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The Catholic Magazine for Southern Africa

February 2022

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Mahadi Buthelezi:

The faith of an action woman

A SPECIAL SWEET TREAT FOR ST VALENTINE’S

FR STEFAN HIPPLER ON CHARITY WITH A PLAN

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The day my knees shook

Dear Reader, HIS MONTH MARkS 25 yEARS since abortion became legal in South Africa. Our readers, of course, need not be reminded of the Catholic Church’s teachings on abortion: it is clear and it is immutable. This 25th anniversary reminds me of the flurry of activity that took place in the months and weeks leading up to the parliamentary vote on the abortion law in November 1996. There was a lot of lobbying going on behind the scenes. Fr Peter-John Pearson and Mike Pothier of the Catholic Parliamentary Liaison Office (CPLO) worked tirelessly to make the Church’s voice heard, in public by the parliamentary portfolio on health as well as privately by individual parliamentarians, some of whom were torn between the moral imperative and party discipline (and thus their career). I covered all that for The Southern Cross, and had privileged access to some of the behind-the-scenes activities. I recall being touched by the visible sadness felt by Adelaide Tambo, the widow of the late ANC president Oliver Tambo, at the proposed legalisation of abortion by her own party. There was opposition to the law within the ANC caucus. That is why there was a lot of debate about a free vote, by which those who objected to abortion could vote against the Bill, or at least abstain. It was speculated that if there was a free vote, the Bill might be defeated. That question was hotly debated within the ANC when a press conference was called by Dr Abe Nkomo, chair of the parliamentary portfolio committee on health. All the press was there, TV cameras were rolling. Before it began, an ANC MP who privately opposed abortion took me aside and asked me for a favour: Could I ask Dr Nkomo a particular question on a contested procedural point governing the free vote debate? I decided that this issue was big enough to allow me to stretch my professional ethics a bit, and I agreed. So I took my seat at the packed press conference, and eventually raised my hand to as “my” question, which the MPO had helpfully written down for me. The trouble was that I had no idea what the question meant (and I graduated in political science Primi Ordinis!). While my colleagues from the press nodded appreciatively at my doubtless very informed question, below the table around which we sat my knees were shaking un-

controllably. What if Dr Nkomo asked me to explain my question, which I would not have been able to do? To my great relief, Dr Nkomo responded respectfully and in some detail. At least, I think he did; I didn’t hear a word of what he said. Alas, no free vote was allowed by the ANC, and the Termination of Pregnancy Act was passed, to take effect on February 1, 1997. Now, 25 years later, we are speaking to Mike Pothier of the CPLO about that law and what we can do to alleviate its cruel effects. He notes with alarm that “abortion has increasingly come to be seen as merely another medical intervention, with little more significance than having any other form of surgery”. Are our moral arguments being heard? How can we reshape the narrative, and dialogue, to persuade people that abortion is not a neutral choice, but the taking of a human life?

ur cover this month features Mahadi Buthelezi, a businesswoman, a devoted family woman, and all-round Catholic activist. As it is with Fr Stefan Hippler, who writes for us on page 22, I never cease to wonder where such people find the time to do their great work. Did the good Lord bless them with 48 hours in a day when he gave us mere mortals only 24? This month we also showcase two important Catholic initiatives. The Association of Catholic Tertiary Students is a good way for students to be involved in campus life while also nourishing their faith. All Catholic students at tertiary institutions should be encouraged to join ACTS. Read about it on page 8. Catholic Engaged Encounter has helped many couples prepare for marriage, but it doesn’t have a presence everywhere in South Africa. Technology is providing relief, as we read on page 14. And our Saint of the Month is very special to me personally. I’ll tell you why on page 20. Thank you for reading The Southern Cross, and please spread the word about your monthly Catholic magazine. God bless,

Günther simmermacher (Editor)

Contents FEBRUARY 2022

A Catholic Home for Students What the Association for Catholic Tertiary Students, or ACTS, has to offer on campus

The Catholic Action Woman Johannesburg Catholic Mahadi Buthelezi speaks about her faith and the many hats she wears

Abortion, 25 Years After Legalisation We interview political analyst Mike Pothier on the current issues facing us in the fight against abortion

Marriage Preparation on Zoom Catholic Engaged Encounter is now available on Zoom

The Catholic side of Tutu The late Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu had many close links to the Catholic faith

14 Catholic Engaged

Encounter on Zoom

The St Scholastica Miracle Günther Simmermacher recalls how our Saint of the Month saved the day in Venice

The Bones of St Valentine See where the relics of third-century martyr St Valentine are kept in a church in Rome

The Church In the Struggle A new book provides an overview of how the Christian Church in SA responded to apartheid

EVERY MONTH 5

FROM OUR VAULTS

YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED

The Southern Cross 42 years ago You ask, and our team of experts replies on questions about Jesus’ miracles, stress at Mass, and more...

SAINT OF THE MONTH The life of St Scholastica — with pull-out poster

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Have your say!

THE MILLENNIAL CATHOLIC Nthabiseng Maphisa on ancient and new beauty

RAYMOND PERRIER On South Africa’s Census 2022

FR RON ROLHEISER OMI Why people are leaving the Church

PRAY WITH THE POPE Fr Chris Chatteris SJ reflects on the pope’s prayer intention for February

PRAYER CORNER Your illustrated prayers, to cut out and collect

Mahadi Buthelezi on life and faith

Did you know?

In our digital ed ition, all links to websites are live. Just click, and th e site opens in your br owser!

TRY IT!

TWO PAGES OF PUZZLES Two Crosswords, Wordsearch, Dropped Letters, Catholic Trivia Quiz, and Anagram Challenge

COOKING WITH SAINTS Grazia Barletta tries out recipes from the past. This month: Biscuits for St Valentine’s

...AND FINALLY History in Colour, Inspiring Quotes on the Epiphany, and a Last Laugh

Fr Stefan Hippler on doing charity well

Since when did brides wear white?

42 Years Ago: February 24, 1980

FROM OUR VAULTS Govt keeps out Swazi bishop

Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference president Archbishop Joseph Fitzgerald has protested against the South African government’s decision to refuse Bishop Mandlenkosi Zwane of Swaziland a visa. Bishop Zwane, who was thus prevented from attending the SACBC plenary session, was notified that he would have to apply for a visa every time he wants to enter South Africa — something Swazi citizens normally don’t need to do.

Pope to Cape Town conference

In a 900-word message to a University of Cape Town symposium on man’s inhumanity to man, Pope John Paul II said that to speak the truth about violence prepares the way for restoring peace.

Bishops’ call in new Zimbabwe

On the eve of elections in the new Zimbabwe, the country’s bishops have demanded an unequivocal guarantee from all parties that religious rights also include the “freedom to propagate the Christian faith”.

Beware Protestant education

In his editorial, Mgr Donald de Beer writes that the Bible study classes in state schools cannot serve as a replacement for Catholic catechesis, and warns that by teaching the Protestant perspective of Christianity, teachers might even turn Catholic children against their Catholic faith.

Previous “From The Vaults” articles at www.scross.co.za/vaults

What else made news in February 1980:

• Justice Petrus Cillié in his report on the disturbances beginning on Soweto in June 16, 1976, and going through 1977 concludes that the immediate cause of the riots was the government’s decision to introduce Afrikaans as the official teaching medium in black schools. Underlying dissatisfaction had been “exploited” by activists. • Anglican Reverend David Russell is sentenced to a year’s imprisonment for defying his banning order and attending a church synod meeting. [Rev Russell, later a bishop, would be released in December after a Supreme Court appeal.] • The first online chat service for the general public, “CB Simulator”, is launched in the US by CompuServe. Users connect through a modem via a telephone dial-up connection to an electronic information service. • Bon Scott, 33, singer of Australian heavy metal band AC/DC, dies in London on February 19 after a night of heavy drinking. AC/DC had released their LP Highway To Hell a few months earlier — the title referred to the band’s gruelling tour schedule. Left: Sacred Heart Sisters Goretti Hosey (left) and Anne Kelleher celebrated 25 years of religious life with Bishop John Durkin of Louis-Trichardt/Tzaneen at their congregation’s Ofcolaco centre. Both Sisters came from Ireland to South Africa in 1960.

Right: An advert for a music shop in Cape Town.

The Southern Cross

Why did Jesus refuse to perform miracles? Q. Jesus “did not do many miracles there [Nazareth] because of their lack of faith” (Matthew 13:58). This is perplexing. Surely Jesus’ miracles would lead people to believe in his divinity and have faith in him as the Messiah. Why did he react in this negative way?

N THE GOSPELS, A MIRACLE IS A sign of God’s certain presence among us. Not everyone grasps this. If you had seen a man taking a stroll on the waters of a lake, your first reaction would be disbelief and you would wonder what clever trick is behind it. The Jews of Jesus’ time had faith in God, but Jesus’ miracles could not convince all that God was at work in him. On the Sabbath day he cured a man with a withered hand in front of many in the synagogue (Mark 3:1-6). Before their eyes, the hand abruptly became healthy. This did not impress them at all! What does this mean? It means that Jesus’ contemporaries were so steeped in the letter of the Law of Moses (the Torah) — rather than in its spirit — that they saw Jesus as a lawbreaker, a desecrator of the Sabbath, and not as a true prophet. Jesus did not reproach them for their orthodoxy but for their hypocrisy. A glance at Matthew 23:13-

Jesus in the synagogue of Nazareth. Why did he not perform miracles to persuade his doubters?

39 sums up his attitude to the holierthan-thou legalists who had no time for his apparent disregard for the Law whose application they defended at all costs. Jews dared not pronounce the holy name of God, yet Jesus urged them to call God their Father — and not only theirs but the Father of all nations. This was preposterous for them. Their tradition was Jewish exclusiveness. Any suggestion that Jesus was the Messiah, “the one who is to come” (Matthew 11:7), was simple blasphemy. The resistance to Jesus’ teaching in the

Stressed at Mass: Can I stay away?

Q. The medication for my depression/anxiety disorder has made me highly sensitive to smells, to the point of nausea. That also includes the smell of incense. I also get stressed by crowds. Would it be a mortal sin if I stopped going to Mass on Sundays and holy days of obligation due to the harmful effect it is having on my mental and emotional health?

EFORE WE GET TO QUESTIONS of laws, allow me to observe that people committed to regular religious practice have been shown to have a more positive outlook on life than those who rarely or never attend church. In general, church attendance seems to carry a psychological benefit.

The Southern Cross

But there can be individual exceptions to that, and your own situation may well be one. And so, it would not be a mortal sin if you stopped going to Mass on Sundays and holy days. I believe that your diagnosed anxiety disorder, coupled with your heightened sensitivity to smells and sounds, dispenses you from regular attendance. Your disease is as real as any high fever or flu. But at the same time, I don’t want you to be deprived of the Eucharist, which I take to be the highest form of prayer and the strongest help to Christian holiness.

Your Questions answered Do you have questions about our faith? Send them to: editor@scross.co.za Subject line: Q&A

spirit of the Law was widespread. Even his own blood relations had doubts about him (Mark 3:21). John’s Gospel refers to Jesus’ miracles as “signs”, that is, as invitations to believe in his work of salvation. Every sign was a foretaste of the great miracle of the Resurrection and the triumph of the kingdom to come. One had to see beyond the actual event and discern in the sign its summons to believe. For instance, Jesus remonstrated with the crowds who wanted to be fed more bread after they had enjoyed the bread he had wonderfully given them the day before (John 6:26). They’d enjoyed the food but did not understand the sign: “Do not eat the food that cannot last but work for the food that endures to eternal life.” Jesus’ own words show up the difference between the letter of the Law and its spirit: “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27). (Michael Shackleton)

Would you be comfortable going to Mass instead on a weekday, when there would be fewer distractions and hazards to your sense of peace? And rather than taking guidance simply from me, why not talk this over with your parish priest or another priest whom you know? (Fr Kenneth Doyle)

Since when do brides wear white dresses? Q. I know that this is not a question about Catholicism, but maybe you have an answer for me. I have heard that the tradition of brides wearing white at their weddings is quite new, and that in the past brides wore black. Is that true?

ATRIMONY IS A SACRAMENT in the Catholic Church, so your question does have a place here. And, yes, what you’ve heard is true: in the Western world, white wedding dresses became the norm less than a hundred years ago. Before that, brides often used to wear black — favoured as a colour for special occasions — or other colours. Red was also particularly popular. In many places, such as France, brides would avoid wearing white because that shade was associated with mourning. White and cream wedding gowns were used occasionally, but only by the very rich. The earliest record of a white wedding dress in Western cul-

ture dates to 1406, when the English Princess Philippa married Eric of Pomerania. And in 1558, Mary Queen of Scots defied all contemporary fashion when she wore white at her nuptials. Other examples followed, but they didn’t set a trend. As a Rubens painting attests, Maria de’ Medici married Henry IV of France in 1600 in a white and gold wedding dress. That started a long-running fashion among well-heeled brides to marry in light shades such as white, cream or silver. Less well-heeled brides continued to wear their best dress, of whatever colour, or traditional costumes.

hite dresses became a fashion in the 19th century, when a number of high-profile royal weddings featured brides in white, and images of white-dressed high-society brides spread thanks to the nascent photography technology and increasing popularity of illustrated magazines. Three particular royal weddings influenced that trend: On

Putting down a sleeping toddler at Mass?

