, especially if they are poor or disabled, if they are not yet useful—like an unborn child—or are no longer useful—like an old person,” the pope said at a general audience.

Three major documents In the first three years of his papacy, he published three major documents: Evangelii Gaudium (The Joy of the Gospel); Laudato Si’, on Care for Our Common Home, on the environment; and Amoris Laetitia, on Love in the Family, his reflections on the discussions of the Synod of Bishops in 2014 and 2015. People sceptical about the scientific proof that human activity is contributing to climate change objected to parts of Laudato Si’, but the criticism was muted compared to reactions to Pope Francis’ document on the family, especially regarding ministry to divorced and civilly remarried Catholics and the possibility that, under some conditions, some of those Catholics could return to the sacraments. The strongest criticism came from four cardinals, all but one retired, who sent to the pope and then publicly released in November 2016 a formal, critical set of questions, known as dubia, insisting that allowing those Catholics

to receive the sacraments amounted to changing fundamental Church teachings about marriage, sexuality and the nature of the sacraments. Pope Francis has not responded to the cardinals, two of whom have since died. But in December the Vatican posted on its website the guidelines for interpreting Amoris Laetitia, developed by a group of Argentine bishops, as well as Pope Francis’ letter to them describing the guidelines as “authentic magisterium”. The guidelines by bishops in the Buenos Aires region said the path of discernment proposed by Pope Francis for divorced and civilly remarried couples “does not necessarily end in the sacraments” but, in some situations, after a thorough process of discernment, the pope’s exhortation “opens the possibility” to reception of the sacraments. In the document and throughout his pontificate, Pope Francis has emphasised God’s mercy and the power of the sacraments to spur conversion and nourish Christians as they try to progress in holiness.

Francis and confession Like all popes, Pope Francis frequently urges Catholics to go to confession, telling them it is not a “torture chamber”. And he repeatedly gives priests blunt advice about being welcoming and merci-

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ful to those who approach the confessional. Like St John Paul did each Lent, Pope Francis hears confessions in St Peter’s basilica. But he surprised even his closest aides beginning in 2014 when, instead of going to the confessional to welcome the first penitent, he turned and went to confession himself. He also has surprised people by being completely honest about his age. In April 2017, when he was still 80 years old, he told Italian young people that while they are preparing for the future, “at my age we are preparing to go”. The young people present objected loudly. “No?” the pope responded, “Who can guarantee life? No one.” From the beginning of his papacy, Pope Francis has expressed love and admiration for retired Pope Benedict XVI. Returning from South Korea in 2014, he said Pope Benedict’s honest, “yet also humble and courageous” gesture of resigning cleared a path for later popes to do the same. “You can ask me: ‘What if one day you don’t feel prepared to go on?’” he told the reporters travelling with him. “I would do the same, I would do the same! I will pray hard over it, but I would do the same thing. “He [Pope Benedict] opened a door which is institutional, not exceptional.”—CNS n More reviews of Pope Francis’ first five years next week.

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FAITH

How the Irish raised Church in Scotland When we see Glasgow Celtic play, their green hoops are a symbol of Irish Catholicism, as RoSS AhlFeld explains.

Easter 1916—or even the origins of Glasgow Celtic—without understanding and accepting the fact that the Irish Free State was founded on the pillars of the Catholic faith. Dealing with the complex and often awkward relationship between politics, faith and history is not unique to just Scots, of course. Catholics in South Africa understand this challenge more than most, as well as sharing our experience of being Catholic within a Protestant majority.

