191023

The

S outher n C ross

October 23 to October 29, 2019

Reg no. 1920/002058/06

no 5158

www.scross.co.za

The Voice SA winner is justice ambassador

R12 (incl VAT RSA)

How to handle grief with faith

Page 3

Page 9

Belief can indeed move mountains

Page 10

Top Jhb synod vows to make new ideas real

by ERin CARElSE

A Kenyan marathoner Eliud Kipchoge, a committed Catholic, did the formerly unthinkable, becoming the first man to finish a marathon in under two hours. (Photo: Twitter)

The Catholic faith and family of Kenyan marathon recordbreaker

M

ARATHONER Eliud Kipchoge earlier this month broke the finishing tape, and a barrier long-thought to be completely unbreakable, when he became the first person to run a marathon in less than two hours, finishing a 42,2km course in Vienna in 1 hour 59 minutes 40 seconds.

Sometime after the run was over, away from the spotlight, Kenyan Kipchoge did what he is reported to do after every race: he knelt down, bent his forehead to the ground, and made the sign of the cross, in thanksgiving.

In his hometown, his friends and family say Kipchoge’s extraordinary accomplishment might have something to do with his deep Catholic faith.

His cousin, Fr Kennedy Kipchumba, said that after the runner’s feat, his family celebrated Mass in thanksgiving. “Everybody came to church. We celebrated as a community,” Fr Kipchumba said.

Kipchoge, 34, was raised in the small highland village of Kapsisiwa, 320km from Kenya’s capital, Nairobi. The runner now lives with his wife in the west Kenyan city of Eldoret, close to his hometown.

His mother, Janeth Rotich, is seen as a moral and spiritual supporter. “I wake up at 3am every day to pray for Kipchoge. I pray the rosary,” she has told local reporters.

Before Kipchoge left Kenya, on the feast of

Our Lady of the Rosary, Mass was offered in the parish he attends when in Nairobi, St Paul’s University church.

Nairobi University chaplain Fr Peter Kaigua said young people had T-shirts printed with his name.

Fr Kaigua said Kipchoge had said, “You cannot train alone and expect to make a fast time...100 percent of me is nothing compared to one percent of the team”, and university students were his “pacemakers in prayer” during the Vienna marathon.

When he crossed the finish line, Kipchoge said he felt himself to be “the happiest man to run under two hours to inspire many people; to tell people that no human is limited, you can do it”.

Fr Samuel Nyattaya of Kenya’s Kisumu archdiocese said he felt delighted and surprised at the demonstration of Kipchoge’s Catholic faith. “God must have been so happy to see this Kenyan encouraging the entire world with his belief,” Sr Margaret Mutiso of the Daughters of the Sacred Heart added.

For his part, Fr Kaigua said that the university parish in Nairobi is already “planning to celebrate another Mass for him in his presence immediately, as soon as he is back in the country”.

The priest, and the marathoner, surely have something to thank God for.—CNA

LESSON from the Johannesburg archdiocesan synod ten years ago is that unless you identify structures to assist in implementation, documents just remain idealistic words, Archbishop Buti Tlhagale OMI of Johannesburg said.

This year’s synod took place from September 20-21 at Cathedral Place in Berea, and Archbishop Tlhagale has since released the acts of the synod.

In preparation, he entrusted the Synod Monitoring and Implementation Committee to evaluate the impact of the 2008 Synod on the life of the archdiocese and parishes, and survey people on the areas that need focus.

The survey revealed four key themes that stood out as important.

They were renewal, youth, marriage and family life, and missionary discipleship. The synod then listed policies aimed at effecting change on these themes.

Renewal “Renewal is fundamentally about a change of culture, a new vision, an appropriation of the values of the Gospel and living them out so that we are transformed,” Archbishop Tlhagale said.

Four areas in particular were identified that need renewal: spiritual growth, faith formation, liturgical celebration, and community life.

Among the list of resolutions under the renewal theme was a programme of ongoing and lifelong formation implemented across the diocese, with a common syllabus and practice in sacramental preparation.

PPC members, for example, should be properly trained, and their role in the parish and relationship to their priest clearly understood.

Youth “There seems to be a lack of engagement between authorities/structures in parishes and the youth, who find welcome and connection in other denominations’ churches,” Archbishop Tlhagale said.

He noted that the first step is getting youth

into the Church, and then giving them a reason to stay.

While a key component of parish life should be a ministry to youth, the archbishop said ministry by youth must also be encouraged, and parishes should form communities of welcome where youth can receive psychological and emotional support.

Marriage and family life “There is a recognition by all parishes of the challenges facing Christian marriage today, and a great desire by the local Church to support marriage,” the archbishop noted.

Areas mentioned in the parish survey were preparation before marriage, addressing the clash between the traditional idea of marriage as a process and the Christian understanding of marriage as a sacrament, and the desire for the Church to be more accepting of the diversity and complexity of the modern family.

Archbishop Tlhagale also said the role of women in the Church needs to be examined, along with ways to listen to their voices.

Missionary discipleship “Missionary disciples need to be evangelised and formed themselves,” the archbishop said.

Among the list of resolutions was reducing the period between archdiocesan synods from every 10 years to every five years.

Parishes are also encouraged to reach out to marginalised groups in the Church and in the community, particularly the unchurched, lapsed Catholics, the sick, prisoners, LGBTI individuals, and those living in squatter camps.

Policies Archbishop Tlhagale concluded with policy decisions to be implemented by the archdiocese as well as parishes. Many are to be reported back on by February 2020.

Among them was that the Synod Monitoring and Implementation Committee has the responsibility of evaluating the implementation of synod resolutions, providing support to parishes in implementing them, and preparing an annual progress report.

Continued on page 3

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2

The Southern Cross, October 23 to October 29, 2019

LOCAL

Not missing a beat: record school attendance

by ERin CARElSE

Z

AINE Perry has received a special achievement award for not missing a day of school in 14 years, an achievement his mother Michelle Perry, Southern Cross subscriptions administrator, says is due to his hard work and dedication.

Zaine, who is an altar server, a trainee catechist, a member of the St Vincent de Paul Society and a proclaimer of the Word, said he only realised at the beginning of Grade 7, when his teachers, principal and fellow learners started making a fuss about his full attendance, that this must be some kind of record.

In Grade 8, he was disappointed not to receive an award at prizegiving and felt it unfair on his parents to have to watch all the other learners get awards. That was when he decided to use his daily attendance to work harder and adopt the motto “I can and I will.”

“This definitely motivated me because when I thought about it, I had

already completed seven years of full attendance and there were only five years left to go; I was more than halfway and thought this would be a great challenge,” Zaine said.

His parents, Michelle Perry and Dino Issacs, said they could not be more proud of him, he has exceeded their expectations, and deserves every excellent mark he gets.

“Zaine is an extremely dedicated, loyal and hardworking child,” Michelle Perry said.

“His humility and compassion for others and animals amaze us.

Our hopes for him are that he succeeds in anything he sets out to do.

We pray that life lessons along the way will not be too overwhelming and that he will bounce back with positivity from all of them.”

At Claremont High School’s final prizegiving earlier this month, Zaine was awarded academic honours, and a special full-attendance award.

“Zaine’s diligence and work ethic are exemplary and very much reflected in his dedication to attending

young Cape Town Catholic student Zaine Perry with his record school attendance award, flanked by proud parents Michelle Perry and Dino issacs.

every single day of school,” said Claremont High academics department head Alexander Wilson.

St Mary’s Primary School principal Fiona Sellar also spoke of Zaine’s dedication, perseverance and hard work throughout his time at St Mary’s, and said she was proud to

hear that he continued in this manner through his high school career.

Fr Rohan Smuts, who has known Zaine in his personal capacity as dean at the metropolitan cathedral church of Our Lady of the Flight into Egypt for the past seven years, said he sees Zaine as a remarkable,

sensitive, generous young man, with concern for others.

Fr Smuts also noted that Zaine is a committed Christian, and unapologetically so, rare in someone so young in today’s world.

Once Zaine has completed matric he plans to continue studying.

He has applied to study medicine at UCT, which would be his dream. He has conditional acceptance to do a bachelor of science degree in marine biology/biochemistry at UCT and also a BSc in physics/laser physics at Stellenbosch University.

When asked where he hopes to be in the next five years, he said: “Hopefully still studying medicine, but if this is not God’s plan I expect to be successful in whatever I set out to do, although according to others, I will probably be at a seminary in the next five years.”

“I feel dedication is key to anything we do in life. I believe I have dedication and commitment and, hopefully, this will stand me in good stead for my future,” Zaine said.

The 2019 Denis Hurley lecture will be given by renowned Catholic writer Dr Siphiwe Mkhize next month. Seen are last year’s participants with Durban archdiocese Justice & Peace coordinator Kalie Senyane (seated left) and 2018 speaker Fr Peter-John Pearson (seated right).

Renowned Catholic writer for Denis Hurley Lecture

T

HIS year’s Denis Hurley Lecture will be delivered by renowned Catholic writer Dr Siphiwe Mkhize.

The 23rd annual Hurley lecture will be delivered on Friday, November 8, at St Joseph’s parish in Morningside, Durban, at 09:00 for 10:00.

Last year’s lecture was given by

Catholic Parliamentary Liaison Office director Fr Peter-John Pearson, on racism and racial division.

During Fr Pearson’s question and answer session, it was apparent that a seed had been planted in participants’ minds, said Durban Justice & Peace coordinator Kalie Senyane.

“Many seemed to have under-

stood the powerful message that Fr Pearson gave, calling them to be agents of change and become vocal, especially on issues of race, divisions and youth unemployment,” said Mr Senyane. n Those interested in attending are asked to RSVP Kalie Senyane on or before October 31 at 031 303-1417.

Johannesburg’s Mary Hyam—director of religious education and formation at De la Salle Holy Cross College—represented the Kenya, Eritrea, Ethiopia, nigeria, Mozambique and South Africa region at an African meeting of the international lasallian Council. Participants from both English- and French-speaking countries met in Abidjan, ivory Coast, for two weeks for formation and reflection.

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LOCAL

The Southern Cross, October 23 to October 29, 2019

3

Voice of SA signs on for human rights role

by ERin CARElSE

T

HE Voice SA Season 2 winner Craig Lucas has been announced as the Global Goodwill Ambassador for award-winning human rights NPO The Justice Desk.

The Justice Desk is part of the Edmund Rice organisation, named after Bl Edmund Rice, founder of the Christian Brothers.

“We are thrilled to work with Craig Lucas as we are great admirers not only of his music but his expression about his personal life and values,” said founder and executive director Jessica Dewhurst.

“His open letter about his sexuality is one example of these values.

Freedom from discrimination and the right to equality are just some examples of human rights that Mr Lucas and The Justice Desk are proud to promote,” she added.

Following Mr Lucas’s success, Ms Dewhurst noted that he has used his platform to stand up for the fundamental human rights that all people are entitled to.