Q. At Mass, my daughter’s threeyear-old child was asleep in her arms when she went up to receive Communion. There the Eucharistic minister insisted that she put down the child in order to receive. She was alone with the child. What was she to do?

RESUMABLY THE EUCHARISTIC minister’s instruction was in compliance with coronavirushygiene regulations that don’t allow for Communion on the tongue — which parents know from experience often is the only way to receive Communion while carrying a child. If that was the case, your daughter shouldn’t be too upset about that experience, provided that the minister adopted a civil tone with her. Having said that, the priest or minister might have done well to ask your daughter to return to the pew where Communion could have been administered once everybody else had received, if that was a pos-

A bride in the late 1800s is wearing a dark-coloured wedding dress. White wedding dresses became the norm in the West only in the 1930s.

February 10, 1840, Queen Victoria wore a white dress at her wedding to Prince Albert (apparently to promote the British lacemaking industry), as did Duchess Eugénie at her wedding to France’s Napoléon III in 1853, and a year later the hugely popular Princess Sissi when she married Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph I. Over the subsequent decades, white wedding dresses became popular among those who could afford it. For one thing, they reflected the idealised married bliss of Victoria and Sissi in particular. For another, because white garments were costly and difficult to clean, they were status symbols. So the majority of brides continued to wear black or other colours. As white garments became more affordable in the early 20th century, more brides adopted that shade. By the 1930s, white dresses had become the norm. The white wedding dress as a symbol of purity is therefore a rather new tradition, and one that has little currency in most non-Western societies. (Günther Simmermacher)

For your Catholic news

Visit scross.co.za sibility. It might be worth it to approach the priest in a constructive spirit and share the problems of motherhood with him, so as to help him accommodate parents to deal with situations like that your daughter experienced. The Southern Cross

A Catholic home for

Catholic students

For Catholic students at tertiary institutions, there is an association that offers fellowship, activities and help, while also building the faith.

OUTH AFRICA’S UNIVERSITY CAMPUSES WILL BE abuzz with activity in February as first-years arrive for orientation and their 101 classes, and older students return to continue their studies. Especially the first-years, but also other students, will be keen to find associations and societies they might join for activities, help and friendship. For Catholics on campus, the Association of Catholic Tertiary Students (ACTS) provides all of these qualities. “ACTS is an academic organisation which aims to help Catholic students encounter Christ and joyfully announce him to others, guided by the pastoral plan of the SACBC, and unite people in the Catholic faith, especially the young people in tertiary institutions,” said Boipelo Dladla, the national secretary for media and publicity of ACTS. Full membership is open to full-time students in tertiary institutions who are baptised in the Catholic Church. For part-time students and former members there is the option of associate membership. “Those who are not Catholic but interested in the faith can join through the office of Liturgy and Evangelisation at their institution. The officer can help with the process of joining the Catholic Church with the help of the chaplain,” Boipelo added. Currently there are 37 ACTS branches across South Africa, with more yet to be formed. Each branch has a chaplain who is in charge of spiritual guidance. “The guidance is dependent on each chaplain and the needs of the individual,” Boipelo explained. “Activities offered vary across branches and they can include outreach programmes, conferences, social recreational settings, and liturgy, among others,” she said. While ACTS encourages members to take part in these activities, it is not compulsory to do so.

The Southern Cross

Aside from providing opportunity for activities and interaction, ACTS is also a support system for members. If one has problems on campus, “ACTS offers help in any way possible, depending on the situation. Where direct help cannot be offered, the leadership will help the person find the appropriate person,” Boipelo said. “For example, in the cases of people with mental health issues, ACTS may not have psychologists, but the leadership can assist through hosting mental health awareness activities, to equip members with information and people to contact,” she said.

Friendship after graduation

And the relationship with ACTS doesn’t need to end after graduation, Boipelo pointed out. “Members have a choice to still be part of the association after graduation as associate members through the alumni office in their respective branches.” ACTS was established in 1993 after both the Catholic Students’ Association (CASA) and the National Catholic Federation of Students (NCFS) at historically black and white campuses respectively were dissolved to form a united body. As a student-driven faith community, ACTS is located within the Catholic chaplaincies of universities. It has established branches at various universities, technikons and teacher training colleges around South Africa. According to its constitution, the association seeks to empower youth spirituality and support the development of the Church within the context of South Africa, and is driven by the principles of ecumenism, non-racialism and non-sexism. Programmes and activities are intended to respond to “signs of the times”. ACTS also has an outreach programme that sees the associa-

Congregants at a campus Mass of the Association of Catholic Tertiary Students, and (left) ACTS’s national secretary for media, Boipelo Dladla.

tion working with companies to generate funds towards community and social development. Catholic students should join ACTS “so that they have an opportunity to enhance their Catholic faith even when they’re away from home; to advocate for the truth that the Catholic Church teaches us; and just so that they stay in touch with the Lord through the activities of the association,” said Boipelo. “The association also aims to assist students in the four pillars of formation namely: human, spiritual, doctrinal and academic.” For more information on ACTS visit www.sacbcacts.org.za

ed Then-ACTS president Nophizo Ntshangase featur since has She 2021. June of Cross rn in The Southe been succee ded by Onalenna Kenos i.

How to join ACTS

To join ACTS, simply look for its branches on campuses or contact the provincial chairpersons (details below) to be directed to their respective institution. Eastern cape: actspec.ec@gmail.com Free state: actsfreestate@gmail.com Gauteng: actsgauteng@gmail.com KwaZulu-natal: actskznchairperson@gmail.com limpopo: actslimp@gmail.com north-West: actsnwpec@gmail.com Western cape: actswp@gmail.com Students in the northern cape and Mpumalanga may contact the ACTS national secretary-general Dominic Ntondini at actssabc@gmail.com.

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A Catholic Action Woman Mahadi Buthelezi is involved in many faith-based and social activities, on top of being an entrepreneur and family woman. She spoke to Daluxolo Moloantoa about her life and faith.

EIZE THE DAY — AND KNOW THAT GOD IS IN charge! That is a motto by which Johannesburg businesswoman and Catholic activist Mahadi Buthelezi lives. “Carpe Diem! And always remember that everything starts with and ends with God,” she said. “Pray when you’re feeling sad or scared, and pray when you’re joyful.” The Soweto-born chief executive officer of a real estate company wears a number of hats: family woman, entrepreneur, media practitioner, humanitarian, women’s rights campaigner, and Catholic activist in various areas of activity and ministry. The latest addition to Mahadi’s extensive CV is her role as president of the newly-formed Women’s Forum of the South African Council of Churches (SACC). It is one of the number of positions through which she aims to play her part in uplifting our society. “I’m driven by a desire to work for a world free of gender-based violence, poverty, inequality and racism,” the 50-year-old told The Southern Cross. Born the youngest of six children at Soweto’s famous Baragwanath Hospital, Mahadi grew up in Dube Village in Soweto where she attended Our Lady of Fatima church. Fr Buti Tlhagale OMI, now archbishop of Johannesburg, was one of her parish priests there. She did her primary schooling in Dube before attending Immaculata Secondary High in Diepkloof. She matriculated at Holy Rosary Convent in Edenvale. Her father, the late Simon “Sy” Khumalo, was a well-known boxing trainer who had the likes of world champion Baby Jake Matlala under his wings; her mother Lerato was a fashion designer. This afforded Mahadi an opportunity to see the world through different eyes. The business-bug bit at an early age. Apart from watching her mother run a fashion design business whose clientele included some of Soweto’s most prominent denizens, family relations also

Mahadi Buthelezi with her husband of 27 years, Rob. Their many activities include a family ministry.

The Southern Cross

played a part in Mahadi’s development towards entrepreneurship. Her family was close to a highly successful entrepreneurial family in her neighbourhood, the Maponyas, owners of the Maponya Mall. “I literally grew up in their household,” Mahadi recalled.

A family woman

Though the last-born child, Mahadi said she was not spoiled at all. “My father was very strict. He used to say that he had no boy or girl in the house, so we all did our chores equally. He even taught me how to mow the lawn and change a tyre. My mother is an impeccably neat individual whose home had to be spick and span. Having parents like mine left me with no choice but to become an all-rounder and a perfectionist,” she laughed. After high school, Mahadi went to work, while also pursuing her studies in marketing, business management, and fashion design. She later took up further courses in real estate and media relations. That training stood her in good stead for future pursuits. Today, the mother of four — Mpumelelo (28), Nqobile (24), Bongiwe (22) and Thando (19) — is the group chief executive officer of the RB Property Group, a business she runs with her husband of 27 years, Robert. “Our company specialises in property development, consulting and sales. I oversee the various departmental duties, from finance, engineering, strategy, research, project management and other operations,” she explained. The communications background led to work with various media platforms, including stints on the now-defunct Tribute magazine and the Catholic broadcaster Radio Veritas. She and husband Rob also wrote a series of familyoriented columns in The Southern Cross, when it was still a newspaper, and Mahadi has also written for the Catholic website Spotlight.Africa. The parishioner of the church of the Resurrection in Bryanston, Johannesburg, takes on her role as a social activist with dedication and passion. “I believe that I am part of a bigger community, society

and the world. Prayer and my Catholic faith give me strength. I’m emboldened to participate in a range of communities, organisations, and initiatives to improve the lives of others and the world,” she said.

Activities in the Church

Mahadi has been serving in a number of roles in this regard, especially in the Catholic Church. “As part of the Southern African Catholics Bishops’ Conference’s Marriage and Family Life Office Working Group, I contribute to any form of liturgical campaign and celebration that may need to be focused on, be it with the expertise of marriage and family, or any other tasks we may be requested to contribute to,” she said. Another role within the Church community is that of chief executive officer of the Catholic Business Forum (CBF). The forum comprises entrepreneurs who strive to apply the principles of the Catholic faith to their daily lives in business. “We seek to strengthen our Catholic faith by sharing professional experiences, fostering good business ethics, and supporting each other in integrating our faith and work based on Catholic values, especially the Catholic Social Teachings. Furthermore, the forum aims to promote social responsibility, and community service as business people,” Mahadi explained. Her passion extends to her alma mater, Immaculata Secondary. “I am trying to build a network of past students in order to keep the school sustained,” Mahadi said. She also serves on the board of the Moral Regeneration Movement, which is led by Fr Smangaliso Mkhatshwa. The empowerment of women is a priority issue for Mahadi. She is the lead organiser for the Catholic Church of the ecumenical Women’s World Day of Prayer in South Africa, and the secretary for the Southern African World Union of Catholic Women Organisation. In addition, she is a member of UN Women SA and the Department of Women, Youth and People with Disabilities’ Generation Equality National Task Team, and a member of the national task team of the faith-based Organisation Action Against Gender-based Violence and Femicide. “Women and the youth are the most marginalised sections of our society. This is where my heart is. If women and youth are not invited to the table, I try to help them bring their camping chairs to the table. Serious matters, such as gender-based violence, murder, inequality and so on, affect women and youth the most. Justice and empowering others in this area is something that I am very passionate about,” she said.

A princess among women

On top of all that, Mahadi is also a “princess”. In November 2020 she was crowned second princess in the Mrs Gauteng pageant. “It was an interesting time for me. The reason I actually entered the pageant was to shatter a glass ceiling, because I was turning 49 that December. The Ms Gauteng pageant is different from others. It inspires and motivates women while ploughing back to society, which is a major driving force for me,” she said. The pageant describes itself as a platform for married, divorced or widowed women aged between 24 and 58, and as a “philanthropic pageant, not only a beauty or modelling competition”. Her reign as a Mrs Gauteng princess covered the second year of the Covid pandemic, a time which Mahadi described as difficult, with the deaths of friends and family, the isolation of lockdown, and especially as a mother who worries about the wellbeing of her children. But it has also been a time for introspection in which she deepened her already active faith. And it always comes back to her Catholic faith. It plays a crucial role in her daily life, her family life, and her vari-

Family: Mahadi and Rob Buthelezi with their four children.

ous pursuits. “My faith keeps me grounded and watchful of each of my actions in dealing with my own issues and with others around me, especially around respect for my family and those whom I engage with in my work or in my contribution to society. Coming from a family that is deeply rooted in the faith, whenever we feel challenged, things like a visit to Ngome also come as a help and great getaway” from the stresses of daily life, she said. And, Mahadi added, her faith sustains her from the beginning of each day: “Saying the rosary is the first thing I do when I start my day.”