ANY Catholics in Scotland are huge fans of Glasgow Celtic, the famous old Irish Catholic football club playing in green and white hoops. It’s an unsurprising fact, since the Catholic Church in Scotland was mostly re-established by Irish immigrants in the 19th century— just as it was in much of South Africa. The green in the club’s colours identify it as an institution of Irish immigrant background. Many Celtic fans are aware of the good works of charity carried out by Celtic supporters’ clubs in Johannesburg, Cape Town and KwaZuluNatal. But I’m not sure how many “Hoops” fans in Britain know about the existence of Bloemfontein Celtic, who also play in green and white hoops. There is a plethora of different Glasgow Celtic supporters’ clubs (CSC) not only all across Scotland but also all over the world, from the Polish “Polska No. 1 CSC” to the “Gourock Emerald CSC” in my hometown of Gourock on the west coast of Scotland. My personal favourite is the St Oliver Plunkett CSC which used to enjoy a small presence in Scotland and Ireland. I’m not sure if this CSC is still active but I liked them because, compared to other CSCs, “The Plunketts” best reflected the true Catholic origins and values of Celtic’s founder, Br Walfrid Kerins. Br Walfrid was a Marist Brother from Sligo, Ireland. He founded Glasgow Celtic in 1887 to address poverty among the city’s Irish immigrants, most of whom were Catholic. His club has made donations to the Society of St Vincent de Paul and various parish charities right from its earliest days. It would be nice if there was also supporters’ clubs named after Frank Duff to honour the founder of the Legion of Mary, so that Celtic fans might always know his name and be drawn to the good work of the Legionaries today. Frank Duff is a great hero of mine and I pray that his canonisation will happen very soon. As such, it came as no surprise to learn that a third of newly-ordained priests in Ireland were inspired in their vocation by the Legion of Mary. Sadly, these days, Celtic supporters’ clubs, like many older Catholic cultural institutions, aren’t exactly among the most spiritual of establishments. As the Scottish Catholic composer James MacMillan observed

The Irish and the Boers

A flag of Glasgow Celtic football club, which was formed by a Marist Brother. the story of Scottish Catholicism is tied to an irish heritage— which found expression even in South Africa during the Boer War. mon with terrorists than they do with honouring the noble ideals of liberty, self-determination and democracy—qualities which many see manifested in the Easter Rising. This calumny is a little more difficult to place at the door of devoutly Catholic Celtic supporters whose social and political philosophy is rooted not in radicalism or revolutionary violence, but in our Catholic faith and social teaching. The other problem with the modern over-emphasis on the purely anti-imperialist and revolutionary aspects of Easter 1916 is the fact that it’s a reconstructed romantic fantasy. In reality, the Irish forbearers in Scotland were eye-wateringly devout and socially conservative by any modern standards. Indeed, long before the Che Guevara banners made an appearance at Celtic Park, there was a priests’ gate for clergymen to get in for free. Before the “Green Brigade” fans were belting out the Irish rebel songs, their forefathers weren’t just celebrating socialists like James Connolly, they were also honouring men like Frank Duff. There were Sinn Fein clubs in Scotland and Irish volunteers based in Glasgow, but in the 1920s the Irish were also joining the Legion of Mary in equally large numbers. At that time, the Legion spread extremely rapidly from the Irish Free State to Scotland, and there are now 150 Legion of Mary groups. That’s not to say there was never any political activism involving those faithful pioneers who built Scotland’s parishes. The basic point is this: Scots Catholics cannot fully understand the true legacy of something like

back in 2011: “My fellow fans could ditch their copies of Socialist Worker and An Phoblacht, and get back to the original values of the club’s Catholic founder.”

A Catholic uprising For example, support for commemorating last year’s 1916 Easter Rising centenary in Scotland came mostly from left-wing nationalists, Scottish socialists and republicans. Yet there seemed to be somebody missing from this conversation: there appeared to be no reflection on the Easter Rising coming from within the Scottish Catholic community. That was odd, considering the fact that the Church’s public role in Irish life was fully restored following the uprising against the British occupation, while the Church’s revival in Scotland was mostly down to Irish immigration in the decades leading up to the Rising. This lack of input from the faith community was unfortunate since the Church could have played a positive role in providing a forum for dialogue and reflection which might have gone some way towards healing old wounds and removing many of the fears around marking Easter 1916 in Scotland—just as the churches in South Africa played a vital role in healing and reconciliation in the years after apartheid. One of the problems with the total secularisation of Scots’ understanding of Irish politics and Irish history means that it becomes far too easy for voices from Scotland’s Protestant unionist loyalist community to crudely defame all those marking the Rising as revolutionary Marxists who have more in com-