When asked about the appointment, 27-year-old Lucas, from Elsies River in Cape Town, said: “the time I’ve spent with The Justice Desk up to now has been incredibly eyeopening! I’ve learnt so much about human rights and the importance of justice work. I look forward to working with their incredible team to grow as an advocate for justice, as well as to make a difference across south-central Africa.”

The Justice Desk operates in South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe, and empowers local people to understand and defend their human rights, in order to build safer communities for all. It works

hard to educate, advocate for and equip youth, vulnerable groups, civil society, and governments.

In six short years, its impact is already at over 200 000 people.

The organisation was recently in the spotlight when the Duke and Duchess of Sussex (Prince Harry and Meghan Markle), avid supporters of the organisation, visited them as their first official stop on their royal tour of South Africa.

There are talks of Lucas doing a show to support The Justice Desk towards the end of this year, possibly on his birthday. More information will be confirmed on The Justice Desk website (www.justicedesk.org) and social media pages in the coming month or so. n For more information, contact The Justice Desk at info@justicedesk.org or call 060 627-1963.

Voice of SA Season 2 winner Craig lucas (fourth from right) has been appointed Global Goodwill Ambassador for The Justice Desk, a South African organisation based on the values of bl Edmund Rice.

Visitor renews development group ties Jhb synod: Key to translate

by SyDnEy DuVAl

ideas into grassroots reality

M

ISEREOR and Missio are the two big Ms celebrated as active and conscientious Catholic voices for social responsibility and pastoral outreach.

Misereor is the German Catholic bishops’ organisation for development cooperation. For more than 50 years it has fought poverty in Africa, Asia and Latin America—regardless of religion, ethnicity or gender.

Missio is committed to strengthening missionary awareness of the faithful, and also provides financial and non-material support to local Churches in Africa, Asia and Oceania.

Both Misereor and Missio served as valued partners of the Church in South Africa during the worst days of apartheid and repression.

Dr Günther Thie, for many years the SA Misereor desk officer, crisscrossed the country, from city to township to bundu, establishing and supporting projects aimed at human development through community self-help initiatives. HIV/Aids was a major Misereor concern.

After a break of several years, Dr Thie was back in South Africa lately

Members of Catholic development organisations welcomed visiting retired SA Misereor desk officer Dr Günther Thie in Cape Town. Seen are (from left) current SA Misereor desk officer Dr Klaus Piepel, Rural Development Support Programme chair Greg berry, RDSP co-founders Rosanne Shields and Jane de Sousa, RDSP financial manager Cecilia Kuhn, Dr Thie, and RDSP administrator Mellisa Petersen. (Photo: Sydney Duval). to join theologian Dr Klaus Piepel, the current Misereor desk officer.

They spent time catching up with old and new partners for a sharing and review of work on the go.

The two began their time in Cape Town with a visit to Peter and Annie Templeton at Goedgedacht Trust for rural children.

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Brislin and Auxiliary Bishop Sylvester David too, followed by sessions with the Rural Development Support Programme and the Catholic Parliamentary Liaison Office, and a brief encounter with Fr Pat Naughton SDB of the Salesian Institute.

Drs Thie and Piepel also visited the Eastern Cape to connect, reflect and renew their work on the ground.

Continued from page 1 The Department of Evangelisation and the Youth Department will jointly convene a meeting of representatives of all youth in the archdiocese, to convey to them the resolutions of the synod, and establish what those resolutions might mean for the youth.

The Department of Evangelisation will continue its programme of educating PPCs, as well as ensuring that the archdiocesan policy for the safeguarding of children is implemented in each parish.

A panel of experts for Marriage and Family Life will reestablish this ministry at archdiocesan level, and strengthen it at parish level. It will also provide resource materials regarding diversity training.

After a process of consultation, the Department of Catechetics will propose a model of lifelong, ongoing formation for the archdiocese. This model is to

be as expansive and inclusive in scope as possible.

The Department of Communications will assess the effectiveness of communication policies and strategies, and propose new ways of communicating.

The Department of Liturgy will continue its work of equipping different ministerial groups with the skills they need to enrich the liturgical life of parishes.

Ongoing formation of clergy in this regard should be included in activities of the department.

Each parish will establish a Caritas Forum which will be the umbrella body for all groups in the parish carrying out works of mercy and justice. It will have, among others, representatives of the St Vincent de Paul Society, Justice & Peace, Migrants and Refugees, Environmental Justice, and any other group involved in charitable works. n To read the full document, visit the archdiocese of Johannesburg’s website at www.catholicjhb.org.za

4

The Southern Cross, October 23 to October 29, 2019

INTERNATIONAL

Africa’s bishops should set up anti-trafficking offices

by PAiGE HAnlEy

A

britain’s Prince Charles talks with Archbishop Edgar Pena Parra, substitute secretary for general affairs in the Vatican Secretariat of State, before the canonisation Mass for five new saints celebrated by Pope Francis in St Peter’s Square at the Vatican. (Photo: Paul Haring/CnS)

Push for St Newman to be a doctor of the Church

by CinDy WOODEn

B

RITAIN’S Prince Charles penned an article about England’s newest saint for the Vatican newspaper.

St Newman’s example, he wrote, “is needed more than ever for the manner in which, at his best, he could advocate without accusation, could disagree without disrespect and, perhaps most of all, could see differences as places of encounter rather than exclusion”.

The article was released as a conference about St Newman was ending at the Vatican with a cardinal calling for the declaration of the 19th-century theologian, poet and pastor as a “doctor of the Church”.

Prince Charles, who as future king of England is also the future head of the Church of England, attended the Mass and canonisation of St Newman and four others in St Peter’s Square. A large delegation of Anglican priests and bishops joined him at the Mass to honour the British saint who had served as an Anglican priest before joining the Catholic Church.

Christians should not be afraid of differences, Prince Charles wrote, after all, “harmony requires difference. The concept rests at the very heart of Christian theology in the concept of the Trinity”.

“As such,” he said, “difference is not to be feared. Newman not only proved this in his theology and illustrated it in his poetry, but he also demonstrated it in his life. Under his leadership, Catholics became fully part of the wider society, which itself, thereby, became all the richer as a community of communities.”

St Newman’s emphasis on the importance of individual conscience was another area of his thought mentioned by Prince Charles.

“Those who seek the divine in what can seem like an increasingly hostile intellectual environment,” he said, “find in him a powerful ally who championed the individual conscience against an overwhelming relativism.”

At a symposium held at the Vatican, Canadian Cardinal Marc Ouellet said St Newman should be declared a doctor of the Church.

Currently about three dozen saints hold the title in recognition of their contributions to theology and spirituality. They include such luminaries as Ss John Chrysostom, Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Bonaventure, Catherine of Siena and Thérèse of Lisieux.

“The depth of this man of God and the place he now occupies in Catholicity make us aware of the void his absence would have left if he had not been,” Cardinal Ouellet said.

Advocating for recognition of St Newman as a doctor of the Church, the cardinal particularly pointed to the new saint’s teaching that “in order to keep its integrality, the faith of the Church must adapt its language to the cultural challenges and the dangers of heresy”.

St Newman’s teaching on the development of doctrine held that “although the deposit of faith does not change, the Church’s knowledge of it progresses, deepens and is expressed in a new way, always faithful to the original idea”, the cardinal said.—CNS

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LL bishops’ conferences and dioceses in Africa should create an office or point person to collaborate with judges, immigration departments and law enforcement to beef up efforts against human trafficking, said delegates to a regional conference.

The Catholic Church in Africa needs to form “effective partnerships and collaboration with the aim of cutting the umbilical cord of human trafficking and of the slavery of our days”, said Archbishop Philip Subira Anyolo of Kisumu, Kenya, according to Fides, the news agency of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples.

The archbishop, who is president of the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops, was one of more than 100 delegates from eight countries in Africa and the United Kingdom attending the second African regional conference of the Santa Marta Group in Nairobi, Kenya.

Since its foundation in 2014, the Santa Marta group has been dedicated to the universal elimination of human trafficking and slavery by bringing together police chiefs, bishops and members of religious orders from around the world.

If each national conference and diocese were to create an office working “in the spirit” of the Santa Marta group, delegates said, they could better identify and address the problems in countries of origin, transit and destination that facilitate human trafficking, according to a report by the Consolata Missionaries' Catholic Information Service for Africa.

Cardinal Vincent Nichols of Westminster, England, president of the Santa Marta group, said in a written message to the group: “We have to remember that human trafficking is a hugely profitable criminal activity and those who drive it forward are endless both in their greed for profit and in their callous disregard for the dignity of every person.”

“They must be stopped, and victims rescued, cherished and supported,” he said in remarks that were read at the conference on his behalf.

The cardinal urged participants to look into factors contributing to trafficking, such as poverty, lack of opportunity, corruption and migration.

Whether people recognise it or not, human trafficking and modernday slavery are happening “within our own communities. Anyone can be a victim as traffickers use extensive manipulation to control their victims,” Cardinal Nichols said.

The Santa Marta group, which includes hundreds of representatives from the Catholic Church, law enforcement, courts and immigrationfocused organisations in 35 countries, is named after the Santa Marta residence where Pope Francis lives and where police chiefs and Catholic bishops held their first meeting as part of an initiative begun by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales.—CNS

Vatican security chief resigns after leak of internal document

by JunnO AROCHO ESTEVES

P

OPE Francis accepted the resignation of Domenico Giani, head of the Vatican police, nearly two weeks after an internal security notice was leaked to the Italian press.

The Vatican announced that the pope accepted the resignation of the 57-year-old Vatican police chief who, although “bears no personal responsibility” for the leak, “tendered his resignation to the Holy Father out of love for the Church and faithfulness to Peter’s successor”.

The pope accepted Mr Giani’s resignation, and in a conversation with him, “expressed his appreciation to the commander for his gesture”.

Mr Giani’s resignation comes two weeks after L’Espresso, an Italian magazine, published what it said was an internal Vatican police notice about the “cautionary suspension” of five individuals after a raid on offices in the Secretariat of State and the Vatican Financial Intelligence Authority.

The suspension order, which was signed by Mr Giani, included Mgr Mauro Carlino, head of information and documentation at the Vatican Secretariat of State, and Tomasso di Ruzza, director of the Financial Intelligence Authority.

Matteo Bruni, director of the Vatican press office, had confirmed

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Domenico Giani, lead bodyguard for Pope Francis and head of the Vatican police force. Pope Francis accepted the resignation of Mr Giani nearly two weeks after an internal security notice was leaked to the italian press. (CnS photo/Paul Haring) that the pope ordered an investigation into the “illicit distribution of a document for internal use by the security forces of the Holy See”.

The seriousness of the leak, “in the words of Pope Francis, is comparable to a mortal sin since it is detrimental to the dignity of people and to the principle of the presumption of innocence”, Mr Bruni said.

In an interview released by the Vatican shortly after the announcement, Mr Giani said the leak caused the pope “serious pain” and that as commander, “I, too, was ashamed of what had happened and of the suf-

fering caused to these people.”

“For this reason, having always said and witnessed that I am ready to sacrifice my life to defend that of the pope, with the same spirit I decided to relinquish my duty so as not to damage the image and activity of the Holy Father in any way,” he said.