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The Southern Cross

25 years of legal abortion in SA

What rights for the foetus?

N FEBRUARY 1 IT WILL BE 25 YEARS SINCE abortion become legal in South Africa. In that time, more than 2 million unborn lives have been ended by a procedure which the Catholic Church condemns as evil. GÜNTHER SIMMERMACHER spoke to political analyst MIKE POTHIER (pictured right), programme manager of the Catholic Parliamentary Liaison Office, about why abortion has become so widely accepted in South Africa and many parts of the Western world.

GS: Secular society, and some Christians, believe that abortion is a matter of women’s autonomy over their own bodies, and that view seems to become increasingly mainstream. Why is that? MP: One of the pro-abortion lobby’s greatest successes has been to establish the notion that abortion is simply a matter of “women’s bodies, women’s choice” and, in a wider sense, nothing more or less than a question of women’s rights. The first of these arguments sounds plausible — after all, the absolute biological connection between the female body and pregnancy is obvious. But it should also be obvious that there is another biological reality involved: the foetus is certainly in its mother’s body, but it is not entirely of its mother’s body. It has its own DNA, for one thing. Approached scientifically — or if you prefer, objectively — it’s clear therefore that abortion is about more than “women’s bodies”, and therefore about more than “women’s choice”. In an age which claims to place a great emphasis on science and fact-based thinking, it ought to be possible to pursue dialogue along these lines. As for the “rights” argument, we are in an age which champions human rights and which actively seeks to identify the most vulnerable people in our society, and to offer them protection. For example, the recognition, in recent decades, of the reality of various sexual orientations and of the unconscionable way that people with such orientations have been treated, has resulted in their rights being validated and protected.

seriously. But we must also ask for recognition of the vulnerability of the other person in the pregnancy — the unborn child. Is there a way of reconciling the two sides of the debate? I can’t think of a way in which both the proponents and opponents of abortion could walk away satisfied. In that sense, it’s a zero-sum game. From the antiabortion standpoint, the “other side” needs to recognise and value the humanity and personhood of the unborn child at all its stages of development. From the pro-abortion standpoint, whatever consideration might be given to the rights of the foetus, if any, is less compelling than a consideration of the rights of the mother. Until one side or the other is prepared to re-evaluate its rights equation, there can’t really be a reconciliation. Is there any chance that the South African government might reverse its policy on abortion? At the moment, I would say, there is no chance at all. There is no electoral pressure on the governing party to change its policy, and with the exception of the African Christian Democratic Party and one or two of the very small opposition parties, there is no political push to restrict abortions. It’s noticeable that this issue hardly ever arises in coverage of parties’ manifestos and policy platforms. To an extent, this is understandable, given the centrality of issues like poverty, unemployment, corruption, crime and so on. Unfortunately, compared with these, abortion is regarded as a private matter concerning only the woman and her doctor. Hardly anyone in politics sees it as having any wider social significance.

‘It is very worrying that abortion is increasingly seen as merely another medical intervention’

You mentioned dialogue. Both sides insist that they are acting for a greater good, and both sides often vilify the other. Is there any possibility for fruitful dialogue? Perhaps one way of advancing dialogue on abortion is to approach it from an understanding of vulnerability. Yes, of course women’s rights are a central part of the question, and the vulnerability of women with difficult or unintended pregnancies must be acknowledged and taken

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What are the current pressing concerns in South Africa regarding abortion? Apart from the most obvious concern — that on average over 100 000 unborn children lose their lives to abortion every year in our country — it is very worrying that abortion has increasingly come to be seen as merely another medical intervention, with little more significance than having any other form of surgery. This has been a conscious tactic by proponents of abortion, because if the procedure can be made to sound routine and uncontroversial, then there is less chance of people being swayed by ethical arguments against it. In some countries, New Zealand most recently, the law has been amended to do away with the few remaining criminal sanctions that attach to non-medically approved abortions. We have not yet got to that stage, and an abortion performed outside the term limits and conditions set by the Choice on Termination of Pregnancy Act is still a

How The Southern Cross covered the build-up to and aftermath of the parliamentary vote to legalise abortion, published in October and November 1996. In the main photo on the front-page second from right, Advocate Noel Pistorius, Fr Peter-John Pearson and Archbishop Lawrence Henry state the Catholic Church’s position to the parliamentary portfolio on health.

crime — at least in theory. I don’t know when last anyone was prosecuted for it. And young people are growing up thinking abortion is good and normal. Yes. It seems likely that this “normalisation” of abortion will be most effective among younger people. The vast majority of them will have had it explained to them in life orientation classes at school as one of the options for dealing with an unwanted or accidental pregnancy, probably with very little discussion of the moral dimension. Apart from our prayers, how can Catholics best counteract legal abortion and its effects? I think there are various things that we can do, and are doing, that can make a difference. Supporting women with crisis pregnancies is vital. Although there are some Church facilities offering this, much more is needed. It’s also vital, in my view, to avoid the “culture wars” approach that we see in the United States and a few other places. It promotes bitterness and rancour. Rather than changing attitudes, I suspect that it merely solidifies people’s positions and closes off whatever small openings there may be for respectful dialogue. We also have to face the fact that many women who opt for abortion do so because of poverty and an inability to cope with another mouth to feed. Until we — Catholics as much as anyone else — bring about a fairer society, with an economy that gives real hope to people, this will not change. But we also need some introspection. The ongoing clerical sex abuse scandals have seriously undermined the Church’s credibility when it comes to matters of sexuality and sexual ethics — and rightly or not, abortion is widely regarded as falling under that heading. So, for many people, the Church’s preaching on abortion has a whiff of hypocrisy about it. There is the view that the Catholic Church is “antiwomen”. There is a problem of how the Church treats women. We still relegate women to second-class status when it comes to leadership, authority and decision-making. This kind of ecclesiastical oppression of women — from which many other faiths and denominations have gradually moved on — mirrors and augments the other forms of social oppression from which most women, and especially poor

women, suffer. If we accept — as I think we must — that the great majority of women who seek an abortion do so not for any flippant reason but out of a sense of desperation, even hopelessness, then we must surely ask what the factors are that have led them to that position. And structural oppression, with its economic, political, social and cultural aspects — in some of which the Church is unfortunately complicit — is surely one of those factors.

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Educating today tomorrow for the common good.

The Southern Cross

Zoom to

Marriage The Catholic Engaged Encounter pre-marriage course is now also available via Zoom.

OUPLES WHO INTEND TO marry in the Catholic Church are required to have undergone a marriage-preparation course before the happy day. Many parishes offer these, usually in conjunction with other parishes. But when parish courses are not offered, or take place at the wrong time, there is the alternative option of Catholic Engaged Encounter — which is now available to any couple anywhere thanks to Zoom. “Engaged Encounter is a peer ministry where married couples present a series of talks to couples preparing for marriage over a weekend,” said Steve Tuson, an Engaged Encounter coordinator in Johannesburg. The weekendlong courses cover topics such as the sacramental nature of marriage, the

importance of effective communication, conflict resolution, forgiveness and reconciliation, married intimacy, preparing for children, and so on. The courses call on couples to see marriage as a vocation. The weekends are conducted by couples and priests using the official Catholic Engaged Encounter Outline as developed and adopted by the United States National Board. The programme has been approved by the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SACBC). “Ordinarily the weekends are conducted at a retreat centre where the couples interact with the presenting team, which consists of a younger and older couple and a priest. The heart of the weekend is actually an opportunity for the couples to have a dialogue

and talk to each other about the material they have listened to, and relate the experience of the presenting couples to their own experience,” Steve said. “Our hope is that couples will think about and communicate on topics they have avoided or haven’t thought about before.” After each presentation, couples go off to reflect on the specific topic and write down their impressions and expectations. They then share these privately with their partner. There is no group or public sharing. According to Engaged Encounter, the ideal time to take part in the weekend is 3-6 months before the wedding. The Covid pandemic made it impossible to hold the Engaged Encounter weekends. But couples still

How you know you are ready for marriage

o you’ve found Mr or Ms Right, and you may already be thinking of the colour scheme for the wedding and possible names for the 2.3 children you’ll have with your partner. But before you book the caterers and do the marriage preparation course, reflect on whether you really are the perfect match. Here some questions to consider. • Do you share similar basic values about respecting human life, fidelity, commitment, what’s right and wrong, honesty, life goals, and lifestyle? • Does your significant other bring out the best in you, and you in him or her? • Are you physically attracted to this person? • Can you imagine growing old together? • Do your trusted family members and friends support your relationship and affirm that it’s healthy and respectful? • Do you experience ongoing conflict or, worse, violence and abuse in your relationship? That is a red flag to slow down and seek advice and help, ensuring your safety if necessary. • Is God calling you to marriage with this person? Have you prayed and discerned about this?

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Also reflect on whether you are ready for marriage: • Do most people consider you emotionally mature, able to compromise, communicate well, share your feelings, and handle anger constructively? • Do you love this other person so much that you are willing to put his or her happiness before your own? • Are you marrying out of strength (I know who I am and am happy with myself) rather than weakness (I need someone to fill the gaps in my personality)? • Have you developed strong friendships that have lasted over time? • Are you able to keep commitments and delay gratification? • Do you struggle on a regular basis with harmful habits or addictions, for example to alcohol, drugs, or pornography? That’s not necessarily a reason not to marry, but it is something that, if left untreated, can seriously weaken your ability to have a healthy marriage. • Is God calling you to marriage? Have you prayed and discerned about this? Source: www.foryourmarriage.org

wanted to get married. The teleconferencing software programme Zoom came to the rescue. Engaged Encounter leaders in Johannesburg have adapted the face-to-face retreat weekend to present a virtual weekend. They found that the innovation worked well — and it also gives access to Engaged Encounter to couples who live outside the geographical centres where the programme is normally offered.

Same format in Zoom

“The Zoom weekends follow precisely the same programme and format as the face-to-face weekends — except that the couples attend from the comfort of their own homes,” Steve explained. It also has the benefit of cost: The registration fee is onethird the cost of the residential weekends, because there are no accommodation and catering costs. “Overcoming the challenges pre-

sented by Covid and instituting Zoom weekends has provided us with an unexpected opportunity to reach couples all over South Africa. Previously only couples in some cities could attend these weekends. We have presented Zoom weekends to couples from throughout South Africa, as well as other parts of Africa, and even in London,” Steve said. An Engaged Encounter weekend held via Zoom, with Weekends are offered by Fr Chris Townsend of Pretoria addressing participants. Engaged Encounter in Johannesburg on a monthly basis at a cost of R600 per couple. Financial as- and Klerksdorp. All the presenting sistance is available on request for couples are volunteers who are comcouples who cannot afford the week- mitted to sacramental marriage — and end fee or data costs. All couples re- for them, the experience carries unexceive a certificate which they hand to pected rewards. “Married couples of at the priest who will marry them, least five years of matrimony are inthereby satisfying the Church’s com- vited to write the talks according to pulsory marriage course requirement. the international guidelines,” said Zoom will not replace the retreat Steve. “Presenting couples find the expeweekends, but “we hope to return to a mix of face-to-face weekends and rience of writing and presenting the Zoom weekends in the future”, said weekends hugely beneficial for their Steve. Feedback from couples to the own marriages, helping them to put Zoom format has been overwhelm- into practice in their own marriages ingly positive, he said. One partici- the principles they teach,” he expant from Johannesburg said: “I plained. “I tell prospective couples actually enjoyed it as it allowed free- that being part of this important mindom to have open and honest conver- istry is like taking out insurance for sations with my fiancé, whereas their own marriages.” face-to-face we might have held back For more information on weekends and on certain topics.” An East London local contact persons, go to couple reported: “It was convenient, www.engagedencounter.co.za/ because we got to experience these Dates_And_Bookings.html lovely sessions in the comfort of our Booking forms for a weekend are at own home.” engaged-encounter.herokuapp.com/ Lately, Engaged Encounter has For any queries, contact spread its presence to East London info@engagedencounter.co.za

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Pilgrimage to Lourdes, Rome, Assisi & Medjugorje 18 May to 3 June 2022

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The Southern Cross

The Catholic side of Desmond Tutu Tutu: The Catholic connections South Africa’s most famous cleric was an Anglican, but Archbishop Desmond Tutu had many ties to the Catholic faith, as Günther Simmermacher points out.