Back in 1900 my local newspaper, the Greenock Telegraph, ran an article about the ending of the siege of Mafeking by Baden Powell during the Boer War. It was reported that after the British victory over the Boers, the bells of the local church were rung, huge crowds mobbed into the town square to celebrate, and bonfires were lit on the coast. However, the Boer War was unpopular among Irish Catholics, both in Scotland and Ireland. It was thought to be a waste of time and money fighting a war in a faraway land for the benefit of the British Empire. Similarly, German immigrants in Britain were seen as “Boer spies”, and some were even attacked because Kaiser Wilhelm II had congratulated Paul Kruger for resisting the British. To be fair, many in Ireland, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium did support the Boers’ cause. ProBoer clubs and associations were even to be found in the Catholic heartlands of the Rhineland, Bavaria, Flanders and South Netherlands. This admiration came from the fact that some of the Boers were of German origin, the two most notable being Paul Kruger and Stephanus Schoeman. As such, volunteers came from these regions alongside some Irishmen to fight with the Boers against the British. Two units of Irish com-

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How one line by Ramaphosa said everything STAFF REPORTER

Pope: I pray for my critics BY CINDY WOODEN

OPE Francis has said he tries to dialogue with those who disagree with him in the hope that he will learn something; but he just prays for those who call him a heretic. “When I perceive resistance, I seek dialogue whenever it is possible; but some resistance comes from people who believe they possess the true doctrine and accuse you of being a heretic,” the pope told a group of Jesuits during a meeting last month in Santiago, Chile. The text of the meeting was published by the Jesuit journal Civiltà Cattoolica this month. “ W h e n I c a n n o t s e e s p i ri t u a l g o o d n es s i n what these people say or write, I simply pray for them,” Pope Francis said in response to a question about the “resistance” he has encountered as pope. The exchange was part of a question-andanswer session. Pope Francis told the Jesuits in Chile that he tries not to think of opposition as “resista nce ”, b ecau se t hat cu ts of f an oppor tunity for dialogue, discernment and learning something or at least recognising a need to explain something better. As for blogs and Internet sites devoted to leading the “resistance” against him, Pope Francis said: “I know who they are, I know the groups, but I do not read them for my own mental health.”

The Th T he

People are naturally resistant to change, and “this is a great temptation that we all faced in the period after the Second Vatican C o un c i l ” , t h e p o p e s ai d . T h e r e s i s t a n c e c o n tinues today with some people trying to “relativise” or “water down” the council’s teachings and the course it set for the Church. “We are used to a ‘yes, you can’ or ‘no, you can’t’ mentality,” the pope said. “If you take a look at the panorama of reactions to Amoris Laetitia, you will see that the strongest criticisms of the exhortation are against the eighth chapter: ‘Can a divorced person receive Communion, or not?’ But Amoris Laetitia goes in a completely different direction; it does not enter into these distinctions,” the pope said. Instead, “it raises the issue of discernment”. Picking up the same themes during a meeting with Jesuits in Peru, the pope said he was convinced God was asking the Church to be evangelising, missionary, reaching out—the “Church as a field hospital”. “Ah, the wounds of the People of God,” he said. “Sometimes the People of God are wounded by a rigid, moralist catechism, of the ‘you can or you can’t’ variety, or by a lack of testimony.” In many ways, he said, the resistance to the changed approach he has proposed “is a good sign. It is a sign that we are on the right road, this is the road. Otherwise the devil would not bother to resist.”—CNS

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A revival of faith In November I was blessed to meet the wonderful Bishop Brendan Leahy of Limerick, who came to Scotland and spoke to us with great joy on the theme “Christian Family Life in a Changing Society”. The bishop invited us Scots to come to Dublin for the World Meeting of Families in August 2018. But the bishop was inviting us not just to Ireland but also towards the spirit of mercy and towards a springtime in the Church, both in Ireland and in Scotland. Maybe this is where the true unity of Catholics in Ireland and Scotland, and even in South Africa, can be found; not in the messy business of social history, football, politics or ancestry, but in a shared pilgrimage towards mercy and the love of Christ. Let’s continue on this journey of evangelism together down a path set out for us by good men like Abbot Franz Pfanner, Frank Duff and all the various other lay apostolates and new movements. A new evangelism brought to life at the Second Vatican Council, is being continued today through the World Meeting of Families. See you all in Dublin! n Ross Ahlfeld is a Catholic journalist based in Scotland.