Mr Giani said that in the fallout over the leak, the pope continued to show him the paternal concern, which has “marked the special relationship that I have had with him since the beginning of his pontificate”.—CNS

Brazilian cardinal dies

B

RAZILIAN Cardinal Serafim Fernandes de Araujo, retired archbishop of Belo Horizonte, died on October 8 in Brazil at the age of 95.

With dozens of Brazilian bishops at the Vatican for the Synod of Bishops for the Amazon, Pope Francis and other synod members offered special prayers that evening for the repose of his soul.

Cardinal Araujo celebrated his 60th anniversary as a bishop in May; as a bishop, he was a member of the Second Vatican Council, which met from 1962-65. And although he was a cardinal for 21 years, he never participated as an elector in a conclave, since he turned 80 eight months before Pope John Paul II died.

Born on August 13, 1924, in Minas Novas, Brazil, he held degrees in theology and in canon law from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1949 and became a bishop in 1959, serving as an auxiliary in Belo Horizonte.

From 1960-81, Cardinal Araujo was president of the Catholic Uni-

brazilian Cardinal Serafim Fernandes de Araujo. (Photo: l’Osservatore Romano/CnS) versity of Minas Gerais. He served as coadjutor archbishop of Belo Horizonte for more than three years before becoming head of the archdiocese in 1986.

He served as vice-president of the Brazilian bishops’ conference from 1991-95. And in 1992, he was one of three papally appointed co-presidents of the fourth general conference of the Latin American bishops’ council in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.—CNS

INTERNATIONAL

The Southern Cross, October 23 to October 29, 2019

5

Tribe elders to Church elder: They didn’t ask permission by bARbARA FRASER

A

NITALIA Pijachi, an indigenous woman from the Amazonian town of Leticia, Colombia, came to the Synod of Bishops for the Amazon bringing a message from the elders of her people to Pope Francis, the elder of the Catholic Church.

The first Europeans to arrive in the Amazon were “invaders�, she said. “They never asked permission of mother nature or of the people who lived there. They imposed the cross and the Bible. That caused a great deal of resentment,� and in some cases forced indigenous peoples from their territories.

Ms Pijachi, an Ocaina Huitoto woman who is not Catholic, said that she spoke to the elders of her people, who approved of her participation in pre-synod gatherings as long as the Church respected indigenous cultures.

Respect our beliefs “The elders said that first the Catholic Church and all Churches must recognise us as having a right to our own culture and customs, our own spirituality,� she added. “They must not impose themselves and change� those beliefs.

For many indigenous peoples, evangelisation meant relocation from their territories to Church-run communities known as reductions, as well as the loss of their languages and traditions, she said. “The pain is alive and still there.�

The culture and spirituality of Amazonian indigenous people remain strong “as long as we have our

Anitalia Pijachi, a member of the Ocaina Huitoto indigenous group from Colombia and synod observer, said she agreed to participate in the synod to carry a message from the elders of her people to the elder of the Catholic Church.

(Photo: barbara Fraser/CnS) territory, our rivers, our sacred places, food and our seeds, the elements of our rituals�, Ms Pijachi said.

She said she sees the synod as an opportunity to talk with “a great friend, a great elder, Pope Francis, who can carry our voice� to places where it otherwise would not be heard.

Spiritual and cultural death “The people who come to extract natural resources don’t live there [the Amazon],� Ms Pijachi said. “They live in Europe; they live in mansions in the big cities. All they’re interested in is money.�

The damage to the environment “is a spiritual death and a cultural death� for indigenous people, she said, adding that some whose actions or policies result in destruction

are Catholic. “The same person who received first Communion, who was married in the Church, is the one who is cutting down the forest, who does not understand respect for creation,� Ms Pijachi said. “The same one who was baptised, who went to confession, who received Communion, who goes to Mass on Sunday, is the governor of a state and pays no attention to how public policies affect people.� “I asked the bishops, ‘Is that important to you?’� she said.

Role of women As an indigenous woman, Ms Pijachi said, she also called for Church leaders to listen to women.

Although many synod participants spoke of the important pastoral work done by women, some remained reluctant to give women a larger role, she said. That is partly because some bishops do not understand the reality of ministry in the Amazon, she added.

A priest must administer the sacrament of the sick, for example, but where there is no priest, parents will ask a religious Sister to bless a dying child. She has seen sisters telephone a priest to give the blessing by phone. “I reminded the men that they do not have to be afraid of us,� Ms Pijachi said. “The only way a man can be born is if he comes from a woman.� “So why, after I gave him life, I who am his mother, why does he reject me and send me off to a corner?� she asked.—CNS

left: irena Sendler on Christmas Eve of 1944. Right: Ms Sendler in 2005.

(Photo: Mariusz Kubik)

Film to portray Catholic who saved Jewish children in WWII

T

HE true story of Irena Sendler, a Polish Catholic woman who helped smuggle thousands of Jewish children out of the Jewish ghetto in Warsaw during World War II, will feature in a new historical thriller film produced by and starring Israeli actress Gal Gadot.

Irena Sendler was a 29 year-old social worker for the city of Warsaw when the German army occupied the city in September 1939. Using her connections from work, Ms Sendler did what she could to help the persecuted Jewish people of Warsaw.

A little over a year later, nearly 400 000 Jewish people—almost all of the remaining Jews in Warsaw, and roughly 30% of the total population of the city—were rounded up and forced to live together in a cramped 3,4km2 called the Warsaw Ghetto.

Undeterred in her determination to help the Jews, and risking her

own safety, Ms Sendler was able to obtain a permit through her work connections that allowed her to enter the ghetto under the guise of inspecting its sanitary conditions.

In reality, she was working with Jewish organisations inside the ghetto to smuggle out as many Jewish children as she could, who were then placed in either Christian homes or institutions run by Catholic nuns.

It is estimated that Ms Sendler and her associates were able to save 2 500 Jewish children from the ghetto.

In October 1943, Ms Sendler was arrested for her underground activities and sentenced to death, though members of the underground resistance were able to bribe her prison guards for her release in February 1944. Ms Sendler lived to be 98 and died on May 12, 2008.—CNA

Different clicks, same prayer: Pope asks Catholics to pray the rosary

by CinDy WOODEn

T

OLD that some people think Pope Francis isn’t exactly a fan of the rosary, Jesuit Father Federic Fornos practically shouted, “What?� “Pope Francis says the rosary is the prayer of his heart. He prays it every day,� said the international director of the pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network, formerly known as the Apostleship of Prayer.

Fr Fornos was at the Vatican press office to launch the latest effort to respond to what he said was Pope Francis’ explicit request that the network help young people learn to pray and love the rosary.

The Click to Pray eRosary is both a free app for Apple and Android and an actual high-tech rosary bracelet that connects to a smartphone using Bluetooth.

Making the sign of the cross with the rosary automatically opens the app on the phone, while clicking one of the prayer beads

Click to Pray eRosary, which is a rosary bracelet that connects to a smartphone application.

(Photo: Pope’s Worldwide Prayer network) allows the person praying to advance through the prayer texts, music and images on the screen.

Fr Joao Chagas, head of the youth office at the Dicastery for Laity, the Family and Life, said the app—described on clickto prayerosary.org—is “a concrete sign of the pope’s desire to enter the lives of young people and help them pray�.

Pope Francis’ big push to get

young people to pray the rosary came in the run-up to and the celebration of World Youth Day in Panama in January, Fr Fornos said. Hundreds of thousands of rosaries were distributed to the young people taking part.

But the pope has not let up.

Speaking to Polish pilgrims at his weekly general audience, Pope Francis reminded them that when Mary appeared to two young women in Gietrzwald, Poland, in 1877, she told them, “Pray the rosary every day� and, the pope said, “She assured them that the graces imparted by this prayer would be salvific and would lead people to happiness in heaven.� “Remember these words, especially now, in the month of October dedicated to the rosary,� the pope continued. “Through the intercession of Mary, mediator of graces, we ask for peace for the world, wisdom for those who govern, and for faith and unity for families.�—CNS

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Pope: Jesus won’t tolerate hypocrisy

J

ESUS enjoys unmasking hypocrisy, which is the work of the devil, Pope Francis said.

Christians, in fact, must learn to avoid hypocrisy by scrutinising and acknowledging their own personal faults, failings and sins, he said during morning Mass at the Domus Sanctae Marthae. “A Christian who does not know how to accuse himself is not a good Christian,� he said.

The pope focused his homily on the Gospel reading of Luke 11:37-41 in which Jesus criticises his host for being concerned only with outward appearances and superficial rituals, saying: “Although you cleanse the out-

side of the cup and the dish, inside you are filled with plunder and evil.�

Pope Francis said the reading shows how much Jesus does not tolerate hypocrisy, which, the pope said, “is appearing one way but being something else� or hiding what one really thinks.

When Jesus calls the Pharisees “whitewashed tombs� and hypocrites, these words are not insults but the truth, the pope said. “Hypocritical behaviour comes from the great liar, the devil,� who is a huge hypocrite himself, the pope said, and he makes those like him on earth his “heirs�. “Hypocrisy is the language of

the devil; it is the language of evil that enters our heart and is sown by the devil. You can’t live with hypocritical people, but they exist,� the pope said. “Jesus likes to unmask hypocrisy,� he said. “He knows it will be precisely this behaviour that leads to his death because the hypocrite does not think about using legitimate means or not, he plows ahead: slander? ‘Let’s use slander.’ False witness? ‘Let’s look for an untruthful witness.’�

The only “medicine� to cure hypocritical behaviour is to tell the truth before God and take responsibility for oneself, the pope said.—CNS

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6

The Southern Cross, October 23 to October 29, 2019

LEADER PAGE LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Editor: GĂźnther Simmermacher Guest editorial: Michael Shackleton

Enthusiam and enthusiasts

S

AINT Ambrose, the fourthcentury bishop of Milan, coined the phrase “Ubi Petrus ibi Ecclesia� (Where Peter is, the Church is). He expressed it within the Church’s knowledge that Jesus Christ had made St Peter the firm foundation rock of his Church (Mt 16).

Because of his supreme authority as St Peter’s successor, in collaboration with his colleagues in the episcopate, the bishop of Rome has sometimes been described as the most influential leader on earth.

No wonder, then, that history records numerous attempts by secular and religious forces to take control of the process of electing a pope who will do their will and serve their personal or political interests.

We witness the effects of this history whenever the cardinal electors go into effective hiding to freely choose the new pontiff.

The current Synod of Bishops for the Pan-Amazon Region in the Vatican has aroused discontent from among a minority of conservatives. Some fear that Pope Francis has ulterior motives at the synod, such as allowing married men from local communities to be ordained priests, or abandoning other traditional ecclesial practices.

It would appear that such dissenters have deliberately muscled in on the publicity about the synod to manifest their own opposition to the pope’s path of following and implementing much of the direction of Vatican II. Not fazed by these critics, Pope Francis has this month canonised, among others, Cardinal John Henry Newman, the Oxford scholar and churchman who perhaps influenced the documents of Vatican II more than others.