RCHBISHOP DESMOND TUTU, who died at the age 90 in Cape Town on December 26, made his clerical career in the Anglican Church — but at one point, he is said to have contemplated the Catholic priesthood. Instead, he got married in a Catholic Church. Born on October 7, 1931, in Klerksdorp as one of four children of Zachariah, a teacher, and Aletta, a domestic worker, Desmond Mpilo Tutu’s first exposure to Christianity was in the African Methodist Episcopal Church which his parents attended. As of 1945, he was schooled in Sophiatown in Johannesburg, where two years later he contracted tuberculosis. During his 18-months of hospitalisation, he came to know Anglican Father (and later Archbishop) Trevor Huddleston, who would soon become a prominent anti-apartheid activist. Fr Huddleston would be a great influence on Tutu for many years. After matriculation, Tutu studied to become a teacher. He was qualified in that profession by the time he fell for the teaching student Nomalizo Leah Shenxane, a Catholic. They had met earlier: Leah had been one of Zacharia Tutu’s brightest pupils and friends with Desmond’s sister Gloria. Leah had obtained her junior certificate at a rural Catholic school near Pietersburg (now Polokwane).

Catholic wedding

They made their nuptial vows on July 2, 1955, in the Catholic church of Mary Queen of the Apostles in Munsieville, Johannesburg. Oblate Father Jean Verot officiated. In the marriage register, kept in Latin, Fr Verot noted that this was a “mixed marriage”, listing Leah as a Catholic and Desmond a Protestant. They would have four children together. The oldest, Trevor, was named after Fr Huddleston. The second was

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named Thandeka Theresa Ursula; the two middle-names were a nod to Leah’s Catholic background. The family worshipped in an Anglican church, St Paul’s in Kumalo, Soweto, where Desmond was involved in several lay ministries. He found his vocation there, and studied at St Peter’s Theology College in Johannesburg for his ordination as an Anglican priest in 1960. Tutu’s final college report praised his exceptional skills and intelligence, but also noted that he had “seemed to be suffering from a touch of ‘Roman fever’”. The report recommended that “perhaps his bishop might do well to question him about that before ordination”. The apparent affliction of “Roman fever” insinuated that Tutu, a High Anglican, was exhibiting signs of subscribing to the beliefs and practices of the Catholic Church, as biographer John Allen noted in his 2006 biography of Tutu, Rabble-rouser for Peace.

Daily Hail Mary

That flirtation with Catholic practices continued even after Tutu had been made a bishop. When he was appointed secretary-general of the South African Council of Churches in 1978, Tutu introduced staff prayer meetings, retreats and the like. His daily prayer routine remained one of disciplined devotion, including the Eucharist in the morning and the Angelus at noon, complete with the Hail Mary. Tutu had a great devotion to St Thérèse of Lisieux, whose spirituality was rooted in prayer. “As I am not part of the Catholic tradition, I think my interest in her indicates that she has an ecumenical appeal,” he once said. “She encourages us to grasp the significance of retracting into oneself for inner peace, to seek solitude, silence and waiting, to be with God. It can’t have been easy to reach such a prominent position in the Church at a time when women were often seen rather than heard,” he is quoted in the 2018 book Beautiful Thoughts for Beautiful Minds by John Scally. For all his political and social concerns, Tutu always put God first. His social and political

Giants of social justice: Archbishops Denis Hurley and Desmond Tutu in 1985.

engagements were based on what he discerned to be the mandate of the Gospel. In that he followed in the path set by older Christian leaders, including Archbishop Denis Hurley of Durban, who had pushed the Catholic Church to become the first ecclesial body to declare the apartheid system “intrinsically evil”, in 1957. Tutu would later say that Hurley, a man of imposing build, was the giant “on whose shoulders we stood”. In his foreword to a 2001 collection of tributes to Hurley, A Portrait By His Friends, Tutu recalled: “I often would say to him whenever we met just how glad I was he was around. I could skulk behind someone of his stature — both physical and moral.”

Jokes in court

The Tutus came in solidarity to the Pretoria court where Hurley was charged in 1985 for revealing atrocities committed by the apartheid regime in South-West Africa (now Namibia), the so-called Koevoet Trial. During breaks in the pre-trial hearings, Hurley would talk with his supporters, jokingly inviting Tutu and his wife Leah to join him in the dock. They would have been cleared of all charges; those against Archbishop Hurley were dropped before the trial could even begin. After becoming archbishop of Cape Town in 1985, Tutu with Catholic Archbishop Stephen Naidoo and Protestant minister Rev Allan Boesak formed a trinity of leading church negotiators in defusing many crises in Cape Town. In 1984 Tutu was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Three years later, he received a prestigious Catholic honour: the Pacem in Terris Award, named after Pope John XXIII’s landmark encyclical on peace on earth. The day after the world celebrated the birth of the Prince of Peace, Desmond Tutu left this realm. Photos: B Mathur/Reuters/CNS & courtesy of Denis Hurley Centre

Saint of the Month: ST SCHOLASTICA

The twin sister of St Benedict

N FEBRUARY 10, WE MARK the feast of St Scholastica, a pioneering nun who was the sister, possibly the twin, of St Benedict, the “father of monasticism” in Western Europe. The siblings were born around 480 to a Roman noble family in Nursia (now Norcia, in the central Italian province of Umbria). Their parents, Anicius Eupropius and Claudia Abondantia Reguardati, were wealthy, but both Benedict and Scholastica sought pious lives of poverty and discipline. Scholastica seems to have devoted herself to God from her earliest youth, as the account of Benedict’s life by Pope Gregory the Great (who lived from 540604) mentions that his sister was “dedicated from her infancy to Our Lord”. The twins’ mother died at their birth. When Benedict was old enough, he left home to study in Rome, leaving Scholastica with her father to tend the Nursian estate. In time, Benedict left his studies to live first as a hermit, and then as the head of a community of monks of what would become the Benedictine Order. When Scholastica learned of her brother’s total dedication to the Lord, she was determined to follow his example. It is not certain that she became a nun immediately, but it is generally supposed that she lived for some time in a community of pious virgins. Some biographers believe she eventually

St Scholastica at a glance

Born: c.480 in Nursia (today Norcia), Umbria, Italy Died: February 10, 543, near Monte Cassino, Italy Feast: February 10 Attributes: Nun with crozier and crucifix; nun with dove flying from her mouth Patronages: Schools; tests; books; reading; convulsive children; storms and rain; nuns, Benedictine women’s communities.

founded a monastery of nuns in the town of Plombariola, near Benedict’s monastery on Monte Cassino, about 140km south-east of Rome. The brother and sister communities were about 8km apart. St Benedict seems to have directed his sister and her nuns, most likely in the practice of the same Benedictine Rule by which his own monks lived. Unlike her brother, St Scholastica was never the subject of a formal biography. As such, little is known of her life, apart from her commitment to religious life which paralleled that of her brother. Can Pope Gregory’s account of her life be trusted? Well, he was a near contemporary and interviewed four Benedictines who probably knew Benedict and possibly Scholastica, too. Early calendars and place names in the area around Monte Cassino support the historical accuracy of his account.

The final meeting

Pope Gregory wrote that Scholastica used to meet with Benedict once a year, at a house located halfway between the two communities, since she could not enter her brother’s monastery. For the sake of propriety, Benedict would be accompanied by a delegation of monks from his community. St Benedict’s biographer recounted a story which is frequently told about the last such visit between the siblings in the year 543. They passed the time as usual in prayer and pious conversation. After supper, as the encounter neared its end, Scholastica begged her brother to stay for the night, but he refused, because his own Rule didn’t allow him to spend a night outside the monastery. She then joined her hands together, laid them on the table, and bowed her head upon them in supplication to Left: A statue of St Scholastica in the church in Norcia that marked her and St Benedict’s birthplace. The church was destroyed in a 2016 earthquake. Right: St Benedict and St Scholastica are depicted in a fresco on the ceiling of the cloister church of Elchingen, Germany

God. Immediately as she lifted her head from the table, a storm arose. It was so fierce that Benedict could not leave. “Seeing that he could not return to his abbey because of such thunder and lightning and great abundance of rain,” Pope Gregory wrote, “the man of God became sad and began to complain to his sister, saying, ‘God forgive you, what have you done?’” Scholastica answered: “I wanted you to stay, and you wouldn’t listen. I have asked our good Lord, and he graciously granted my request, so if you can still depart, in God’s name return to your monastery, and leave me here alone.” St Benedict had no choice but to stay and speak to his sister all night long about spiritual matters — including the kingdom of heaven for which she would soon depart. For reasons of that story, St Scholastica is invoked against storms and rain (also see page 20). Three days later, Benedict had a vision of the soul of his sister, departed from her body and, in the likeness of a dove, ascending into heaven. He rejoiced with hymns and praise, giving thanks to God. His monks brought her body to his monastery and buried it in the grave that he had provided for himself. St Benedict followed her four or five years later, and was buried in the same grave with his sister.

The Southern Cross

St Scholastica

The

S outhern Cross

Marble statue in the Basilica of St Paul’s Outside the Walls, Rome

St Mark’s Square, with the basilica and the Campanile bell tower after the rains.

Pilgrims navigate planks to enter St Mark’s basilica after heavy rains.

How St Scholastica came through for me

Günther simmermacher recalls how St Scholastica saved the day in Venice

HE WEATHER FORECAST FOR Venice was grim: dark skies, day-long rain. And, as the local tour director assured me, if it rains in the morning in this region, it will rain all day. “Pack your raincoats and umbrellas”, we were told. The “we” in this story are the members of The Southern Cross’ Saints of Italy pilgrimage in September 2015, led by Fr Emil Blaser OP, whom we’d lose just over five years later. Fr Emil and I led this wonderful pilgrimage with much joy, but also a tinge of sadness. Timing had conspired to prevent us from being present at the historic beatification of Bl Benedict Daswa; the pilgrimage had been planned long before the Vatican announced the beatification date. Still, even before our departure, I had made peace with missing the beatification when I realised something quite astonishing about one of our destinations, the town of Norcia in the beautiful central Italian region of Umbria, which was so badly devastated in an earthquake just over a year later. Norcia is the birthplace of St Benedict, the sixth-century founder of the Benedictine Order to whom the headmaster Daswa had a devotion, and St Benedict’s twin sister, St Scholastica, patron of schools. Most saints have a range of patronages, and St Benedict’s portfolio includes matters of witchcraft. Bl Daswa was murdered because he resisted a witchhunt. And St Scholastica is the patron saint invoked against storms and rain, and therefore surely also responsible for matters involving unseasonal lightning storms – such as

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those which set in motion the events leading to Daswa’s death. So perhaps the timing of the beatification was not a stroke of bad luck for Fr Emil and me. Perhaps it was God’s plan that we should take a group of pilgrims to the place of Ss Benedict and Scholastica, just three days before the beatification, so that a group of 30 South Africans could pray through the protectors against witchcraft and storms for the beatification ceremony and the sainthood cause of Benedict Daswa.

Radio Veritas in Italy

In the event, we followed the beatification ceremony via a Radio Veritas livestream on the bus drive from Florence to Padua. Next day, our programme scheduled us to visit Venice. And with that we arrive at the point in the opening paragraph where the tour director tells us to wear our rain jackets and pack our umbrellas, because there was no chance of the rain stopping. We had no cause for complaint about that, because for a week we had enjoyed impeccable weather. But on the The spot of the birth of St Scholastica and St Benedict in the crypt of the basilica in Norcia that was flattened in the 2016 earthquake.

Photos on pages 17-20: Günther Simmermacher

way to Venice it poured, and by the time we emerged from our morning Mass in St Mark’s basilica into dismal greyness, much of Piazza San Marco was flooded. We had to re-enter the basilica for our guided tour by navigating across hastily erected planks. But when we came out again, a different sight greeted us: the square was still flooded, but the sun had emerged. And we ended up with a day of glorious sunshine. I give the credit for that to St Scholastica. In the morning, before leaving our hotel in Padua to travel to Venice, I had asked the patron saint for matters of precipitation for her intercession to stop the rain. To be sure, I invoked her twice more on the bus. Clearly, St Scholastica came through for us in a big way. The weather in Venice turned out to be so summery that I got a sunburn for my troubles. The scientists may refer to meteorological phenomena that conspired to deceive the weather forecast and conventional wisdom. Whatever those phenomena were, they doubtless were God’s tool. Two days later we were again exposed to inclement elements, this time in Milan. The group asked me to put my special contact with St Scholastica to good work and make our umbrellas obsolete. But I decided that this would just be greedy, so instead I told the group to invoke St Scholastica. I don’t know if any of them did, but after a quarter of an hour, the rain stopped. A few months later, I spoke on Radio Veritas about the drought in the Cape and invoked St Scholastica’s intercession for relief. When I looked out of my window afterwards, it was raining!

20 Chat-up lines for Catholics! Looking for a Catholic soulmate? Here are some chat-up lines you can try. Success not guaranteed!