People holding Scottish and vatican flags cheer as Pope Benedict Xvi arrived for a Mass at Bellahouston Park in Glasgow, Scotland, in September 2010. (Photo: Alessia Giuliani, CPP/CNS)

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mandos fought during the Second Boer War with John MacBride, a friend of Arthur Griffiths, organising what became known as the Irish Transvaal Brigade. Why would mostly left-leaning Irish republicans support a state which became the forerunner to the apartheid regime? Back then the Boers were seen as struggling against British imperialism, and people in Ireland could relate to similar acts of cruelty carried out by the British army. It’s also worth noting that many prominent members of the ultraProtestant Orange Order fought for Britain during the Second Boer War.

HERE was one key sentence in President Cyril Ramaphosa’s first address to the nation which said a lot about where South Africa is now, a Church political analyst has said. Mike Pothier, head of research of the Catholic Parliamentar y Liaison Office, pointed to the sixth-last line of Mr Ramap phosa’s State of the Nation Address: “We are at a moment in the history of our nation when the people, through their determination, have started to turn the countr y around.” “There is a lot in that sentence,” Mr Pothier said. “Firstly, not since 1994 has a president found it necessar y to talk of ‘turning the countr y around’. Previous SONAs have assured us that we were moving in the right direction, though possibly not fast enough and not without encountering obstacles and opposition. To o speak of ‘turning around’ is to concede quite explicitly that we were in fact heading for the rocks,” he explained. “Secondly, it is ‘the people, through their determination’ that started the turnaround— not the African National Congress; not the alliance; not the government. “It is the resilience of our people, expressed in myriad ways, from street protest to radio talk-shows, from investigative journalism to court applications, from withholding their votes to changing their loyalties, that has counted,” Mr Pothier noted. “The people saw through the lies and dissembling of Jacob Zuma and his cronies, and sent a message. Just about enough of the delegates to the ANC’s December conference understood the message,” he said. “Thirdly, Mr Ramaphosa correctly identified a ‘moment in our history’. We have been through an era marked by mendacity and betrayal. We now have the chance to put that behind us and shake off the cloying taint of the Zuma years,” he said. “Many commentators have drawn comys that followed parisons with the euphoric day

A State of the Nation Address banner is seen near parliament in Cape To own. President [Nelson] Mandela’s accession in 1994; apart from the fact that we are more sceptical now than we were then, the comparison is not out of place. “Apartheid robbed the majority of our people of their dignity and material wellbeing. Jacob Zuma’s ANC, by embracing corruption, by subordinating the public interest to the personal enrichment of the elite, and by selling out to commercial and foreign patronage, did exactly the same,” Mr Pothier said. “So, that one sentence was sufficient to set this speech apart.” Mr Pothier applauded the early signs of the Ramaphosa presidency. “We now have a president who acknowledges that [Social Development] minister Bathabile Dlamini has been undermining the Continued on page 2