St John Henry Newman moved intellectually from denying the importance of the bishop

of Rome to full acceptance of the essential function of Peter in the structure and dynamics of the Church. He applied reason to faith and drew his conclusions with prudent consideration.

Pope Francis is similarly applying reasonable arguments to the fundamentals of faith and mission, and doing so in the company of his brother bishops.

He reminded them that the Holy Spirit was the primary actor in their deliberations.

The present synod has set out to identify new paths for the evangelisation of the indigenous people of the Pan-Amazon region, where they seldom receive the pastoral care and encouragement they need from the Church.

Like all public organisations, the Church has members who think ahead and have progressive ideas. It also has conservatives who fear that untraditional ideas will shake the establishment irrevocably.

But it is disgraceful that his bitter opponents have labelled Pope Francis a communist, a heretic and even an apostate.

Some of their claims against his motives are downright nonsense. There may be some sincerity in their wish to defend the faith. They may want others to back them. But their enthusiasm is dangerous.

Another Oxford scholar, Mgr Ronald Knox, who died in 1957, cautioned in his book Enthusiasm that zealots in the Church who claim to be right and others wrong, eventually split into groups and often from the Church. He warned that enthusiasm often abandons reason: “In itself enthusiasm is not a wrong tendency but a false emphasis.�

The false emphasis that some enthusiasts place on their own agenda, above that of the Church and its mission, is never convincing.

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The Editor reserves the right to shorten or edit published letters. Letters below 300 words receive preference. Pseudonyms are acceptable only under special circumstances and at the Editor’s discretion.

Name and address of the writer must be supplied. No anonymous letter will be considered.

Use cathedral banners to proclaim Catholic voice F OR a long time, the biblical quote “The truth will set you free� was emblazoned on a banner hanging outside St Mary’s cathedral in Cape Town while the South African parliament—located directly opposite—was debating the Secrecy Bill in 2013.

The Bill’s aim was to regulate the classification of state information, a proposition vehemently opposed by many quarters in South African society, including the Catholic Church.

I was reminded of this significant time in post-apartheid history as I watched and came to terms with yet another day of damning evidence of state capture at the Zondo Commission in Johannesburg.

I am equally reminded that the reason why there is a state capture commission today is because priests of the Dominican Order, led by SACBC Justice & Peace head Fr Stanislaus Muyebe, took it upon themselves to approach the then-

Amazon Synod: return to roots?

T

HE Amazon Synod seemingly has not gained too much publicity, yet it could herald a turning point in the way forward for the Catholic Church—and perhaps even Christianity.

More importantly, however, the synod may be a way of rediscovering our Christian roots, which were curtailed by Roman Emperor Tiberius and finally forbidden by his successor, Cladius, in AD54.

Julius Caesar had decisively defeated the Gauls in 52BC, with the region of today’s France falling under Roman rule. Gallic “religion� was a belief in the natural world, and elders, the Druids, took on the role of appeasing sacred gods.

Two of Pope Francis’ critics, Cardinal Burke and Bishop Schneider, have called for a 40-day crusade of prayer and fasting to prevent what they term “serious theological errors and heresies� in the Instrumentum laboris from being adopted at the synod, presently underway. They are alarmed by “implicit pantheism� in the working document and openness to “pagan superstitions�.

Yet, Catholicism is riddled with superstition. We are known to pray to an array of saints to intercede for us, which is very similar to what the Druids did. A practice which can be termed superstitious is lighting candles near the figure of Mary, which many of us find comforting.

Also, the bare fact at present is that our home, Planet Earth, is suffering. Did the Romans do our planet any favours in banning indigenous people’s religions? Did European

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colonists ever question their motives when setting out for distant lands and subjugating the local people?

In AD70, Rome conquered the Jewish people, but they “rose again�—and finally won their country back, 1 878 years later!

Similarly, the Gauls regained their independence when their cousins the Visigoths entered and sacked Rome in AD410. It is quite evident that Roman Emperor Theodosius had hastened to make Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire 30 years previously, so as to appease the marauding “barbarians�.

In listening to what the indigenous people of the Amazon have to say, perhaps we can undo the wrongs of the colonisers and embrace a new way which will benefit our planet, our children and our grandchildren?

It is worth noting that the synod will be addressing “married priests�, bearing in mind early Christian leaders were married men.

Patrick Dacey, Johannesburg

Leave Prince Charles alone

R

E Tony Meehan’s letter “Church silent on divorced Charles� (October 9).

Good heavens Tony, Charles has not been invited to be one of the next bishops! He is just visiting.

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.

Letters can be sent to PO Box 2372, Cape Town 8000 or editor@scross.co.za or faxed to 021 465-3850

“Let he who is without sin cast the first stone� Honestly, who on earth died and made you judge?

I am an 88-year-old mother, granny and great-granny, a practising Catholic and a previous member of RCIA and catechetical teams in various parishes.

Cynthia Jones, Durban

Let’s keep Fr Pearson sermons!

A

FELLOW reader (October 9) suggested fine sermons by priests be published for reference. I would agree wholeheartedly.

A priest in point is Fr Peter-John Pearson who has a special talent in connecting with people via his sermons. This is irrespective of ageprofile or religious denomination.

He was quoted by at least four speakers at a Catholic school’s prizegiving in Cape Town—not only by the non-Catholic principal but also by the headgirl and SRC head.

I also recall how Fr Pearson captured the imagination of people who attended the same school’s valedictory Masses in previous years. Afterwards, Catholics and non-Catholics alike approached him for copies of his sermons.

The positive impact of these sermons on matrics and those in the greater community is immense.

Fr Pearson has been particularly blessed as a great preacher, a fighter for social justice, and a man who is able to make that connection with people in a very secular world. He is certainly a very special gift for the Cape Town archdiocese!

Glenn Ho, Cape Town

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public protector Thuli Madonsela to lay the first formal complaint and request for investigation of state capture within state institutions.

The SACBC has made something of an improvement in publicising

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A banner of protest against the proposed Secrecy bill at St Mary’s cathedral in Cape Town in 2013.

(Photo: GĂźnther Simmermacher)

its positions regarding society, and the media, regarding platforms across the board, is a powerful tool.

The banner outside St Mary’s cathedral served as an effective platform in communicating the Church’s position on the Secrecy Bill directly to MPs and lawmakers.

Anyone walking out of parliament’s doors would find it hard to miss.

I believe the space should be used as a permanent soapbox by the cathedral on behalf of the Catholic voice nationally. It would be a novel way of communicating the South African Church’s stand on issues of the day, in keeping with its tradition of social justice.

I trust the powers that be at St Mary’s cathedral will take heed of this proposition, and the public representatives of South Africa will then learn of the Catholic Church’s standpoint.

Daluxolo Moloantoa, Cape Town

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PERSPECTIVES

Amazon Synod reflections

S

HORTLY before the start of the Synod on the Amazon, a message popped up in one of my Catholic WhatsApp groups. It was a video calling for prayers for the failure of the synod. Yes, you read right, the failure of the synod.

The premise of the video is that the Instrumentum laboris—the working document for the synod—failed to adhere to Catholic doctrine and was therefore the sinful work of the devil. As such, the video called on all Catholics to pray for the synod to fail.

A priest, who is a member of this group, gently reminded the poster that a synod cannot be sinful. A synod is a meeting of bishops and the Catholic faithful that discusses issues (including controversial topics) that affect the faithful in their lived experiences.

As such, Catholics should indeed pray for the synod, not for it to fail, but that those gathered in Rome may allow themselves to be inspired by the Holy Spirit to find solutions to current challenges, while simultaneously upholding the Gospels and the teachings of the Church.

The poster of the video didn’t much like the response and left the group, presumably to continue praying for the demise of the Synod on the Amazon.

To a certain extent, I understand the concern of the person who posted the video. An entire group of Catholics have expressed worry that this synod may change some of our longstanding ways of doing things in the Church and feel that this is intrinsically wrong, sinful even.

How would we differentiate ourselves from other Christian faiths (which we sometimes look down on because we feel they have diluted the true faith) if sud-

denly we had an option for married priests, or women in sacramental ministry, or lay people to celebrate the sacraments?

I suspect that traditionalists look on this synod as a potential loss of our Catholicity.

They fear these proposed changes are inherently sinful and that the Church has lost its way by even suggesting such novel (not all that new actually) ideas. They fear that human souls may even be at risk of perdition if ministered to by persons they feel are in no condition to stand in persona Christi.

Let me stop for a moment, lest some readers think I am being flippant or mocking their concerns. That is not my intention. I admit that I also have my notions of a perfect Church.

For example, I cherish the gift and the sacrifice of celibacy that religious men and women make. Their ability to honour their vow is a powerful example for me. It helps me to be more faithful to my way of life and it shows me that in a sex-crazed world, chastity is possible. The idea that priests could one day be allowed to marry disrupts

Pope Francis celebrates Mass at the opening of the Synod on the Amazon.

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

We often forget that a priest is called upon time and again to mark the passing of parishioners, married or single, old or young. What is the emotional cost to him?

I recently heard of a priest in Ireland who had six funerals in one week. That is indeed a load that would test the resources of any man.

We are fortunate that the liturgy of the funeral Eucharist gives a spinal thread round which we can all gather, which is good.

I

n recent years, it has often been the case that a family member would give a brief eulogy in memory of their loved one. It is the time when the event is personalised and words of farewell mark a life before burial.

Yet this has given rise to conflict when either the bishop or parish priest feel this to be an intrusion in the liturgy. At a time of natural sadness, such an attitude only exacerbates further family anguish.

For the one giving the eulogy it is not an everyday occurrence, they may need some words of guidance on the way—guidance that is not instruction or rejection.

The community that gathers for a funeral is often diverse. Some, the family and close friends are well acquainted, not only

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my perhaps romantic and naïve notions about a celibate priesthood.

But I am also painfully aware that our reticence in speaking about sex in the Church and the inability to integrate a healthy understanding of sexuality with a celibate lifestyle has led to many of the problems we have seen emerging over the past few years.

On the other hand, as a woman, I would love to see women increasingly in healing ministries. Healing in the Church is sacramental. Healing is both spiritual and physical and is often a journey of reconciliation and return to the heart of God. At present, only priests can confer the sacraments of reconciliation and healing.

Through their sacramental priesthood, it is not them, but Christ, who forgives sin and brings healing.

There are so many women who are hurting. Their hurt does not allow them to see Christ beyond the man who is the priest. Imagine the good that women could do if they could walk that journey to healing and forgiveness in a sacramental way, rather than just one of spiritual accompaniment.

This brings me back to concerns about this synod and its potential to fundamentally change the way we do things as Catholics. As previous synods on the family, the youth, the new evangelisation, and the Church in Africa have shown, change in the Church is slow. The bishops are themselves divided on these issues and will not agree to sweeping changes.

Continued on page 11

Point of Church

Family members place flowers on the coffin of a loved one. (Photo: Gregory A Shemitz/CnS)

7

The Mustard Seeds

Chris McDonnell

Let eulogies be heard L ITURGY is a cultured conversation, a public celebration, a relationship with each other and ourselves with God. We get used to the words and the pattern in which they are set.