1. Hey, I’d love to say a prayer before a meal with you sometime? How about Saturday at 8? 2. I think God just answered my discernment on my vocation to the married life. 3. Is this seat taken or are you a Sedevacantist? 4. Can I take you out for a small meal that when combined with another small meal doesn’t exceed your day’s large meal. 5. So last night I was reading in the Book of Numbers, and then I realised — I don’t have yours. 6. What’s a nice girl like you doing in a confession line like this?

7. Are you a traditionalist? Because your form is extraordinary. 8. The Bible says to give food and drink to the hungry and thirsty… How about dinner? 9. Your hair is like a flock of goats leaping down the slopes of Gilead. 10. What time do you have to be back in Heaven? 11. I’m starting a parish directory — can I have your name and number? 12. The Never-Fail Novena doesn’t ever fail — because here you are. 13. Here’s a rose. I think Saint Thérèse wanted you to have it.

14. Your halo really brings out your eyes. 15. If Solomon had met you he wouldn’t have needed 700 wives — one would have been enough. 16. Are you a penitential season? Because I’d give up anything for you. 17. You may need to go to confession, because you just stole my heart. 18. I’m doing my Marian consecration this year. Next year, I’d like to be Marian you. (Oof!) 19. You know what the temple veil and I have in common? We’re both ripped. 20. Would you like to study the Theology of the Body with me sometime?

Where we can find

ST VALENTINE

By Hannah Brockhaus

HEN MOST PEOPLE think of romantic love, a 3rd-century skull crowned with flowers probably does not spring to mind — nor the story behind it. But a visit to the unassuming Byzantine basilica of Santa Maria in Cosmedin, near the Circus Maximus in Rome, might change that. “One of the most important relics that you will find in this basilica is that of St Valentine,” said the church’s rector, Fr Chihade Abboud. Known as the patron saint of couples for his defence of Christian marriage, St Valentine was martyred by decapitation on February 14. He is also the inspiration behind the modern-day celebration of

Photos: Wikipedia Commons/CC-BY-SA 3.0

The basilica of Santa Maria in Cosmedin, Rome

Valentine’s Day. Construction on Santa Maria in Cosmedin began in the 8th century, in the centre of the Greek community in Rome. The basilica was built on the ruins of an ancient Roman temple. Today, in its front portico, tourists line up to stick their hand inside the gaping mouth of the “La Bocca della Verità” marble mask, made famous by a scene between Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck in the 1953 film Roman Holiday. Looking for a photo op, most tourists are unaware that just a few metres from the “Mouth of Truth” lies the skull of the saint of love.

An inconvenient saint

But St Valentine’s reputation as a patron of couples was not won easily. Known to have been either a priest or a bishop, he lived during one of the most difficult periods of Christian persecution in the early Church. According to most accounts, after a time of imprisonment, he was beaten and then beheaded, likely for his defiance of the emperor’s ban on Roman soldiers marrying. “St Valentine was an inconvenient saint for them,” Fr Abboud said, “because he believed that family life gave support to a person. He continued to administer the sacrament of matrimony.” St Valentine’s relics were reportedly uncovered during an excavation in Rome in the early 1800s, though it is unclear exactly how his skull came to lie in the Byzantine church where it is found today.

The skull of St Valentine in the basilica of Santa Maria in Cosmedin

In 1964, Pope Paul VI entrusted Santa Maria in Cosmedin to the care of the patriarch of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church, which is part of the Byzantine Rite. The basilica became the seat of the Melkite Greek Church’s representative to the pope, a role now held by Fr Abboud, who offers the Divine Liturgy (or Greek Mass) for the community every Sunday. After the Divine Liturgy, said in Italian, Greek, and Arabic, Fr Abboud likes to pray in front of St Valentine’s relics. The priest recalled a story about St Valentine, which says that when the saint was in prison, the guard in charge asked him to pray for the healing of his daughter, who was blind. With Valentine’s prayers, the daughter regained her sight. “We say that love is blind — no! Love sees and sees well,” Fr Abboud said. “It does not see as we want to see, because when one is attracted to another person, one sees something no one else is able to see.” Fr Abboud asked people to pray for the strengthening of the sacrament of marriage in society. “We ask [St Valentine’s] intercession, that we can really live moments of love, of being in love, and to live our faith and the sacraments, and live truly with a deep and strong faith,” he said.—CNA The Southern Cross

Welcome to ‘Our Place’

Our society can be transformed with God’s values, and a new centre in a crime-plagued area hopes to show the way, as Fr Stefan Hippler explains.

ATHOLIC PRIESTS IN SOUTH Africa are normally bound to parish life and, under the authority of a bishop, lead the faithful of a prescribed territorial area in prayer, worship and charitable actions for those in need. My ministry is different. During the week, I am part of running a foundation, HOPE Cape Town, and attend to the spiritual needs of the faithful only on weekends as a supply priest. Building a campus in a crime-ridden area is not the usual priestly task, and it might be seen as extraordinary, and even flamboyant, in Church terms. And yet, I believe there is merit in looking with a theological and pastoral eye at the campus we have built in Delft, Cape Town. Named The Nex–Indawo Yethu (meaning Our Place), it comprises buildings designed to serve in the areas of health, early childhood development, social services, youth, entrepreneurial skills development, and vocational training. With this campus, we aim to contribute to community-upliftment, understanding of democracy, and promoting the value of human life and human dignity.

hopes, diminished aspirations, the diminished value of life, latent racism, and so on. Churches of different kinds are spread all over Delft, and often they beam their congregations into a different sphere for a few hours, trying to instil hope for the week to come. Sermons can be a good tool to inspire, but I feel that theology and Scripture are more than just good sources for fiery sermons. Theology — the word of God — must be much more than a trickle-down of just words and charity; it must be felt and the talk must be walked by development and action on the ground. The

There will be differences in motivation, ethos, religious affiliation, and conviction among those working together on a project like The Nex. There will be different ways to describe God or the reason for creation, so there will be different theologies — and if such a project fosters more dialogue among those different groups, without it becoming a competition, then there is an ecumenical and interreligious meaning in what we do. The Nex becomes a place where unspoken different religions encounter each other in a practical way for the greater good of people. The blessings ceremony for the centre last year gave witness to intention and prayers when a Catholic priest, a rabbi, an imam and a sangoma not only spoke but also brought blessings upon the new venture. In the Catholic Church we talk about the “preferential option for the poor” — and here we are again: It’s easy to establish an NGO in a safe area instead of actually going where it hurts, where hurdles will be encountered, failures will happen, and the hardship of life will be mirrored and shared as people experience them every day. Walking together and staying together, even if it hurts at times, is taking the words from Genesis “all is very good” to almost a prophetic level: We are not in the promised land, but we have made ourselves ready to walk towards it; together and equipped with hope, love and faith, that we can reach our destiny.

God operates in the messy, dangerous, difficult and joyous areas of our lives

‘Then God looked over all he had made, and he saw that it was very good!’ Genesis 1:31 Having worked in the Delft area for more than a decade, I find this place mirrors all the shortcomings of contemporary South Africa: lost

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Word of God must be felt in the trenches for those left out after almost three decades since the end of apartheid. Theology cannot be confined only to the framework of parishes, formation seminars, theological faculties and Church structures. It must reflect that “God looked over all he had made”. Theology must be able to be applied to what we do and how we act, to make sense and bring a greater meaning to our actions. At the same time, there is no need for religion to capture what is done.

‘Don’t you realise that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God?’ 1 Corinthians 6:19 Spirituality is often associated with meditation and prayer, sometimes through fasting regimens which indicate that concentrating on the body is an important part of such exercises: mindfulness towards body and spirit. I strongly believe that to achieve holistic spiritual wellbeing, health and attention to the body is non-negotiable. The Nex acknowledges this by offering health services, linked to social services and the programme of the “First 1000 Days”, which looks specifically at the wellbeing of a human being in the decisive foundation phase of life. Health, wellness, good mental health, and an environment in which to thrive are so important for children and adolescents especially. The wellbeing of kids with special needs will be catered for specifically in the Early Childhood Development Centre of the campus. Safety is another aspect of bodily wellbeing. The Nex is situated in an area which is currently marked by violence and gangsterism as well as drugrelated problems. It is certainly not a safe area, and it was interesting to see and hear in the first community participation meeting we had that the question of safety was raised several times: “Are our kids, our youngsters, safe on your campus?” Obviously, this is a challenge and security measures have to play a vital role in planning and executing this project. But the hope that The Nex can be a turning point in moving into a more peaceful future makes the building a prophetic sign that change is possible — and that change in this regard is on the way. ‘The afflicted and needy are seeking water, but there is none, and their tongue is parched with thirst; I, the Lord, will answer them Myself... I will not forsake them.’ Isaiah 41:17 God is not partial — but throughout the Bible one can read about God being especially close to those who are in need. And this also means that God can never be far away from poverty and need, from hunger and despair, from all the cries for help. God does not operate from a safe distance but is present in the messy, dangerous, difficult, and also joyous areas of our lives. And he does this through human hands and feet. He does this not by speaking wise and holy words but in deeds. He also does not rely on charity but wants those working in his name to walk with the people and to empower them. Charity can create dependencies and is rather an emergency tool. Being

The admin building of The Nex–Indawo Yethu complex in Delft, Cape Town

the living word of God as a Christian means to embrace those in need and in despair entirely — knowing them and walking together in parts of life’s journey. Health and education are the basic tools for having the advantage of a good starting point in life. ‘The King will reply, “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”‘ Matthew 25:40 Social justice was always a central theme in the Bible and for the Catholic Church. It was not always obvious and has often been overshadowed by other teachings. In the last few decades, the Church increasingly rediscovered its social teachings. These are indeed a hidden gem which should be brought much more to the forefront and implemented in daily life. While charity is certainly a trademark of the Church, development in the context of real participation could still be optimised. At the core of Catholic moral and social teachings resides the recognition that every person is made in the image of God. Therefore, every person has to be treated with a respect that is based not only on human accomplishments or attributes. For HOPE Cape Town, which was founded more than 20 years ago as a response to the HIV/Aids pandemic, it was always a creed to treat everybody Fr Stefan Hippler, co-founder and chairman of HOPE Cape Town

with respect, and acknowledge the dignity of all. In facilitating direct encounters between those living at the margins of society and those who are in charge, such as politicians, we help to acknowledge this dignity for all concerned. The common good comprises the sum total of the social conditions which allow people, either as groups or as individuals, to reach their fulfilment more easily. While there are benefits to private ownership, there is never a justification for exclusive use when others lack necessities. We all have the duty to contribute to the common good. The Nex–Indawo Yethu represents a development with the participation of those living in Delft. Its services and opportunities contribute to the common good of this township and hopefully beyond. ‘I call upon you, for you will answer me, O God; incline your ear to me; hear my words.’ Psalm 17:6 The term “Indawo Yethu” means “Our Place” — a place where people come together from all social backgrounds, from all different walks of life to find a safe space to interact, to learn and to listen to each other. If there is something the Church should be doing, especially in South Africa, then it is to create spaces where people can be listening to each other — where there is time, space, and safety to tell the stories of life, of pain, of tears, of injustice, of powerlessness. And not only listening but also hearing what the other has to say, and to acknowledge and respect the path a person has walked up to that point. This could contribute so much to the healing of South Africa’s society. Fr Stefan Hippler is based in the archdiocese of Cape Town. For more about HOPE Cape Town and The Nex, see www.hopecapetown.org

Apartheid

Churches vs

A new book by Prof John Lamola outlines the response by the mainline Christian Churches to apartheid. Daluxolo Moloantoa provides an overview.

N 1988 JOHN LAMOLA, THEN A young theologian, had just arrived in the United Kingdom to begin life as a political exile when he stumbled upon a treasure trove of historical documents on the anti-apartheid activities of several Church institutions in South Africa. It has taken him periods of adjournment, the loss of the original manuscript, and technological mishaps to finally publish his book on these documents, Sowing In Tears: A Documentary of the Church Struggle Against Apartheid 1960-1990. What has emerged is a catalogue of selected official statements by Church authorities that document the South African ecumenical movement’s positions and pronouncements during the struggle against apartheid. The chronological presentation, from 1960 to 1990, provides a timeline of the mainline Churches’ evolving positions and thoughts on apartheid and its effects in South Africa. But the story of apartheid, as a defined system, begins in 1948 with the election, in a very limited franchise, of the National Party, led by a theologian, Dr DF Malan, and backed by the Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk (or Dutch Reformed Church). What followed, Lamola notes, was a somewhat vague response to this new policy from most of the various Christian denominations countrywide. This could be attributed to the fact that most people still did not fully understand what was in store with this National Party policy. The Catholic Church pronounced its opposition to apartheid from the outset, even if that opposition was initially mild and qualified. A 1952 pastoral letter by the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SACBC) stated that “justice demands that non-Europeans be permitted to evolve gradually to-

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wards full participation in the political, economic and cultural life of the country”. By 1956, leaders such as Archbishop Hurley were becoming more outspoken. In The Southern Cross of July 18 that year, he said: “The Catholic Church in South Africa cannot under any circumstances admit the justice of white supremacy in South Africa.”