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CLASSIFIEDS

Two minutes to midnight for nuclear war catastrophe ‘T

O call the world’s nuclear situation dire is to understate the danger and its immediacy.” This is the warning of Dr Rachel Bronson, president of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. Famous for their symbolic Doomsday Clock, the Bulletin’s highly respected scientists and 15 Nobel laureate consultants recently moved the clock to two minutes before midnight—warning that a nuclear war catastrophe is very possible! The only other time in its seven-decade history when the minute hand was set this close to midnight—that is, the devastation of the planet, and virtually everything and everyone on it—was in 1953 after the US and the Soviet Union tested thermonuclear weapons for the first time. And in less than three weeks after the Doomsday Clock was moved so perilously close to nuclear midnight, the US Pentagon released its 2018 Nuclear Posture Review (NPR), providing the world with even more reasons to be alarmed. Adding to the insane fact that both the US and Russia each have hundreds of nuclear weapons aimed at each other programmed with a “launchon-warning” (hair-trigger-alert) status, the NPR states that the US will continue its policy to be the first to initiate a nuclear attack if it decides that its “vital interests” and those of its “allies and partners” are at risk. I interviewed Beatrice Fihn, executive director of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, which as an organisation won the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize for its leading work to achieve a nuclear-free world through the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. he said the Pentagon’s NPR furthers President Donald Trump’s $1 trillion-plus plan to modernise the US nuclear arsenal, and produce new socalled “low-yield” nuclear weapons—similar in destructive power to the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki—making them more “usable”. “There are no ‘good nukes’ and this policy makes nuclear war more likely,” Ms Fihn warned. She has deep admiration for Pope Francis: “The Holy Father made it clear last year that the only morally acceptable nuclear strategy is one that seeks security through the total elimination of nuclear weapons.” It is of special note that the Holy See was one of the first countries to sign and ratify the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. But most unfortunately, the nine nuclear powers have rejected it.

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Point of Justice

While writing this column, I paused to watch the 1983 movie The Day After, which realistically portrays how an escalating set of events could quickly lead to a catastrophic nuclear conflict, and the horrific aftermath of a nuclear war. I strongly urge all adults and teenagers to watch this unfortunately still very timely film (it’s on YouTube). And it would be very fruitful if Church groups would view it together, followed by prayer, discussion and a commitment to action. God the Creator is calling each of us, clergy and laity, to persistently raise our voices on behalf of humanity and the earth upon which we live—before it’s too late! The day before Rev Martin Luther King Jr was assassinated 50 years ago, he prophetically warned us in his compelling “Mountaintop” speech: “It is no longer a choice between violence and non-violence in this world; it's nonviolence or non-existence. That is where we are today.” n Tony Magliano is an internationally syndicated social justice and peace columnist. You can read his articles at www.scross.co.za/category/perspectives/tonymagliano/

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We are close to a nuclear war catastrophe, experts warn.

Our bishops’ anniversaries

Southern CrossWord solutions

This week we congratulate: March 19: Bishop Abel Gabuza of Kimberley on the 7th anniversary of his episcopal ordination March 23: Bishop Gabuza on his 63rd birthday

SOLUTIONS TO 801. ACROSS: 4 Advance, 8 Knight, 9 Esquire, 10 Thrall, 11 In line, 12 Holy Week, 18 Abstains, 20 Quorum, 21 Mantra, 22 Vincent, 23 Fiance, 24 Adverse. DOWN: 1 Sketchy, 2 Misrule, 3 The law, 5 Dislikes, 6 Aquila, 7 Caring, 13 Examines, 14 Listens, 15 Ashamed, 16 Buried, 17 Oracle, 19 Tragic.

Liturgical Calendar Year B – Weekdays Cycle Year 2 Sunday March 11, 4th Sunday of Lent 2 Chronicles 36:14-16, 19-23, Psalms 137:1-6, Ephesians 2:4-10, John 3:1421 Monday March 12 Isaiah 65:17-2, Psalms 30:2, 4-6, 11-13, John 4:43-54 Tuesday March 13 Ezekiel 47:1-9, 12, Psalms 46:2-3, 5-6, 8-9, John 5:1-16 Wednesday March 14 Isaiah 49:8-15, Psalms 145:8-9, 13-14, 17-18, John 5:17-30 Thursday March 15 Exodus 32:7-14, Psalms 106:19-23, John 5:31-47 Friday March 16 Wisdom 2:1, 12-22, Psalms 34:17-21, 23, John 7:1-2, 10, 25-30 Saturday March 17, St Patrick Jeremiah 11:18-20, Psalms 7:2-3, 9-12, St Patrick John 7:40-53 Sunday March 18, 5th Sunday of Lent Jeremiah 31:31-34, Psalms 51:3-4, 12-15, Hebrews 5:7-9, John 12:20-33