Liturgy tells us about now, our present circumstance, linking us to the previous experience of the Christian community.

It is not enough that we repeat year after year patterns of language and practice that once were common. If liturgy is to offer us the necessary encouragement of a living faith, then our liturgical practice must reflect where we are now.

Nowhere is this more apparent than when we celebrate the sacraments of baptism, marriage and funeral. We look for tailor-made liturgies that suit particular families; there is nothing wrong in that.

There is, however, a pattern and language that we should recognise, a framework that not only suits our time but has a tap root in the faith of the Church.

Let’s address the details of Eucharist at a funeral, recognising first of all that it is prepared when edges are still raw and personal grief hinders clear thinking.

Surely this is a time of community, when those who have shared the Eucharist with us over the years come together consoling each other in helping us greet the Lord. It is a time of supportive talking, of taking the load off someone’s back already weighed down with sorrow.

It is here that the listening guidance of our priest can gently assist and sensitively support. It is a time of exchange where the wishes of a family and the needs of liturgy come face to face. One should not contradict the other.

What are our expectations of the celebrant? Can he always meet our demands?

How can we assist him in his role as presider over our assembly? How can we assist him sensitively to fulfil his function of caring for us and for the conduct of the liturgy; how can he assist us?

Sarah-Leah Pimentel

The Southern Cross, October 23 to October 29, 2019

with each other but with the rites of passage that are customary in the Church.

Others may have been work companions who have rarely, if ever, been inside a Catholic church.

Process must not come before sincerity, shared laughter can help ease the pain of loss. In the end it is all about talking and understanding, honest sharing, in the brief days prior to the funeral.

With weddings, there is usually much more time to talk, plan and prepare, a time when new clothes are bought, readings chosen, receptions booked and numerous guests invited. The tone set by the celebrant both in the sermon and at the time of commitment is important, for it should reflect the joy and love that two people are publicly declaring, witnessed by the community of guests they have invited.

Again as with the celebration of a funeral Mass, the congregation will be diverse so the marked memory of the day will, for many, be a one-off experience.

With the baptism of a newly born baby, the gathering is usually smaller, yet still the ritual is to be respected. A hastily rushed baptism on a Sunday afternoon is now often replaced by baptism within the Sunday Eucharist where the larger community can welcome the child into their midst.

Whatever the circumstance, all three sacraments should reflect the sincerity of belief, the realisation that preparation is important and that the imposition of legalistic patterns only serves to leave uncomfortable memories.

Tolerance demands the time to understand another point of view, to listen and reflect in times of tears and occasions of joy. n This article was first published in the Catholic Times.

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The Middle Eastern situation, most particularly with the Turkish attack on the north-eastern Kurdish area of Syria, is alarming.

Chris Chatteris SJ

Pray with the Pope

War in Middle East hurts us all Intention: That a spirit of dialogue, encounter, and reconciliation emerges in the Near East, where diverse religious communities share their lives.

HE temptation, when looking at the situation in the Near (or Middle) East is despair. Conflict appears to be endemic.

So, when we ask the Lord for a new spirit of dialogue and reconciliation, we seem to be asking for the impossible. Just when you think that things cannot get any worse, they do, as has happened with the recent Turkish invasion of the Kurdish region of north-east Syria.

A temptation is to wash our hands and let them get on with it. Tempting as this is, it is not in our own best interests. Instability has a habit of spreading. Proxy wars can become wars between the main protagonists. War affects the global economy.

When Saudi Arabia’s main oil refinery was struck by drones in September, the oil price jumped and made life more expensive for us in South Africa overnight. The historian Peter Frankopan believes that the Middle East and Central Asia, with their “silk roads” have always been the real economic and cultural centres of the world and therefore what happens there will always affect the rest of us.

And Middle Eastern conflict has had a devastating effect on minorities, particularly Christians.

What hope is there therefore for this fulcrum of our globalising world? I hesitate to use the European Union as a source of hope in the era of Brexit, but Brexit is not the story of the EU. The longer-term story is that the Europeans came to their senses after World War II. They had so devastated each other by this titanic conflict that, again according to Frankopan, they actually had little choice—cooperation was the only sensible route if they were to have any chance of recovery.

Their empires and imperial fantasies were all finished and the jingoistic ideologies which had made them possible were hopelessly discredited.

They had fought each other for centuries in fact but this last war was different—it was a “total war” and it left them totally exhausted.

Their decision to cooperate led to half a century of peace and rising prosperity. A continent that had regarded war as a regular inevitability kicked the habit for 60 years.

Unfortunately, like an addicted person, Europe had to hit the bottom before she started the process of recovery. And, like the addict, she needed help, which came in the shape of economic investment from the United States.

The Middle East, and indeed Africa and the other regions of the world in which modern nations are relatively new, now faces the danger of going through the same incredibly painful process of the total wars of modern nation states. I suppose the question is whether its peoples can look at what happened to Europeans in the 20th century and decide that they will learn from others’ mistakes, on the principle that “the wise can learn more from fools, than fools from the wise”.

At the moment the omens are not good in the Middle East. Regimes and the leaders of regimes display an arrogance and hostility which is disturbing.

Some leaders are clearly criminal personalities.

Their rhetoric is martial. The divisions run extremely deep and in some cases go back centuries.

The political witches’ brew is made more potent and poisonous by the admixture of religious sectarianism and fanaticism.

Outside powers are more than happy to get involved and to encourage their sabre-rattling.

Global heating is reducing the region’s water supplies. Some areas may become uninhabitable simply because of extreme heat, leading to the problem of “climate migrants”.

The challenge facing this region is momentous and how it faces up to it will affect the whole of humanity. The people there need our prayers, and to pray for them is to pray for our own future too.

T

8

The Southern Cross, October 23 to October 29, 2019

COMMUNITY

Pastoral advisory council representatives of Our lady of the Assumption parish in Milnerton, Cape Town, met Redemptorist Fathers William, Charles and Pascal during their parish mission. (Submitted by Clarissa Witten) St Francis of Assisi parish in Vanderbijlpark, Gauteng, celebrated St Francis’ feast day starting with Mass said by parish priest Fr Tony Thouard OFM together with OFM provincial Fr Sphelele Gwanisheni and Fr Paddy noonan OFM. This was followed by a procession, food and cakes stalls, activities such as traditional song and dance, and games for children.

(Submitted by Elaine Prosper)

The men’s group of Our lady of Good Health parish in Raisethorpe, Pietermaritzburg celebrated their 10th anniversary with a weekend conference attended by about 100 men from across KwaZulu-natal. The guest speaker was Comboni missionary Fr Prosper Tehou of Witbank diocese.

(Submitted by Deacon Sean Singh)

Students at De la Salle Holy Cross College in Victory Park, Johannesburg, paid R10 “fines” on Heritage Day to go barefoot or wear flip flops as part of the Catholic institute of Education’s leave your Print campaign to raise funds for the building or upgrading of toilet facilities in rural Catholic schools in South Africa. The concept of the campaign was born after a survey indicated that many children deemed the toilet facilities in their schools to be unsafe. The 2018 campaign raised R390 000.

Matric students embraced at the matric valedictory held at St Dominic’s Catholic School for Girls in boksburg, Gauteng. (Submitted by Sharon Antonizzi)

Academic staff at Holy Family College in Glenmore, Durban, wore their academic robes in honour of the matric prizegiving, which followed the matric final Mass. They are seen with past-pupil and guest speaker Mandisa Tenza.

PRICE CHECK

Marist brothers linmeyer in Johannesburg celebrated Heritage Day by having students wear traditional dress to school. Seen are (from left) Thejal Shah, Khanyisa Miya, Teara Erasmus, logan Mclintock and Shayur Moodley.

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BY ERIN CARELSE

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Pi l gr i ma ge 2 02 0

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NITED Nations Women and National AIDS Councils from Zimbabwe and Malawi spent a week with the Justice and Peace Commission (J&P) of the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference learning more about the HeForShe Tavern Project, which they hope to implement in their own countries.

With the issue of gender-based violence and violence against children on the rise in South Africa, the HeforShe Tavern Project, in collaboration with the global HeForShe Campaign and J&P, aims to inform and educate tavern owners on gender-based violence.

Anne Githuku-Shongwe, the representative for UN Women’s South Africa Multi-Country Office, which is responsible for women’s empowerment and gender equality in Botswana, Lesotho, Swaziland and Namibia as well as South Africa, said she is very impressed with the J&P initiative.

“This week has been a wonderful opportunity to learn and showcase work that has been underway with the partnership we have with J&P and UN Women on the HeforShe initiative,” Ms Githuku-Shongwe told Radio Veritas’ Sheila Pires.

“From years of working on HIV, ending violence against women and femicide, what we understood and learnt is that we’ve left men behind in many instances to continue to perpetuate violence, intergenerational sex, and behaviours that perpetuate and drive HIV infections,” she said.

Ms Githuku-Shongwe highlighted the importance of this chance to bring Malawi and Zimbabwe to come and learn from this programme but also for them to come and share their own initiatives with men.

“This is really an exchange and an opportunity to create a model that works, where men take responsibility and challenge one another and the norms and stereotypes,” she said.

F Patrick Rakeketsi CSS, associate secretary general of the SACBC, explained that when starting the initiative, taverns were identified as high-risk areas as they are male-dominated and alcohol is a factor in much of the violent crime in South Africa.

“We see the use of the taverns as a place where men can meet and have open dialogues around the violence against women and children,” he said.

Apart from the dialogues, Fr Rakeketsi said the initiative also aims to fight alcohol-related violence and encourages tavern owners to have a zero-tolerance attitude when acts of violence occur within their establishments and their communities as a whole.

“The campaign has helped tavern owners realise that a firm stand must be taken on violence against women. It saw them pledge their support and promise to fight harassment of and violence against women, by making sure patrons do not drink excessively and are encouraged to be responsible,” he said.

Fr Rakeketsi noted that since the implementation of the project women have felt safer in their communities and in taverns, and that men have been more involved in creating safe spaces for women and children.

“We see that police cases of gender-based violence in these areas have diminished, which is as a result of the close relationship between the police sector and stations, tavern owners, and men in general,” he said.

Ms Githuku-Shongwe agreed and said men are already beginning to testify that they recognise their previous harmful behaviours, thanks to the work done by mentors, trainers, and change agents within communities.

To date, there are 144 taverns involved in the Tavern Project initiative.

“The fantastic thing about J&P is that because they live in the community, they stay with the programme, and day after day they conduct these dialogues until a change is visible. It is such an honour to work with them,” Ms Githuku-Shongwe said.

Flashback to November 1928: The Southern Cross is sold at Emmanuel cathedral in Durban during Press Sunday. With this issue, the national Catholic weekly is turning 99 years old. Over the next 12 months, we will be looking back at old editions from our archives, starting on page 15 this week with an edition from 50 years ago.

We are 99 years old W

ITH this issue, The Southern Cross is turning 99 years old—which means, as the arithmetically-gifted reader will have correctly deduced—that in exactly a year’s time, The Southern Cross will celebrate its centenary.