Massacre a turning point The Sharpeville massacre in 1960 was a major turning point in South Africa’s political history, provoking international condemnation which the regime had never encountered before. Two significant developments emerged. Firstly, due to the international attention on South Africa, African National Congress leader Chief Albert Luthuli was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1961. Secondly, the World Council of Churches launched a six-month factfinding mission to South Africa, culminating in a consultative conference of representatives from eight Protestant churches in the country. The conference, held in 1960 at Cottesloe, Johannesburg, became a watershed moment in the development of an anti-apartheid theology in South Africa. The meeting would lead to the formation of the South African Council of Churches Chief Albert Luthuli, a Congregationalist lay minister, with a statue of St Martin de Porres

(SACC) another eight years later. Since the Catholic Church was not a member of the WCC, it took no part in these ecumenical proceedings, and issued statements under its own auspices through the SACBC, or on the authority of local bishops. Lamola notes the rather long intervals in the response of the Catholic Church to the increasingly worsening state of race relations in South Africa between 1950 and 1960. He notes that only a total of three pronouncements were made by the SACBC in the period. One of them was issued in 1957, when the bishops focused their concerns on the effects of the new Bantu Education Act on Catholic mission schools. By limiting his focus only to institutional statements, Lamola excludes from his survey the courageous and sustained campaign by the Catholic Church to successfully save the mission and township schools from Bantu Education or, as was the case with many other Churches, closure. The third pronouncement is the pastoral letter of February 1960, released only a month before the Sharpeville massacre, which warned: “The problem of race relations must be solved soon, and in the light of Christian principles. Otherwise there is little hope for peace and order, as antagonisms will grow, prejudices will harden into intolerance, and frustration will lead to an outbreak of violence and disorder.” This statement illuminates the mounting modification of the Christian position towards apartheid in the 1960s.

Black Theology The 1970s ushered in a movement towards a theology which was rooted in the philosophy of black consciousness. It was given the name “Black Theology”. In the Catholic Church, Black Theology found expression through the Black Priests

Solidarity Group, which included notables such as Fr Smangaliso Mkhatshwa and Fr Buti Tlhagale OMI, now archbishop of Johannesburg. A 1973 founding statement set among its aims “to commit ourselves as black clerical brotherhood to play our meaningful role in the struggle as part of the oppressed black people in South Africa and to full acceptance of the philosophy of Black Consciousness”, “to find ways and means of finding decrees of Vatican II a living reality in the South African Church”, and “to elicit from the black clergy an unwavering commitment to preaching the Gospel of liberation and justice fearlessly in the great tradition of Paul of Tarsus — in season and out of season”. Sowing in Tears intersperses the years preceding the end of apartheid with a series of activities which clearly point to an increased activism by the Christian fraternity, both in South Africa and internationally. Curiously, Lamola neglects to note one of the boldest antiapartheid acts by any Church: the founding by the Catholic bishops’ conference in 1986 of the anti-apartheid weekly newspaper New Nation. Among the most significant Catholic actions listed in the book is the SACBC’s 1983 pastoral letter in reaction to the government’s proposed new tricameral constitution for South Africa. “In light of the Church’s Social Teachings, it would

Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu with Catholic bishops, including Archbishop Denis Hurley (back right).

be imperative to examine whether this proposed constitution enabled an environment devoid of racial subjugation and division in the country,” the bishops said, clearly thinking that the new constitution would not create such an environment.

Bishops’ urgent message The section also includes documents such as the seminal 1984 Kairos Document, which is said to have been led by Rev Frank Chikane and Dominican Father Albert Nolan; the November 1985 British Council of Churches Resolution on South Africa; the June 16, 1986, SACC “Call to Prayer for an End to Unjust Rule”; and the SACBC’s “An Urgent Message to the State President” of August 20, 1986. In the latter message, marked by a prevailing sense of

urgency, the bishops declare: “South African society is being torn apart by the consequences of apartheid. We as the Catholic Church in South Africa urge that the total dismantling of apartheid be pursued without further delay and as a matter of priority.” Another significant and historic document is a joint communiqué released after the April 16, 1986, meeting of the ANC and the SACBC in Lusaka, Zambia. The SACBC delegation was led by Archbishop Hurley, and the ANC’s by Oliver Tambo. In January 1990, State President FW de Klerk issued a public invitation to Church leaders to meet with him for a discussion. Suspecting that the meeting would be used for propaganda purposes, the SACC in a statement rejected the invitation for January 30, 1990, making any future encounter conditional on certain demands for reform being met. The statement ended with the exhortation to “Let My People Go”. A few days after the statement was issued, De Klerk in his Opening of Parliament address met the SACC’s demand to unban the liberation movements and all political parties, and just over a week later he announced the release of Nelson Mandela from prison. Sowing in Tears is published by African Perspectives Publishing and available in bookshops, or contact Rose Francis at francis@africanperspectives.co.za

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Opinions expressed in The Southern Cross, especially in Letters to the Editor, do not necessarily reﬂect the views of the publication or those of the Catholic hierarchy.

Cancel global Church meetings

N VIEW OF CLIMATE CHANGE AND Pope Francis’ concerns and calls as articulated in his encyclical Laudato Si’, may I advance a strong appeal for the cancellation of the international World Youth Day, as we know it. The gathering of thousands of international participants, who travel from all over the globe, leaves thousands of tonnes of fossil fuel emissions in the sky. Every time I hear of the these mammoth international Catholic gatherings, I shudder at the thoughtless expenditure of not only money but also, more importantly, the wellbeing of the planet. It is well documented that of all the world religions, our own is the most climate-unfriendly, on account of one factor alone: international travel at every turn. While there is so much good that we are doing, especially in the Philippines and Germany, we are ignoring the elephant in the room as long as we continue convening mass-gatherings of councils, synods, religious chapters, and pilgrimages (most notably the World Youth Days) and international papal visits. Fr Sean Collins CSsR, Cape Town

Dr Reginah Mhaule reporting that out of nearly 130 000 babies delivered in the first quarter of last year, 36 000 births were by girls aged 10-19. These children are babies themselves. Where is the Church in all this? It soft-peddles religion and is more concerned with vaccinations and masks. God is not dead, but he is clearly not in the equation of faith. The Church should not concern itself with the dribble of climate change in 2055 — its agenda should be moral change. Peter Victor Hendricks, Cape Town

Complete the lyrics

N MATTHEW’S GOSPEL, JESUS SAYS: “But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.” This came to mind when I recently read basic education deputy minister

T MY ADVANCED AGE, I FIND that my strolls down memory lane far outweigh the actual walks I take. The latest memory I have is from the early 1940s. A “youth rally” was held at His Majesty’s Theatre in Johannesburg, which took the form of a dramatisation of the Mass. It was attended by most of the Catholic schools on the Witwatersrand. Various tableaux depicting the different stages of the Mass were enacted by the different schools. Our school was entrusted with “The Consecration”. What has stuck in my memory all these years is the marching hymn that we sang, the words of which went something like the following:

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“An army of youth, flying the standards of truth, we’re fighting for Christ the Lord/Heads lifted high, ‘Catholic Action’ our cry and the cross our only sword/On earth’s battlefield, never a vantage we’ll yield, as dauntlessly on we swing/Comrades true, dare and do, neath the Queen’s white and blue/For our flag, for our faith, for Christ our King. “Christ lifts his hands, the King commands, his challenge ‘Come and follow me’/From every side, with eager stride, we form in the lines of victory/ Yet peace we bring, from a gentle King, whose rule is light and life and love/ Mary’s Son, till the world is won, we pledge Thee our loyal word.” Is there anyone out there who can fill in the gaps, correct my mistakes and enlighten me as to the actual occasion? Yvonne Murray (née Ferrandi), Knysna

A daily miracle

HEN LAST DID YOU WATCH A sunrise? The miracle we might see is not its beauty but rather the breathtaking faculty that we have been given to appreciate it, that ability to enjoy and be uplifted by the wonders with which this world of ours abound. Cows can’t do so, nor ants or lions. The Good Lord has endowed us humans with an aesthetic sense, an ability to appreciate the wonder and beauty of what he has given to us: the sunrises and sunsets, the wonderful range of trees with their seasonal variations, the patterns of their bark, or coming across a little stream after hearing its gurgle through the bushy growth and seeing it sparkle and splash over worn-smooth pebbles, dappled through by sunlight. Look around you, get out and use your eyes! Use that invaluable aesthetic sense which we all have (at least to some degree), and then thank the Lord for what we have been given, and the ability to appreciate it all. The sense of the beauty and the appreciation of what surrounds us is one of our greatest talents, and so often we bypass the wonders of the world which we inhabit, blinkered. Have a good look at the trees, flowers and shrubs you may pass by. You might be surprised at what you’ll really see. Cecil Cullen, Alberton

Beauty: Ancient and new Nthabiseng Maphisa: Millennial Catholic

FTEN I HAVE BEEN MOVED, and at times also puzzled, by these 1 700-year-old words of St Augustine: “Late have I loved you, beauty ever ancient yet ever new, late have I loved you.” Perhaps it is because the idea of beauty being both ancient and new is a bridge too far for my mind to cross. It may also arise because, being a woman in her mid-twenties, I was nourished in youth by a diet of pop music and girly magazines — not exactly the best reference points for beauty, I would say. Too often beauty is, especially in visual art, customised, personalised and individualised with some unintended consequences. What I mean by this is that in our modern world, beauty has been hurriedly chewed upon by the chaotic beast of subjectivity. So many of us do not believe that there is one single thing or person that can captivate us, that can forever delight us, or that can stir within us a tearful joy. Thus, deeply tainted by this thought, we dare to create beauty for ourselves. We write its definition, chart a map for its course and fit it to our measurements. And woe, woe, woe to those who criticise our “beautiful things”. Oh, how easy it is to wander from the source of beauty itself! After feeding so ravenously on the tender flesh of “perspective”, we are left to look at a spiderweb of our thoughts, both enlightening and disturbing. And to the world we say, “Gosh, isn’t this beautiful?” Admittedly, I have done this in my art many times before. But as St Augustine tells us, true beauty is timeless. It has no need of our intervention. Quite the contrary, it is we who are in need of its radiance. I know I am not alone in this. It is the gnawing ache that occurs when something of beauty which so greatly en-

13th-century stained glass windows in Sainte-Chapelle in Paris. In Gothic architecture, light was considered the most beautiful revelation of God,

chants us is brought to an end. It’s never enough, is it? In your consciousness, somewhere below, is a desire to be filled to the spiritual brim by an everlasting beauty. We have been made by Beauty itself and we will be restless and, I dare say, tormented until we are firmly held in its embrace. And what price shall there be to pay when those who long to drink from the font of beauty do not find it within our church walls?

The gift of art

One of the most incredible ways that anyone can open themselves to this divine beauty is through sacred art. Now, before you roll your eyes, I am not suggesting we awaken Michelangelo from his tomb (not that I would complain), but I do think that sacred art is in need of revival. Though many more people can read today than their ancestors in centuries past, there is still great biblical illiteracy.

It is true that no painting or sculpture could ever depict in its entirety what St Paul calls “the image of the invisible God” (Colossians 1:15). Still, I believe much can be done to help each of us understand that “in him dwells the whole fullness of the deity bodily” (Colossians 2:9). God the Father, the Almighty, felt it was important to give to some of his children the gift of art. So it can be seen, then, that the divine source of the gift points to its divine purpose. Let artists then humble themselves before the throne of God, and once nourished by the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of his Son, Jesus, may they be able to show to others his Passion, Death, Resurrection and Ascension into heaven. And hopefully, then we too may be able to whisper the words: “Late have I loved you, beauty ever ancient yet ever new, late have I loved you.” • This article first appeared on immaculata.co.za in November 2021

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Are you being counted?