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the Southern Cross, March 7 to March 13, 2018

GOD, heavenly Father, look upon me and hear my prayer during this holy Season of lent. By the good works you inspire, help me to discipline my body and to be renewed in spirit. Without you i can do nothing. By

your Spirit help me to know what is right and to be eager in doing your will. teach me to find new life through penance. keep me from sin, and help me live by your commandment of love. God of love, bring me back to you. Send your Spirit to make me strong in faith and active in good works. May my acts of penance bring me your forgiveness, open my heart to your love, and prepare me for the coming feast of the Resurrection of Jesus. lord, during this lenten Season, nourish me with your Word of life and make me one with you in love and prayer. Fill my heart with your love and keep me faithful to the Gospel of Christ. Give me the grace to rise above my human weakness. Give me new life by your Sacraments, especially the holy Mass. Father, our source of life, i reach out with joy to grasp your hand; let me walk more readily in your ways. Guide me in your gentle mercy, for left to myself i cannot do your Will. Father of love, source of all blessings, help me to pass from my old life of sin to the new life of grace. Prepare me for the glory of your kingdom. i ask this through our lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the holy Spirit, one God, forever. Amen. FATHER, you have given all peoples one common origin. it is your will that they be gathered together as one family in yourself. Fill the hearts of mankind with the fire of your love and with the desire to ensure justice for all. By sharing the good things you give us, may we secure an equality for all our brothers and sisters throughout the world. May there be an end to division, strife and war. May there be a dawning of a truly human society built on love and peace. We ask this in the name of Jesus, our lord. Amen. LORD, inspire those men and women who bear the titles “husband” and “wife”. help them to look to you, to themselves, to one another to rediscover the fullness and mystery they once felt in

their union. let them be honest enough to ask: “Where have we been together and where are we going?” let them be brave enough to question: “how have we failed?” let each be foolhardy enough to say: “For me, we come first.” help them, together, to reexamine their commitment in the light of your love, willingly, openly, compassionately.

LORD GOD, this candle that i light here today reminds me of the light that you enkindled in me at my baptism. Renew the flame of your love in me. let it burn away all my egotism, my jealousy, my pride and my failure to love. let me have a warm and generous heart. lord, i am not able to remain here in this church very much longer: i have to go. So, please accept this candle in my place. let it be like a part of me that i give to you. here, before the image of Blessed Mary, Mother of God, and imploring her powerful intercession, i ask you, as i offer you this humble candle, to allow my prayer to penetrate every activity and every facet of my life, so that everything will be shaped and formed by the burning flame of your love. i ask this for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

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the

5th Sunday in Lent: March 18 Readings: Jeremiah 31:31-34, Psalm 51: 34, 12-15, Hebrews 5:7-9, John 12:20-33

EXT Sunday we enter deeper into the mystery of Lent, into the sombre last two weeks, known as “Passiontide”, when we are made more aware of Jesus’ imminent death; but at the same time we are invited to learn that the picture is not irredeemably bleak. This is because God is always at work, whatever we may have got wrong. The first reading is from Jeremiah, who is generally inclined to see the darker side of things. Here, however, he is looking on the bright side. For God is promising a “new covenant” or “new treaty” with the house of Israel, who are in exile because of their infidelity; but God is never unfaithful, whatever we do. They are reminded of the previous covenant, made on “the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt”; but that covenant “they broke, even though I was their husband”. In this new arrangement, God says: “I shall put my Law in their inmost being and write it on their hearts, and” [best of all] “I shall be God for them, and they shall be my people.” In this very new situation, “They shall no longer teach one another, saying, ‘Know the Lord’; for they will all know me, from the