In the 12 months building up to our big jubilee—which we shall, of course, celebrate in good style with a special edition—we will mark this newspaper’s long history with a new weekly feature in which we look back at an old issue from our archives.

The magnitude of The Southern Cross’ length of service to the Church in Southern Africa is driven home by the fact that even in a full year, the revisited issues cover only about half of the number of years this newspaper has been read by generations of Catholics.

Our centenary year will also be a good time to remember the many people who over the past ten decades got The Southern Cross to the people: the editorial teams and contributors, the administrative staffs, the directors, the supporters and Associates, the printers, the various distributors, those who handled, promoted and sold the newspaper in the parish, and the readers and friends.

We remember all of them—known or unknown, currently active or long dead—in our prayers.

At the conclusion of the Extraordinary Mission Month, a centenary logo will adorn the earpiece next to our masthead. It will re-

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mind us of the long history of The Southern Cross but also serve as a signal that we are looking into the future.

We look to the future with confidence that this newspaper, which has accompanied the Catholic Church in this region for almost half of its existence here will live on for a long time yet.

For that, The Southern Cross will need the support of the Catholic community: by financial means through the Associates Campaign, and by means of keen promotion of the newspaper—in print and digital format—by the bishops, clergy and laity.

The Southern Cross was first published on October 16, 1920, but a long time of funding and planning was already taking place a hundred years ago, starting in late July 1919 when the decision to establish a national Catholic weekly was finalised in Durban.

Since that first issue, The Southern Cross has appeared every week, without fail. That is a proud record indeed.

Over those 5 000-plus weeks, The Southern Cross has told many stories and influenced many lives, from young men (like little Denis Hurley) who became priests to the prisoner who credits his conversion to the Catholic faith to receiving the newspaper in jail.

If you have a good story involving The Southern Cross, please email it to the editor at editor@scross.co.za with a view for possible publication.

Pray in Medjugorje and visit Rome, with papal audience, Assisi, the town of St Francis, Loreto with Mary’s House.

Plus a tour of historic Split in Croa a.

Three countries in one tour!

Feed your soul with The

S outher n C ross

IT’S WORTH IT!

Our lady of Mount Carmel parish in benoni, Gauteng, celebrated the feast of the nativity of Our lady with a procession into the church before Mass and a birthday cake cut by the children of the parish and shared among the congregation. (Submitted by Sanet Karam)

St ursula’s School in Krugersdorp, Gauteng, celebrated World Day of Peace with the theme of protection of the Earth. Seen are (back from left) Gilbert Goneke and bradley Schofield, (middle from left) naledi Motlhabane, Tristan Fisher, Dimakatso Mokgobi, noah netshisaulu, botlhale Gune, Phumla Geya and Omphile Magano, and (front from left) Simasile Mnisi, Rati Selebano and Mpho Mbulawa.

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The Southern Cross, October 23 to October 29, 2019

CHRISTIAN LIFE

9

How to handle grief with faith On the feast of All Souls, our focus turns to the loved ones we have lost. But our grief and relationship with them persists throughout the year. MARy FARROW looks at how to handle grief in the light of our faith.

I

N the 2017 Disney-Pixar movie Coco, main character Miguel accidentally passes over into the land of the dead on Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) while trying to reconcile his love of music with his family’s ban on it.

In the land of the dead, he learns that the dead can visit their loved ones on that holiday only if they can prove there is a photo of them on their family’s ofrenda, an altar with photos of loved ones, colourful decorations, and the favourite foods, drinks and mementos of the deceased.

“We've put their photos on the ofrenda so their spirits can cross over. That is very important! If we don't put them up, they can't come!” Miguel’s granny explains.

While in the land of the dead, Miguel bumps into his own deceased family members, and learns his true family history.

Though Miguel’s experience is fictional, it is not uncommon for grieving loved ones to experience what psychologists call “after death communication”, in which the bereaved believe that they see, hear the voices of, or even smell their dead loved ones.

These experiences, sometimes called “bereavement hallucinations”, can be healing and comforting for those who grieve, multiple studies have found.

But Catholics should proceed with caution when “communicating” with the dead, two Catholic psychologists said—and they should ground their communications in prayer.

Dana Nygaard is a Catholic and a licensed professional counsellor in the US who speaks to grief groups and counsels clients through loss.

Ms Nygaard said that because many Catholics misunderstand what happens to souls after death, she urges caution when talking about what it means to talk to dead loved ones.

“If they're speaking to a loved one, how are they doing that? Is it through saying, ‘Hey grandma, I think you're up there in heaven with God. I really hope you pray and look over me.’ Okay, well that sounds fine,” she said.

“Or...are they going to a psychic or a medium? Is this necromancy?

How were they doing this? I think that's an important question,” Ms Nygaard said.

According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, “all forms of divination are to be rejected”. This includes the “conjuring up the dead”.

However, the Church encourages Catholics to pray for the dead as one of the spiritual works of mercy.

“From the beginning the Church has honoured the memory of the dead and offered prayers in suffrage for them, above all the Eu-

A grieving woman. The Catholic faith offers ways of coming to terms with grief, according to experts. Especially praying for loved ones who have died can bring solace. (Photo: CnS/Reuters) charistic sacrifice, so that, thus purified, they may attain the beatific vision of God. The Church also commends almsgiving, indulgences, and works of penance undertaken on behalf of the dead,” the Catechism states.

“Let us not hesitate to help those who have died and to offer our prayers for them.”

Pray for the dead “Prayer, prayer, prayer,” Ms Nygaard echoed. She noted that because Catholics do not know the state of the souls of their loved ones when they die, it is important to pray for them after their death, as prayers can help the souls in purgatory get to heaven faster.

The Liturgy of the Hours, a set of prayers said periodically throughout the day by priests, religious and some lay Catholics, includes a special Office of the Dead, a set of prayers said specifically for those who have died.

Ms Nygaard said that she often encourages Catholics who are grieving a loss to ask for the intercessory prayers of saints already canonised by the Church, which means that they are assured to be with God in heaven.

“Maybe it was that my greatgrandmother was really close to St Anne. I'm going to ask St Anne,

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‘Would you please look after my sweet great grandmother? I pray she's there with you in heaven.’

I've known people also to pray, ‘God, I'm asking you, do I need to keep praying for my father?’” she said.

Ms Nygaard said that those whom she counsels through grief will sometimes, after a period of prayer, feel a deep sense of peace that their loved one is in heaven.

A series of firsts Dr Chris Stravitsch is also a licensed professional counsellor and therapist. He is the president and founder of the Rejoice Counselling Apostolate, a group of Catholic counsellors.

He said that in addition to Both Ms Nygaard and Dr Stravprayer, he counsels his clients to itsch said that they have found prepare for their first year of grief, that clients are usually deeply which can often be the most diffi- comforted by the Church’s teachcult. ing on the communion of saints “There are a lot of ‘firsts’ to pass and the promise of everlasting life through: the first Christmas with- for all souls who are united with out him or her; their first birthday God. without them present; the first “In the Catholic Church, we wedding anniversary alone; and so have the mystical body of Christ. on,” he said.

And we know that the souls in “I counsel people to prepare for heaven are surrounding the altar these occasions in advance be- during communion,” Ms Nygaard cause we know it will be painful said. and difficult,” he said.

“What I have found is that He said he tells his clients to [knowledge] normally brings a plan how and with whom they great sense of peace,” to the bewill spend these diffireaved, she said. “It's cult days, and how they not just me sitting will remember their there when I go up for “We should loved ones at those communion...we’re times. avoid unhelpful mystically connected “It’s helpful to surand we can ask for the round yourself with comments such intercession of the other loved ones who saints,” which means understand your loss, as ‘It was God’s any soul that is in while also setting aside with God. will’; ‘It was heaven a little time to be alone In his Letter to the in prayer and reminisctheir time to Hebrews, St Paul recalls ing,” he said. those already in “These are meaning- go’; ‘They’re in heaven, and says that ful days to attend Mass, faithful are sura better place the so that you can cling to rounded “by so great a Christ and receive his cloud of witnesses”. now’, etc” consolation. Visiting “When the Lord the gravesite or a place comes in glory, and all where you have a special memory his angels with him, death will be can also be meaningful, whether no more and all things will be subthat is done alone or with the sup- ject to him,” the Catechism states. port of others,” Dr Stravitsch said.

“But at the present time some “Furthermore, be sure to tell of his disciples are pilgrims on stories and talk about your de- earth. Others have died and are ceased loved ones,” he added. “We being purified, while still others need to continue coming together are in glory, contemplating 'in full at various times to remember them light, God himself triune and one, in a spirit of love and prayer. This exactly as he is’. All of us, however, is a balm for the brokenhearted.” in varying degrees and in different Dr Stravitsch said it is impor- ways share in the same charity totant for Catholics to remember wards God and our neighbours, that death and grief are painful and we all sing the one hymn of things to experience, and that glory to our God. Jesus himself wept at the death of “All, indeed, who are of Christ his friend Lazarus. and who have his Spirit form one Church and in Christ cleave toAvoid unhelpful clichés gether,” the Catechism states.

Jesus “wants to be with us and These teachings are a “great share our grief”, he said. consolation for the bereaved”, Dr This means Catholics should be Stravitsch said. sensitive towards those who are “Not only is there the hope of grieving, and avoid well-inten- being reunited with our loved ones tioned but unhelpful comments after death, but there is the reality such as“It was God’s will”; “It was of remaining mysteriously contheir time to go”; “They’re in a nected with them even today. better place now”; or “There’s a Whether we are interceding for reason for everything”, Dr Strav- them as we pray for the repose of itsch said. their soul or we are asking for their “Simply saying, ‘I’m sorry’, giv- prayers, there is a sense that we are ing a warm embrace, sharing a within reach of one another,” he tear, and remaining at their side as added. long as needed can be far more “The bonds of true love are not consoling,” he said. destroyed in death but are made Checking back in after the fu- ever stronger. The Church recogneral has passed, and continuing nises this in a unique way when to talk about the deceased with we celebrate All Souls Day and we those who are grieving are other call to mind our deceased loved ways Catholics can show compas- ones. We are united in Christ,” Dr sion, he said.

Stravitsch said.—CNA

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The Southern Cross, October 23 to October 29, 2019

REFLECTION

Why faith can move mountains The Gospels repeat stories of the power of faith.

FR RAlPH DE HAHn reflects on some examples.

W

ITHOUT faith, “it is impossible to please God”, St Paul said. “Only faith can guarantee the blessings we hope for, or prove the existence of the realities that at present remain unseen” (Hebrews 11).

For St Thomas Aquinas, “faith opens the door to understanding”, and John the Evangelist reminds us that faith is the only power that can overcome the world (Jn 5:4) Now we need to refresh our understanding of faith as it is so clearly manifested in the life of Jesus, as recorded by the four evangelists.

We may tend to believe that Our Lord, in performing his many miracles, did actually reverse the order of nature. But that isn’t so. In fact, Jesus cooperated with the natural law, and called upon the recipients and witnesses to his miracles to believe in themselves, and in Jesus as Lord.