Raymond Perrier on Faith & Society

OW IN THOSE DAYS A decree went out from Cyril Augustus that a census should be taken of all the republic. No, I’m not hearkening back to the now-forgotten days of Christmas but rather looking forward to February 3, when South Africa will begin its tenyearly census. From the days of the Roman Empire to the era of Tik-Tok, conducting a census is still seen as a key political activity. Then, as now, taxation is one of the motivations. But given the commitment to public services, a census is also key to knowing how best to spend those taxes: not — thankfully — to fund legions of armies to expand the empire but instead to provide the health, education and welfare, roads, electricity and houses that the population have been promised. The decennial census here is conducted by StatsSA, a remarkably wellrun parastatal with an appropriately nerdy interest in data and statistics. This census is the jewel in the crown of a whole range of aspects of South African life they measure: inflation, unemployment, exports and imports, tourists, consumption, transport. After the completion of the 2022 exercise, we will not only have a better idea of how many people live in South Africa but also how they live, where they live, how long they have lived, what kind of education, shelter and utilities they enjoy. And of course, because this is South Africa, with what “race” they identify. Fake news has given data a bad name. It seems that the Internet can give you any kind of statistic you want to back up your argument; and if you can’t find it, you can always make it up. Don’t forget the joke: “Over 80% of all statistics are fake and the remaining 17,895% are not as accurate as they seem.” Every schoolboy struggling with

plotting data on graphs has muttered under his breath that famous 19th century quotation: “There are lies, damned lies, and statistics” (attributed to both the American writer Mark Twain and the British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli). The phrase reflects the way in which statistics have been misused and manipulated by politicians through the ages. But, to coin another phrase: “Liars do statistics, but statistics don’t lie.” It is important to know, 28 years after liberation, how many people in the country do not have access to electricity, or how many children there are in a household, or what level of education people have attained. And entrusting this to a politically neutral organisation means (more or less) that we can make comparisons over time and hold politicians to account. To be able to do that, we need to understand the statistics which are generated, and be able to interpret and challenge them.

Does 83,9% impress you?

For example, during the recent local government elections, the ANC proudly claimed that in eThekwini, 83,9% of people have access to basic water. Sounds impressive, doesn’t it? But use the same data and you can easily work out that they are really brag-

South Africa’s Census 2022 kicks off on February 3. Photo: Jacques Nel

the process of collecting them. Looking at the organisation which I serve as director, I am delighted to say that Durban’s Denis Hurley Centre (along with other members of the National Homeless Network) is collaborating closely with StatsSA on the 2022 census. To their credit, a few years ago StatsSA approached us with their concern that they had undercounted the number of homeless people at 6 000. When we asked them in which city this was, they replied: “The whole country.” We fell about laughing and pointed out that each metro has at least that number. Not surprisingly, last time, when their very official-looking enumerators turned up in parks in the middle of the night to count the homeless, most of them ran away! And so this time they will be working with organisations like ours, which are known and trusted by the homeless, to help conduct the count and explain to people in advance why it is important that they are included. And StatsSA have even taken our advice on how the survey is designed to make it more appropriate for this population.

When official-looking census counters turned up, the homeless ran away

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28 The Southern Cross

ging about the deplorable fact that 511 000 people in this most prosperous of cities do not have access to basic water. Hardly evidence of success after decades of fighting for the poor! It does seem sometimes that, as our access to statistics has increased, our ability to understand and interpret them has decreased. And even more sadly, people are proud of being innumerate. “Oh, I’m no good at maths,” people exclaim, as if it was like not being good at canasta. And then, when a spin doctor sells them a line, they cannot tell the difference between something that has doubled and something that has increased by 200%. The statistics matter, but so does

Count the uncounted

Another key group which StatsSA struggle to count is foreign nationals, especially when so many are undocumented or have become undocumented because of the negligence of the Department of Home Affairs. Let me give just one example of why they

Fr Ron Rolheiser OMI must be included. Many refugees have families, and those children, under South Africa’s Constitution, have a right to a free basic education. If the government does not know how many under-5s there are in that group, how can they possibly make sure there are enough school places? The Catholic Church is well-placed to help with this. A good proportion of these foreign nationals are in our parishes. We can encourage them to be part of the census and reassure them that the information collected cannot be attributed to individuals and that it will ultimately be used to help the whole community. Censuses have an especially poignant significance in South Africa. It is shocking to be reminded that between the last apartheid census in 1991 and the first democratic one in 1996, the population of the country increased by 9,5 million, and that almost all of this was accounted for by black Africans. This was not because of a mass invasion across Beit Bridge. Rather, it was a reminder that before liberation, a huge number of people literally “did not count”. They had been excluded from the census by arbitrary homeland borders, or there was little concern to count them, or they chose to opt out of the apartheid census. Let us hope that we continue to learn from the (recent) past and keep working together as communities to make sure that everyone counts. We owe it to our brothers and sisters to make sure that every human being living within our borders — whatever their colour, nationality or economic status — has the dignity of being included in the census, since each one of us is made, equally, in the image and likeness of the Creator.

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The exodus from the Church

HY ARE THERE SO MANY PEOPLE leaving their churches? There is no one answer to that question. People are complex. Faith is complex. The issues are complex. Looking at the question, it can be helpful to distinguish among a number of groups: The Nones, the Dones, the Spiritual-but-not-Religious, the Indifferent, the Angry, and the Marginalised. While there is some overlap among these groups, each has its own set of issues with the Church. The Nones are those who refuse to identify with any religion or faith. Asked on a census form, “What is your faith or religion?”, they answer, “None”. Theirs is an agnostic stance. They are not necessarily atheistic or hostile to faith, religion and the churches. Rather, it’s that at this time in their lives they refuse to identify themselves with any explicit faith or church. Some are humble about it, others arrogant; in the end, the stance is the same: an agnosticism about religion and faith. The Dones are those who, in their own words, are done with religion, and often with explicit faith as well. Done with it! They can consider themselves done for any number of reasons — from having had a bad experience with religion growing up, to anger at the Church, to the intoxicating power of a culture that can seemingly offer itself as a sufficient substitute for religion. They have been there, considered religion, and moved on. The Spiritual-but-not-Religious are those who believe in the value of spirituality but not that of any church. They have chosen to pursue a spiritual path outside of any ecclesial community, believing that (at least for them) the spiritual journey is best done outside of organised religion. There can be many reasons for this kind of attitude, not least the overpowering ethos of individuality and personal freedom pervading our culture. In one’s faith journey today, people prefer to trust only their own search and experience. The Indifferent are just that: indifferent to religion (while perhaps still nursing some faith). There can be myriad reasons why these people feel indifferent to religion and perhaps also to faith. Westernised culture, for all its goodness, is also a powerful narcotic that can, for most of the years of our lives, swallow us whole in terms of anaesthetising our religious instincts and having us believe in what the psychologist Charles Taylor calls a “selfsufficient humanism”. For long periods of our lives, our world can seem enough for us, and while this is the case, indifference to religion can be a real option.

The Angry are those who no longer go to church for reasons they can name. Any number of causes can be at play here — clerical sexual abuse, the Church’s treatment of women, racism, the Church’s failure to live out the Gospel credibly, their own church’s involvement or noninvolvement in politics, a bad history with their church, a bad pastor, or personal mistreatment in a pastoral situation. Persons inside this group sometimes end up seeking a new ecclesial home inside another denomination, but many just stay at home on a Sunday morning. The Marginalised are those who feel themselves outside the understanding, empathy, and spiritual scope of the Churches. This ranges from many inside the LGBTQ community to the homeless on our streets to countless thousands who feel (consciously or unconsciously) that the messiness of their lives somehow excludes them from ecclesial community. They feel like outcasts to religion and our Churches.

eople are leaving their churches for a multitude of reasons, and this begs some further questions. When people are leaving their churches, what are they actually leaving? And, where are they going, if anywhere? In a recent book, After Evangelicalism: The Path to a New Christianity, David Gushee asks this question about those leaving their churches. Are they clear on what they are actually leaving? Do they know whether they are leaving church, leaving their denominations, leaving the faith, leaving Jesus — or just leaving? More importantly, he asks, what will be their endgame? Will they end up in another denomination, or as Spiritual-butnot-Religious, or as agnostic, or just as disillusioned? Perhaps that question is not so important for the Nones, the Dones, the Spiritual-but-not-Religious, the Indifferent, and for many of the Marginalised — but it is for the Angry, for those who feel alienated from their churches. Where do you go when anger keeps you away from your family table? Do you search for a more like-minded family? Do you give up on finding a family table? Do you just stay home on a Sunday morning? Are you okay to go to your deathbed still angry? Are you content to remain disillusioned? Leaving Church: two questions stare us in the face. Why are more and more people leaving their churches or simply not going to them? And, what’s the religious future of those who no longer go to church? The former is a question for the churches themselves, the latter a question to ponder for those no longer going to church. The Southern Cross

Photo: Holy Cross Sisters

PRAY WITH THE POPE Every month Fr chris chatteris sJ reﬂects on Pope Francis’ prayer intention

Pray for our Sisters

Intention: We pray for religious Sisters and consecrated women; thanking them for their mission and their courage; may they continue to find new responses to the challenges of our times.

IKE THE CATECHISTS ABOUT whom I wrote in the December issue, religious Sisters are often unsung heroes of our evangelising mission. They are very much on the frontline, in their schools and institutions and in parishes. Sisters often have to put up with a lot. I find it incredible that in the 21st century, religious Sisters sometimes still have to struggle to be taken seriously by some members of the clergy who re-

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The Southern Cross

late or refer to them in a patronising manner. Sometimes these clergy are religious themselves, which makes their fault even more astounding. After all, aren’t Sisters their fellow religious? Incidentally, these Sisters are often ill-rewarded for their contribution to parishes, to the point of exploitation. In the eyes of the laity, Sisters are generally well-appreciated, but it has to be said that sometimes this is because they are seen as quasi-clergy. Indeed, I understand that in some places, such as Nigeria, they are often referred to as “Reverend Sisters”.

No ‘right-hand woman’

professing to challenge. To their credit, many Sisters just get on with living out their vocation. The pope’s intention for February speaks of how they should “continue to find new responses to the challenges of our times”, and the history of how they have already done so is worth noting. Whenever there has been a specific need in the world and the Church, women religious have stepped in to make a difference — in healthcare, education, catechesis, development, justice.

Well-run projects

During the height of the HIV/Aids But women religious are neither pandemic, the contribution of clergy nor are they essentially the Catholic Sisters to its alleviation was “right-hand woman” of the parish noted by people both inside and outside the Church, and this was a powpriest. They are erful witness. religious; they The function of religious An Anglican have a vocation friend in their own Sisters is to be witnesses to worked in who that right in the field in the Church. They the call of Jesus 1990s told me work in and for the Church, but their essential func- that when he visited a project opertion is to be witnesses to the call of ated by Sisters, you always knew that Jesus which invites certain women and it was going to be professionally-run men to live lives of chastity, poverty and mostly problem-free. Today there is anecdotal evidence and obedience for the sake of the Gospel. They are not, as priests are, that many Sisters are responding to “co-workers of the episcopal order”, the signs of the times by being not even “co-co-workers of the episco- prophetically present in the climate movements around the world. I saw a pal order”! I suspect it is simply because they photo recently of a climate march in are women that religious Sisters are South Korea in preparation for the sometimes regarded as an adjunct Glasgow COP meeting in November. force to the clergy. In this, they suffer There was a remarkable number of Sisthe fate of their secular sisters who are ters at the head of the march! Pope seen as being at the service of men and Francis’ Laudato Si’ seems to have who are often forced to accept second made an impact in many convents. place after men, including in their fiIt’s a good time to be a Sister when nancial rewards. We really do need to you have the assurance that the pope beware of unconsciously adopting the (who, as a Jesuit, is a fellow religious) standards of the world which we are is your brother!