S outher n C ross

smallest to the greatest.” This is because of the central fact about God, his mercy: “I am going to forgive their iniquity, and not remember their sins any more.” If there is darkness, that is because we have disobeyed God; if there is hope, that is because God has not given up on us. We must, however, recognise that we are sinners; and that is why the psalm for next Sunday is part of the Miserere, which we have heard often enough during this Lent (and shall be hearing again): “Have mercy on me, God, in your steadfast love, according to your abundant mercy.” But the recognition of our sin is not the most important thing. What matters is God’s generous response: “Create a pure heart for me, God, make a steadfast spirit new within me; do not send me away from your presence.” In the second reading, the author of the Letter to the Hebrews meditates on Jesus’ approach to his suffering, how he offered “petitions and prayers to the One who was able to save him” and how “he was heard because of his piety”.

Conrad The

accidental, mortal. “We fail to see the glory of the Good News. The vital lie is unnecessary because all the things we truly long for have been freely given us.” All of us know what those words mean: We sense that we are extraordinary, precious, and significant, irrespective of our practical fortunes in life. Deep down we have the feeling that we are uniquely loved and specially called to a life of meaning and significance. We know too, though, more in faith than in feeling, that we are precious not on the basis of what we accomplish but rather on the basis of having been created and loved by God. But this intuition, however deep in our souls, invariably wilts in the face of trying to live a life that’s unique and special in a world in which billions of others are also trying to do the same thing. And so we can be over-

Sunday Reflections

That is not to say that he did not go into that appalling suffering, only that “he learnt obedience from what he suffered, and having been made perfect, he became the cause of eternal salvation for all those who obey him”. There is hope, therefore, even in this very dark time of Lent. That rather stark message also comes across in the Gospel for next Sunday. Here John’s gospel tiptoes as near as ever it can to allowing Jesus anything like an “agony in the garden”. It is provoked by “some Greeks among those who were coming up to worship at the Festival” who say “we want to see Jesus”; these characters approach the only two of Jesus’ disciples who have Greek names: Philip and Andrew. This leads Jesus into a moment of realisation: “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.” Then he offers the well-known parable about the “grain of wheat falling into the ground which dies”. So we are gazing at the reality of Jesus’ forthcoming death; we are invited to recognise that his death will not be

Our ache for earthly immortality Fr Ron W Rolheiser E share the world with more than seven and a half billion people and each of us has the irrepressible, innate sense that we are special and uniquely destined. This isn’t surprising since each one of us is indeed unique and special. But how does one feel special among seven and a half billion others? We try to stand out. Generally we don’t succeed, and so, as Allan Jones puts it: “We nurse within our hearts the hope that we are different, that we are special, that we are extraordinary. “We long for the assurance that our birth was no accident, that a god had a hand in our coming to be, that we exist by divine fiat. “We ache for a cure for the ultimate disease of mortality. Our madness comes when the pressure is too great and we fabricate a vital lie to cover up the fact that we are mediocre,

Nicholas King SJ

Jesus’ death to the fore

OMI

Final

Reflection whelmed by a sense of our own mediocrity, anonymity, and mortality and begin to fear that we’re not precious but are merely another-among-many, nobody special, one of billions, living among billions. When we feel like this, we are tempted to believe that we are precious and unique only when we accomplish something which precisely sets us apart and ensures that we will be remembered.

or most of us, the task of our lives then becomes guaranteeing our own preciousness, meaning, and immortality because, at the end of the day, we believe that this is contingent upon our own accomplishments, on creating our own specialness. And so we struggle to be content with ordinary lives of anonymity, hidden in God. Rather, we try to stand out, to leave a mark, to accomplish something extraordinary, and so ensure that we will be recognised and remembered. Few things impede our peace and happiness as does this effort. We set for ourselves the impossible, frustrating task of assuring for ourselves something which only God can give us, significance and immortality. Ordinary life then never seems enough for us, and we live restless, competitive, driven lives. Why isn’t ordinary life enough for us? Why do our lives always seem too small and not exciting enough? Why do we habitually feel dissatisfied at not being special? Why our need to leave a mark? Why does our own situ-