He himself said: “If you have this faith, you can move mountains” (Mt 17:20). And that is exactly what he meant. Even walking on water!

What we need to believe is that faith is the only real power that can do the impossible. And in that we must understand the decisive role played by that person asking for

a healing.

Jesus made an astonishing declaration: “He who believes in me will perform the same works as I do— and he will perform even greater works” (Jn 14:12, my emphasis).

Although it is evident that Our Lord did perform some extraordinary miracles—feedings of multitudes, raising people from the dead—others were faith-healings.

‘Your faith has saved you’ There are a number of encounters where the faith of the individual is dominant.

• Jesus asked the blind man Bartimaeus: “Do you believe that I can do this for you?” He professed his belief. “Your faith has saved you” (Mt 9:28).

• A woman contending with an unspecified blood illness over 12 years stretches out to touch only his garment, believing (Lk 8:48).

• The pagan Canaanite mother whose daughter was possessed by an evil spirit will pester the Master even for the “crumbs” until Jesus answers her cry (Mt 15:28).

• The sinner who threw herself repenting at his feet with precious oils and tears (Lk 7:50).

In every one of these encounters there was the same response: “Your faith has saved you.”

Then we have that amazing story of the Roman centurion in Capernaum whose servant is dying.

Knowing full well that a Jew would be labelled “unclean” if he ventured into the home of a pagan, he pleads: “I am not worthy to have you under my roof; just give the word and my servant will be healed.”

in the Gospels, Jesus keeps reminding those who benefit from his healing miracles that their faith has cured them.

And Jesus’ response has meaning to all Christians: “In no one in Israel have I found faith as great as this!”

To the centurion, he said: “Go back, then; let this be done for you, as your faith demands.” And the servant was cured at that moment (Mt 8:5-13).

Recall also the episode of Jesus coming four days late after the death of his friend Lazarus (Jn 11).

Jesus assures Martha, who has reprimanded him for his late arrival, that her brother will rise again: “Have I not told you that if you be-

lieve you will see the glory of God?”

Everything is possible Everything is possible for anyone who has this unshakeable faith (Mk 9:23).

There are a number of instances where the Master did not perform any miracles, “because of their lack of faith”. Even his own apostles were unable to perform miracles or cast out devils (Mt 17:19).

Jesus assured his followers: “If you, with no hesitation in your hearts, believe it will happen as you

say, it will be done for you; believe that you have it already, and it will be yours” (Mk:11:23).

We know that our Lord condemned the Pharisees and Elders of that generation who demanded “a sign”, but without believing; he named them “a wicked and unfaithful generation” (Lk 11:29).

Jesus never performed any wonderworks to prove that he was the promised Christ, to give the sceptics “a sign”. It was all motivated by compassion and love, and caring for the class of people named “sinners”—the poor, the oppressed and the outcast of that society.

It is from this class of believers that we hear the cry, “I do have faith, Lord, help the little faith that I have” (Mk 9:25).

St Paul reminds us that “it is by God’s grace that you have been saved through faith, and not by anything you have done, but by a gift from God” (Eph 2:8).

And again he prays: “May Christ dwell in your hearts through faith, planted in love…he who is able to accomplish far more than all you can ask or imagine by the power (of faith) at work within you” (3:1721).

Living in faith gives a deeper meaning to our lives; it is a gift we need to appreciate, and pray it will grow in depth.

We also know that faith and hope work together. There is no room for despair.

St Thomas Aquinas said it well: Reason is the perfection of the senses and faith is the perfection of the reason. n Fr Ralph de Hahn is a priest of the archdiocese of Cape Town.

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• Support our apostolate to prisoners to help them convert to a life with Christ. As St Paul admonishes us: “Keep in mind those who are in prison, as though you were in prison with them…since you too are in the one body” (Heb 13:3). Our outreach currently serves 24 prisons as well as six army bases; it is funded entirely by the Associates Campaign.

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The Southern Cross, October 23 to October 29, 2019

YOUR CLASSIFIEDS

Reflections on Amazon Synod Continued from page 7 We are not going to be ordaining women priests in the next year (or even 10 years). If a married priesthood is considered, it initially will be restricted to a particular context and very strict guidelines. Hopefully some actionable solutions may be found for the all-but-abandoned faithful in the Amazon and other isolated areas where it is difficult to have regular access to the sacraments. Whatever pastoral solutions they find, they will not be rolled out globally.

Instead, they will be tested within specific contexts. If they prove successful, then future synods will examine whether any decisions made at the Synod on the Amazon can be ap-

plied to the wider Church. It is a process that requires time, maturity, prayer, and discernment. That is how the Church has operated (for better or for worse) for the last 2 000 years. It’s not going to change overnight.

The stalwarts (like the video poster) and the nostalgics (like me) share one thing in common. We love our Church. We want it to thrive. We want it to be a beacon of light in a dark world.

Ultimately, however, we cannot forget that the Church is not more than Christ. If the Church and her structures stand in the way of fulfilling the Great Commission that Christ gave us while on earth, to go and spread the Good News to the ends of the

earth, then we have lost sight of the Church’s true purpose.

I am certain that Catholics deep in the Amazon forest or in a far-flung outstation in South Africa don’t really care whether priests are married or not, whether they are male or female.

They are hungry for the Word of God. They are hungry to receive Jesus in the Eucharist. They are hungry for healing and forgiveness.

Who are we, then, to deny them the presence of Christ, so that we can abide by our rules and our image of a perfect Church? The Church is not perfect. It never has been. But it is the best vehicle we have to evangelise to a world that needs Christ now more than ever before.

Anniversaries • Milestones • Prayers • Accommodation • Holiday accommodation Personal • Services • Employment • Property • Parish notices • Thanks • Others Please include payment (R1,90 a word) with small advertisements for promptest publication.

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GRATEFUL thanks for prayers answered. Ss Jude, Anthony, Joseph, Theresa the little Flower, Rita and Divine Mercy. Joan.

PRAYERS

HOLY ST JUDE, apostle and martyr, great in virtue and rich in miracles, kinsman of Jesus Christ, faithful intercessor of all who invoke you, special patron in time of need. We humbly begged you to answer our special requests and grant satisfactory solutions. With grateful thanks for those numerous special prayers answered by yourself and Mother Mary. We promised to make your name known and publish this notice of thanks. With so much gratitude, David and Felicity borland.

Sunday October 27, 30th Sunday of the Year Sirach 35:12-14, 16-18 (15-17, 20-22), Psalm 34:2-3, 17-19, 23, 2 Timothy 4:6-8, 16-18, Luke 18:9-14 Monday October 28, Ss Simeon and Jude Ephesians 2:19-22, Psalm 19:2-5, Luke 6:12-19 Tuesday October 29 Romans 8:18-25, Psalm 126, Luke 13:18-21 Wednesday October 30

St Jude Romans 8:26-30, Psalm 13:4-6, Luke 13:22-30 Thursday October 31 Romans 8:31-39, Psalm

Prayer for Extraordinary Month of Mission French

109:21-22, 26-27, 30-31, Luke 13:31-35 Friday November 1 Romans 9:1-5, Psalm 147:12-15, 19-20, Luke 14:1-6 Saturday November 2, All Souls Job 19:1, 23-27, Psalm 23, Romans 5:5-11, Matthew 5: 1-12 Sunday November 3, All Saints Revelation 7: 2-4, 9-14, Psalm 24: 1-6, 1 John 3: 1-3, Matthew 5:1-12

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O VIRGIN Mother, in the depths of your heart you pondered the life of the Son you brought into the world.

Give us your vision of Jesus and ask the Father to open our hearts, that we may always see His presence in our lives, and in the power of the Holy Spirit, bring us into the joy and peace of the kingdom, where Jesus is lord forever and ever. Amen

PERSONAL

ABORTION WARNING: The truth will convict a silent Church. See www.valuelifeabortionisevil.co.za ABORTION: Monthly Sunday Mass bidding prayer: “That Almighty God guide our nation to cease our murders of our unborn infants.”

Liturgical Calendar Year C – Weekdays Cycle Year 1

11

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.

THANKS be to thee, my lord Jesus Christ, For all the benefits thou hast won for me, For all the pains and insults thou hast borne for me. O most merciful Redeemer, Friend, and brother, May i know thee more clearly, love thee more dearly, And follow thee more nearly, For ever and ever.

PARISH NOTICES

NEW PARISH NOTICES MOST WELCOME: if any parish notices listed are no longer valid, call us on 021 465-5007 or e-mail us at m.leveson@scross.co.za so that we can remove them. Also, we’d welcome new notices from parishes across Southern Africa to run free in the classifieds.

CAPE TOWN: A Holy Hour Prayer for Priests is held on the second Saturday of every month at the Villa Maria shrine from 16:00 to 17:00.

The shrine is at 1 Kloof nek Road in Tamboerskloof. The group prays for priests in the archdiocese, and elsewhere by request.

Retreat day/quiet prayer last Saturday of each month except December, at Springfield Convent in Wynberg, Cape Town. Hosted by ClC, 10.00-15.30. Contact Jill on 083 282-6763 or Jane on 082 7830331.

Perpetual Adoration Chapel at Good Shepherd parish, 1 Goede Hoop St, bothasig, welcomes all visitors.

Open 24 hours a day. Phone 021 558-1412.

Helpers of God’s Precious infants.

Mass on last Saturday of every month at 9:30 at Sacred Heart church in Somerset Road, Cape Town. Followed by vigil at abortion clinic. Contact Colette Thomas on 083 412-4836 or 021 593 9875 or br Daniel SCP on 078 739-2988.

DURBAN: Holy Mass and novena to St Anthony at St Anthony’s parish every Tuesday at 9:00. Holy Mass and Divine Mercy Devotion at 17:30 on first Friday of every month. Sunday Mass at 9:00. Phone 0313093496 or 031 209-2536.

St Anthony’s rosary group. Every Wednesday at 18:00 at St Anthony’s church opposite Greyville racecourse. All are welcome and lifts are available. Contact Keith Chetty on 083 372-9018.

NELSPRUIT: Adoration of the blessed Sacrament at St Peter’s parish every Tuesday from 8:00 to 16:45, followed by Rosary, Divine Mercy prayers, then a Mass/Communion service at 17:30.

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FROM OUR VAULTS 23 Years Ago: October 27, 1996

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very week for the duration of our 100th year, we will dig an old issue of The Southern Cross out of our vaults, and highlight a few stories from that edition.

Catholic Church to parliament Abortion will not emancipate women because it is “a negative approach to life”, the bishops of Southern Africa said in their oral submission on the legalisation of abortion to parliamentarians, led by Archbishop Lawrence Henry, Fr Peter-John Pearson and Adv Noel Pistorius.

SA Church almost lost its schools Catholic schools came within a whisker of extinction when a clause in a revised version of schools law was unilaterally changed. According to the revised law, schools would have been forced to surrender control to the state.

Bishop wins Nobel Peace Prize Bishop Carlos Felipe Belo, 48, of Dili, East Timor, becomes the first Catholic bishop to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, alongside fellow independence activist José Ramos-Horta.