Prayer Corner Your prayers to cut out and collect Do you have a favourite prayer? Please send to editor@scross.co.za

ST BLAISE BLESSING OF THE THROAT Through the intercession of St Blaise, bishop and martyr, may God deliver me from every disease of the throat and from every other illness. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen

Our Lady of Lourdes Prayer for Healing

Lord, look upon me with eyes of mercy, may Your healing hand rest upon me, may Your lifegiving powers flow into every cell of my body and into the depths of my soul, cleansing, purifying, restoring me to wholeness and strength for service in Your kingdom. Amen

St Agatha Prayer O Heavenly Father, who raised Agatha to the dignity of sainthood, we implore Your Divine Majesty by her intercession to give us health of mind, body and soul. Free us from all those things which hold us bound to this earth, and let our spirit, like hers, rise to your heavenly courts. Through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, forever and ever, Amen

Blessed Benedict Daswa Prayer O Blessed Trinity, you filled the heart of your Servant Benedict with great love and zeal in building up your kingdom. You chose him and gave him the courage and the strength to stand up for his faith without fear and bear witness unto death. Loving God, like him, may I always proclaim the truth of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ by the witness of my life. Keep me away from all deeds of darkness. Protect me from evil

spirits and all the powers of evil. Make me a true Apostle of Life in my family and in society. Father, through his intercession, and according to your will, grant me the grace that I ask of you. I draw strength and courage from the life of your Servant Benedict in the hope that he will be proposed to the faithful for veneration and as an intercessor and model of holiness. Through Christ our Lord, Amen The Southern Cross

Anagram Challenge 1

Holy Land WordSearch

Unscramble the clues below to work out which famous VATICAN terms hide in these words

SI S SA W DR U G S

F R E SCO I N G A LA CE DO LL

SCA LE B A P TI STR I E S

I DI O T CA R A V A N

MO R A L O V E R TO N E S SO A R

SP I N A CH E LI TE S

Find these Holy Land sites in the puzzle above

BETHANY BETHLEHEM CANA CAPERNAUM JAFFA

JERICHO JERUSALEM JORDAN KURSI MOUNT CARMEL

MOUNT TABOR NAIN NAZARETH TABGHA TAYBEH

DROPPED LETTERS: Place the missing letters to get the titles of epic Bible movies E D

D E

O R

U O

A T

B D

MONS VAHESIM NANTER QUOL TSENT NECEFILD YESVIB SHEIG MLAKANGETSE THRONE

Southern Crossword

Across

5. Was aware of some frank New Testament (4) 7. Ablution so out of place in the confessional (10) 8. Time of liturgical calendar (4) 10. Got there but not on your own (8) 11. How the vision will come to light (6) 12. Sound of the titled men on dark occasions (6) 14. What Balaam’s donkey did when not talking? (Nm 22) (6) 16. Sanctify the large chamber out west (6) 17. kind of phone a monk may use (8) 19. kiln found in coastal Israel (4) 21. One who prefers the English at Mass? (10) 22. It’s yours personally (4)

The Southern Cross

DoWn

1. With Rose she enhances the meal’s flavour (4) 2. The result of no alcohol can tire boys out (8) 3. The pursuit of Nimrod (Gn 10) (6) 4. The Maid of 1 down (6) 5. Ok, New Testament gets into a tangle (4) 6. Sixpence to show they are not included (10) 9. knowledge you gain from the living (10) 13. Goal Goth destroyed at Calvary (8) 15. The Flood (6) 16. How a luxury car gets into the famous college (6) 18. Do nothing for the bread (4) 20. Swarm back to meet (4)

For all solutions turn to page 34

Quick Crossword Cl ue 1 do w n Cl ue 10 ac ro

Cl w

CODEWORD: Combine the letters in the shaded boxes to form the name of a 20th-century pope.

Across

_ _ _ _

7. Patron of lovers (9) 8. Emperor Constantine’s saintly mother (6) 10. Cape Town’s auxiliary bishop (9,5) 11. St Vincent de Paul Society (abbrv) (4) 12. 8th word of Apostles Creed (7) 14. Musical featuring nuns (3,5,2,5) 15. Israelite leader (Gen. 48) (6) 16. Late Catholic Tanzanian president (6,7) 17. Latin version of Peter (6)

_ _

18. Diocese in kZN (7) 19. Third-century African Church Father (6) 20. Latin version of Paul (6)

DoWn

1. Catholic tennis star (5,7) 2. African country of Card. Désiré Tsarahazana (10) 3. SA’s Catholic radio station (5,7) 4. Pope Pius XII’s surname (7) 5. Benedictine abbey near Dundee (8)

The Catholic Trivia Quiz

1. Who designed the uniforms of the Swiss Guards? a) Leonardo da Vinci b) Michelangelo c) Raphael

6. Which book in the New Testament features the line, “A law unto themselves”? a) Luke b) Acts c) Romans

2. Who is the bishop of Port Elizabeth? 7. In which diocese is the town of Potchefstroom? a) Duncan Tsoke a) Johannesburg b) Klerksdorp b) Jeremiah Masela c) Rustenburg c) Vincent Zungu 8. How old was St Joan of Arc when 3. After Italy, which country has she was executed? provided the largest number of a) 17 b) 19 c) 21 canonised saints since 2006? a) France b) Germany c) Spain 4. Where did Jesus raise Lazarus? a) Bethany b) Capernaum c) Nain 5. Who was the first pope to propose nuclear disarmament in an encyclical? a) John XXIII b) Paul VI c) John Paul II

6. Patron saint for lost things (7,2,5) 8. Jesus’ teachings on the mount (10) 9. Jesus’ friend in Bethany (Jn 12:1-8) (5,3,5) 12. Religious order abbreviated OCD (10) 13. OT prophet (6) 14. Hymn “Guide Me O Though Great…” (8) 15. Crusader city in northern Israel (4) 16. City of St Joan of Arc (7) 17. Country of St Josephine Bakhita’s birth (5) 19. Former Pretoria Archbishop George (6)

9. Which religious order for women is abbreviated HC? a) Handmaids of Christ b) Holy Cross c) Holy Family 10. When in the Sunday liturgy do we recite the Creed? a) After the Homily

Q1: Swiss Guard

Q2: PE bishop

b) After the Offertory Procession c) After the Prayers of the Faithful 11. Who of Tom Cruise’s three ex-wives is not a practising Catholic? a) Katie Holmes b) Mimi Rogers c) Nicole Kidman 12. Who is the patron saint of public relations? a) Bernard of Siena b) John Chrysostum c) Francis de Sales The Southern Cross

Cooking with Saints

Every month GRAZIA BARLETTA prepares a recipe from Catholic tradition in her Cape Town kitchen, and shares it with our readers in text

and photos taken exclusively for The Southern Cross by the chef herself.

THIS MONTH GRAZIA BAKED:

St Valentine’s Linzer Biscuits

INGREDIENTS

S WE ARE REMINDED EVERy yEAR in February, St Valentine is the patron saint of love. God worked through his life to perform miracles and teach people how to recognise and experience true love. This famous 3rd-century saint, an Italian doctor and priest (or bishop), inspired the creation of the holiday of Valentine’s Day. The story goes that in Terni, Umbria, Valentine healed a young girl’s blindness to prove Christ to a pagan judge, who then converted. St Valentine was eventually martyred in 269 AD.

He is the patron saint of love and happy marriages (and also of the mentally ill, plagues, epilepsy and fainting). His association with romantic love began after 1382, when the writer Geoffrey Chaucer linked St Valentine’s feast day on February 14 to the “lovebirds” of early spring. The saint’s connection with love was also noted in 15th-century France. What we now call Valentine’s Day began in the 18th century when an embellishment of the saint’s story claimed that he signed a letter to his jailer’s daughter with “your Valentine”.

The shape of love is the heart, and its colour is red. This is why the Linzer biscuits are perfect for Valentine’s Day. They symbolise the art of two-into-one. A Linzer biscuit is a sandwich filled with a colourful window of strawberry (or any other jam of your choice). It’s so delicious and beautiful to look at. The dough can keep in the fridge for a few days

• 250g butter • 1 egg • ⅔ cup sugar • 1 tsp vanilla essence • ¼ tsp almond extract • 2 cups self-raising flour • 100g ground almonds • ¼ tsp salt • ¼ tsp cinnamon • ½ cup strawberry jam • 2 heart-shaped cookie cutters, one large and one small

baking trays with wax paper.

6. Dust clean surface with flour and roll dough out until 4mm thick.

7. Cut out dough with large-shape heart cookie cutter. Cut a smaller heart out of the centre of half of the bigger heart biscuits (see image below).

8. Place cookies on baking tray and bake for 10-15 minutes till golden. When done, let cool completely.

and can be frozen if you want to prepare a smaller amount of biscuits.

preparation: 90 min • Baking: 10-15 min • servings: 24 biscuits

prEpArAtion:

1. Cream together butter and sugar in the bowl with an electric mixer.

9. Spread a small amount of jam on each of the bigger bottom halves of biscuits, then top with a biscuit that has a smaller heart cut out of the centre. Dust with icing sugar. (you will be left with leftover small hearts, so you’ll have delicious plain biscuits as well.)

10. Enjoy with a prayer to St Valentine!

2. Add egg, vanilla and almond extract, and beat to combine.

3. Add flour, ground almonds, salt and cinnamon, and mix to form a soft dough

4. Place dough in clingwrap and place in the fridge for 45 minutes. 5. Preheat the oven to 180°C , and line

Grazia Barletta is an author, book designer, and food photographer & stylist. She can be contacted at graziabarletta1@gmail.com Follow her blog at www.momentswithgrazia.com and connect with Grazia on Facebook/Instagram: momentswithgrazia

SOLUTIONS

SouthernCrossword:

ACROSS: 5 Knew, 7 Absolution, 8 Year, 10 Together, 11 Appear, 12 Nights, 14 Brayed, 16 Hallow, 17 Cellular, 19 Oast, 21 Anglophile, 22 Self. DOWN: 1 Mary, 2 Sobriety, 3 Hunter, 4 Virgin, 5 Knot, 6 Exceptions, 9 Experience, 13 Golgotha, 15 Deluge, 16 Harrow, 18 Loaf, 20 Teem.

Anagram Challenge:

1 Swiss Guards; 2 College of Cardinals; 3 St Peter’s Basilica; 4 Vatican Radio; 5 L’Osservatore Romano; 6 Sistine Chapel

Dropped Letters:

The Ten Commandments; Quo Vadis; King Of Kings; Ben-Hur; Samson And Delilah; The Robe; The Greatest Story Ever Told.

34 The Southern Cross

Quick Crossword: ACROSS: 7 Valentine, 8 Helena, 10 Sylvester David, 11 SSVP, 12 Creator, 14 The Sound Of Music, 15 Efraim, 16 Julius Nyerere, 17 Petrus, 18 Kokstad, 19 Origen, 20 Paulus. DOWN: 1. Roger Federer, 2 Madagascar, 3 Radio Veritas, 4 Pacelli, 5 Inkamana, 6 Anthony of Padua, 8 Beatitudes, 9 Simon the Leper, 12 Carmelites (Discalced), 13 Elijah, 14 Redeemer, 15 Acre, 16 Orleans, 17 Sudan, 19 Daniel. CODEWORD: Pope Paul VI

Catholic Trivia Quiz: 1. b) Michelangelo; 2. c) Vincent Zungu; 3. c) Spain; 4. a) Bethany; 5. a) John XXIII (in Pacem in Terris, 1963); 6. c) Romans 13:11; 7. b) Klerksdorp; 8. b) 19; 9. b) Holy Cross; 10. a) After the homily; 11. b) Mimi Rogers (a Scientologist, like Cruise, who was raised Catholic); 12. a) Bernard of Siena.

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Final Words LOVE

Great Quotes on

History in Colour

A snapshot from the past, colourised exclusively for The Southern Cross

‘A soul enkindled with love is a gentle, meek, humble, and patient soul.’ – St John of the Cross (1542-91)

‘When it comes down to it, even on the natural plane, it is much happier and more enlivening to love than to be loved.’ – Dorothy Day (1897-1980)

‘I know, my soul, that while you are loving anything, you are transformed into its likeness.’ – Hugh of St Victor (1096-1141)

‘Take away from love the fullness of self-surrender, the completeness of personal commitment, and what remains will be a total denial and negation of it.’ – Pope St John Paul II (1920-2005)

‘You learn to speak by speaking, to study by studying, to run by running, to work by working, and just so, you learn to love by loving. All those who think to learn in any other way deceive themselves.’ – St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)

‘Love, to be real, it must cost – it must hurt – it must empty us of self.’ – St Teresa of Kolkatta (1910-97)

‘Love is not blind; that is the last thing that it is. Love is bound; and the more it is bound the less it is blind.’ – G.K. Chesterton (1874-1936)

‘What does love look like? It has the hands to help others. It has the feet to hasten to the poor and needy. It has eyes to see misery and want. It has the ears to hear the sighs and sorrows of men. That is what love looks like.’ – St Augustine of Hippo (354-430)

‘Lord, grant that I might not so much seek to be loved as to love.’ – St Francis of Assisi (c.1182-1226)

Pope Pius XI, who on February 6, 1922, became pope, launches the first broadcasts of Vatican Radio on February 12, 1931. Also in attendance was Guglielmo Marconi (left in the background), the inventor of radio who had set up Vatican Radio, and then-Cardinal Eugenio Pacelli (front left), the Vatican’s secretary of state.

Pius XI died almost exactly eight years later, on February 10, 1939. He was succeeded by Cardinal Pacelli, who took the name Pius XII.

Vatican Radio’s first director was Fr Giuseppe Gianfranceschi SJ. His successors were usually also Jesuits. At its height, Vatican Radio broadcast in 45 languages throughout the world. For many years, Capetonian Sean Patrick Lovett headed the English section. After a restructuring of Vatican media in 2017, the station pared down its operations.

The last laugh T

he priest met a woman at whose wedding he had officiated a couple of years earlier. “So, do you have any children yet?”‘ Father asked. The woman replied that she didn’t, though not for lack of trying. “Tell you what I’ll do,” Father said. “Next week I’ll go to Rome and I will light a fertility candle for you.” Some years passed and the two met again. “So, have you had any children yet?” Father asked the woman. “Oh yes, two set of twins and six singles. Ten in all, and another on its way,” the woman replied. “That’s lovely,” said the priest. “And how is your dear husband?” “Gone to Rome,” the woman replied, “to blow out your cursed candle!”

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