ation often feel so suffocating? Why can’t we more easily embrace each other as sisters and brothers, and rejoice in each other’s gifts and each other’s existence? Why the perennial feeling that the other is a rival? Why the need for masks, for pretence, to project a certain image about ourselves? The answer: We do all these things to try to set ourselves apart because we are trying to give ourselves something that only God can give us: significance and immortality. Scripture tells us that “faith alone saves”. That simple line reveals the secret: Only God gives eternal life. Preciousness, meaning, significance and immortality are free gifts from God and we would be a whole lot more restful, peaceful, humble, grateful, happy, and less competitive if we could believe that. A humble, ordinary life, shared with billions of others, would then contain enough to give us a sense of our preciousness, meaning, and significance. Thomas Merton, on one of his less restless days, wrote: “It is enough to be, in an ordinary human mode, with one’s hunger and sleep, one’s cold and warmth, rising and going to bed. Putting on blankets and taking them off, making coffee and then drinking it. Defrosting the refrigerator, reading, meditating, working, praying. “I live as my Fathers have lived on this earth, until eventually I die. Amen. “There is no need to make an assertion of my life, especially so about it as mine, though doubtless it is not somebody else’s. I must learn to live so as to gradually forget programme and artifice.” Ordinary life is enough. There isn’t any need to make an assertion with our lives. Our preciousness and meaning lie within the preciousness and meaning of life itself, not in having to accomplish something special.

the end of the story, but “if he dies he bears much fruit”. This is followed by a familiar theme of Jesus’ teaching, especially relevant at this stage of Lent: “The one who loves his life loses it; and the one who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.” This is followed by the implicit invitation to disciples: “If anyone serves me, let them follow me… the Father will honour that person.” Once again, though, it is not easy, and we hear Jesus saying, “Now my soul is disturbed”, but he refuses to beg God, “Father, save me from this hour.” The reason is simple: “It was for this that I came.” So his prayer, powerfully answered from heaven, is “Father, glorify your name”, followed by a reminder about the crucifixion: “If I am lifted up from the earth, I shall draw all to myself.” Then the final comment reminds us of what is waiting for him (though God is at work throughout): “He said this, offering a sign of the death he was about to die.”

Southern Crossword #801

ACROSS

4. Move forward with early funding (7) 8. Catholic gentleman in shining armour? (6) 9. Young gentleman attending 8 ac (7) 10. Fifth rally reveals you are in another’s power (6) 11. How you stand outside the confessional (2,4) 12. Whole key of the sacred season (4,4) 18. Does in Lent what able seaman does with confused saints (8) 20. It’s needed for parish council members to meet formally (6) 21. It’s regularly repeated in meditation (6) 22. Saint of the poor who carries another saint’s name (7) 23. He’s engaged to be married (6) 24. Anno Domini poetry is unfavourable? (7)

DOWN

1. Like a rough drawing, not detailed (7) 2. Lemur is able to bring disorder (7) 3. It must take its course in court (3,3) 5. Feels distaste for (8) 6. He and Priscilla helped Paul (Ac 18) (6) 7. Showing compassion (6) 13. Penitent with a conscience does it (8) 14. Enlists and pays attention (7) 15. Feeling awkward because has made wrongly (7) 16. Cruciﬁed, died and was ... (Creed) (6) 17. It uttered prophecies for ancient Greeks at Delphi (6) 19. Letter has cigar back. It’s very sad (6)

Solutions on page 11

CHURCH CHUCKLE

HERESA was sitting on her grandfather’s lap as he read her a bedtime story. From time to time, she would reach up to touch his wrinkled cheek and then her own. Finally she spoke up: “Grandad, did God make you?” “Yes, darling,” he answered, “God made me a long time ago.” “Oh,” Theresa paused, “Grandad, did God make me too?” “Yes, indeed, dear,” he said, “God made you just a little while ago.” Feeling their respective faces again, Theresa observed: “God’s getting better at it, isn’t he?”

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