The right to conscientious objection In his editorial, Michael Shackleton warns that placing medical staff who have a conscientious objection to abortion in a position where they are potential criminals is unjust.

The Southern Cross is published independently by the Catholic Newspaper & Publishing Company Ltd.

Address: 10 Tuin Plein, Cape Town Postal Address: PO box 2372, Cape Town, 8000 Tel: (021) 465 5007 Fax: (021) 465 3850

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Editor: Günther Simmermacher (editor@scross.co.za), Business Manager: Pamela Davids (admin@scross.co.za), Advisory Editor: Michael Shackleton, Local News: Erin Carelse (e.carelse@scross.co.za) Editorial: Claire Allen (c.allen@scross.co.za), Mary leveson (m.leveson@scross.co.za), Advertising: yolanda Timm (advertising@scross.co.za), Subscriptions: Michelle Perry (subscriptions@scross.co.za), Accounts: Desirée Chanquin (accounts@scross.co.za), Directors: R Shields (Chair), bishop S Sipuka, S Duval, E Jackson, b Jordan, Sr H Makoro CPS, C Mathieson*, J Mathurine, G Stubbs

Opinions expressed in this newspaper do not necessarily reflect those of the editor, staff or directors of The Southern Cross.

The Southern Cross is a member of the Audit Bureau of Circulations of South Africa.

Printed by Paarl Coldset (Pty) Ltd, 10 Freedom Way, Milnerton. Published by the proprietors, The Catholic Newspaper & Publishing Co Ltd, at the company’s registered office, 10 Tuin Plein, Cape Town, 8001.

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All Saints: November 3 Readings: Revelation 7:2-4, 9-14, Psalm 24:1-6, 1 John 3:1-3, Matthew 5:1-12

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All Saints celebrates us

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EXT Sunday, we in this country shall be celebrating the feast of All Saints; these are not those formally canonised but the ordinary people like you and me, who sweat it out on the journey to God. The first reading for the feast is a vision from the Book of Revelation, of the liturgy that is going on in heaven.

It starts with “an angel going up from the rising of the son, with the seal of the living God”; and to those worried about the state of our planet, it gives instructions to the angels of destruction not to do their terrible work just yet; the first thing to do is to “seal the slaves of our God”, that is the ordinary people like you and me.

We are given the number: 144 000. But that is only an indication of how vast is the number of the ordinary people who have managed to do God’s will. And that is only the children of Israel, for now we are given to see “a huge crowd, impossible to count, of every nation and tribe and people and language”.

And we see that they are engaged in liturgy: “before the Throne and before the Lamb”.

Then we are shown what they are wearing: “white robes”, which they have “washed clean in the Lamb’s blood”, and “palm-

branches”, the symbol of martyrdom.

Next we are allowed to hear the song that they are singing (and we should realise that we are invited to join in): “Salvation to our God who sits on the Throne, and to the Lamb”, and, while the elders and the four living creatures are prostrate in worship, “Amen: blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honour and strength to our God for ever and ever. Amen.”

This hymn is for us ordinary people to sing, those, we learn, “who come out of the great tribulation and washed their garments in the Lamb’s blood”. This, we may be surprised to discover, is our story.

The psalm is a lovely one, celebrating that God is in charge: “The Lord’s is the earth and its fullness, and those who dwell in it.”

Then it asks how we are to get into God’s Temple: “Who shall go up to the mountain of the Lord, and who shall arise in his Holy Place?” The answer is us: “those who are clean of hand and pure of heart”, and we “shall receive blessing from the Lord, and justice from the God of our salvation”.

It does not, you understand, mean that we deserve it; but at least we are looking for God:

gift, sensitivity, is a mixed blessing. Positively, it lets you feel things more deeply so that the joys of living will mean more to you than to someone who is more callous. That’s its upside.

Conversely, however, if you are sensitive you will habitually fear disappointing others and will forever fear not measuring up. And your inadequacy to always measure up will habitually trigger feelings of anxiety and guilt within you.

As well, if you are extraordinarily sensitive, you will tend to be self-effacing to a fault, letting others have their way while you swallow hard as your own needs aren’t met and then absorb the consequences.

Not least, if you feel things deeply you will also feel hurt deeply. That’s the downside of sensitivity and makes for the drama that Miller calls the “drama of the gifted child”, the drama of the sensitive person.

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Pilgrimage 2020

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Classic Conrad

urther, in her view, for many of us that drama will only begin to really play itself out in our middle and later years, constellating in frustration, disappointment, anger, and bitterness, as the wounds of our childhood and early adulthood begin to break through and overpower the inner mechanisms we have set up to resist them.

In mid-life and beyond, our wounds will make themselves heard so strongly that our habitual ways of denial and coping no longer work. In mid-life you realise that your mother did love your sister better than you, that your father in fact didn’t care much about you, and that all those

goes through all the people whom you might suppose to come off worst in this world, and singles them out for congratulations.

Look at the list of those whom he commends; it is not perhaps those whom you would have predicted: “the destitute in spirit”, “those in mourning”, “the gentle”, “those who are hungry and thirsty for what is right”, “the merciful”, the pure in heart”, “the peace-makers”, “those who are persecuted for the sake of what is right”.

Then he turns directly to address us: “Congratulations to you when people revile you and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil things against you from my sake.”

And what are we to do, under those circumstances? “Rejoice and exult—for your reward is great in heaven.” This is almost unimaginable; and yet, if you think about it, there is a deep sanity about this list.

You might, on this feast, reflect on those you have known whom you regard as saints.

They are the ordinary ones, like us; but even with us, God is able to do extraordinary things.

Southern Crossword #886

Fr Ron Rolheiser OMI

Final Reflection

hurts you absorbed because you swallowed hard and played the stoic are still gnawing away bitterly inside you. That’s how the drama eventually culminates, in a heart that’s angry.

So where does that leave us? For Miller, the answer lies in grieving. Our wounds are real and there is nothing we can do about them, pure and simple. The clock can’t be turned back.

We cannot relive our lives so as to provide ourselves with different parents, different childhood friends, different experiences on the playground, different choices, and a different temperament.

We can only move forward so as to live beyond our wounds. And we do that by grieving.

Miller submits that the entire psychological and spiritual task of midlife and beyond is that of grieving, mourning our wounds until the very foundations of our lives shake enough so that there can be transformation.

A deep psychological scar is the same as having some part of your body permanently damaged in an accident. You will never be whole again and nothing can change that.

But you can be happy again; perhaps more happy than ever before. But that loss of wholeness must be grieved or it will manifest itself in anger, bitterness, and jealous regrets.

The Jesuit music composer and spiritual writer Roc O’Connor makes the same point, with the added comment that the grieving process also calls for extended patience within, which we need to wait long enough for so that the healing can occur according to its own natural rhythms.

We need, he says, to embrace our wounded humanity and not act out.

What’s helpful, he suggests, is to grieve our human limitations. Then we can endure hunger, emptiness, disappointment, and humiliation without looking for a quick fix—or for a fix at all. We should not try to fill our emptiness too quickly without sufficient waiting.

And we won’t ever make peace with our wounds without sufficient grieving.

MEDJUGORJE ROME • ASSISI • LORETO 18 - 27 May 2020 Led by Archbishop Stephen Brislin

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Sunday Reflections

“This is the generation of those who seek him, who look for the face of the God of Jacob.”

Then we hear the awesome invitation to the gates of God’s temple: “Lift up your heads, O gates, rise up, ancient doors—and the king of glory shall enter.”

This is, you see, our story, but also very much the story of God. The second reading is from the first letter of John; and as always in that letter, it is all about love. Love, you see, is what turns ordinary people like us into saints: “See what great love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and indeed that is what we are.”

The feast is, you see, a celebration of what the love of God can do to ordinary people like us: “When God appears, we shall be like God, because we shall see God just as he is.”

So there is hope for us, and it has its effect in turning us into saints: “Everyone who has this hope upon them sanctifies themselves—just as God is holy.” That is how this feast turns out to be our feast.

The Gospel is the electrifying opening of the Sermon on the Mount, in Matthew’s Gospel. In this extraordinary passage, Jesus

Grieving as a Spiritual Exercise I N a remarkable book, The Inner Voice of Love, written while he was in a deep emotional depression, Henri Nouwen shares these words: “The great challenge is living your wounds through instead of thinking them through. It is better to cry than to worry, better to feel your wounds deeply than to try to understand them, better to let them enter into your silence than to talk about them. The choice you face constantly is whether you are taking your hurts to your head or to your heart.

In your head you analyse them, find their causes and consequences, and coin words to speak and write about them. But no final healing is likely to come from that source. You need to let your wounds go down into your heart. Then you can live them through and discover that they will not destroy you. Your heart is greater than your wounds.”

He’s right; your heart is greater than your wounds, though it needs caution in dealing with them. Wounds can soften your heart; but they can also harden your heart and freeze it in bitterness. So what’s the path here? What leads to warmth and what leads to coldness?

In a remarkable essay, “The Drama of the Gifted Child”, Swiss psychologist Alice Miller tells us what hardens the heart and what softens it. She does so by outlining a particular drama that commonly unfolds in many lives.

For her, giftedness does not refer to intellectual prowess but to sensitivity. The gifted child is the sensitive child. But that

Nicholas King SJ

Pray in Medjugorje and visit Rome, with papal audience, Assisi, the town of St Francis, Loreto with Mary’s House. Plus a tour of historic Split in Croatia.

ACROSS

1. Religious old boy is not on time (6) 4. A tune I got confused in Eastern Catholic Church (6) 9. Penitential path around your parish church? (3,2,3,5) 10. Rested like the faithful departed (7) 11. A tenth of the parishioner’s income (5) 12. I rose to find a willow tree (5) 14. One of ten cured by Jesus (5) 18. Where the cock settled after it crowed (5) 19. Rechant about a portion of the cash (7) 21. State of awareness of God’s providence (13) 22. A hundred and fifty who are always smart (6) 23. The party for the newly married (6)

DOWN

1. The direction of the Christian Soldiers (6) 2. Laity’s call to serve the Church (3,10) 3. Stiff quarrels (5) 5. It’s not usually seen around the priest’s collar (7) 6. Profession of faith (8,5) 7. A steer around the moveable feast (6) 8. Unsettled Hades reveals one from the underworld (5) 13. Serious kind of anointing? (7) 15. Copt takes Religious Instruction in Capricorn (6) 16. Group of employees held by the bishop (5) 17. Singular … of Devotion (Litany of Loreto) (6) 20. More competent (5) Solutions on page 11

CHURCH CHUCKLE

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FTER Mass, Mrs Davis noticed that the priest had quite a nasty cut on his face.

“My goodness, Father, what happened to your face?” she asked.

“Well,” the priest replied. “This morning I was thinking about my homily while I was shaving. I suppose I wasn’t concentrating and cut myself in the process.”

“I hope you’ve learnt a lesson from this, Father,” Mrs Davis said. “In future, concentrate on your shaving and cut your sermon.”

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