SouthernCross · PDF fileThis month Spanish Claretian Father Pablo d’Ors, a consultant...

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R7,00 (incl VAT RSA) www.scross.co.za Reg No. 1920/002058/06 No 4900 The The S S outher outher n n C C ross ross November 19 to November 25, 2014 Bishops: Accept teaching on women priests BY STUART GRAHAM T HE Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference has warned against support- ing women priests, saying it is “con- trary”to the teaching of the Church to offer or create platforms where conversations are held with women who claim to have been or- dained. In a tersely worded pastoral statement, SACBC president Archbishop Stephen Brislin emphasised that the ordination of women to the priesthood “is not recognised in the Catholic Church”. “The Catholic faithful are required to give ‘a religious submission of mind’ to the defini- tive teaching of the Supreme Pontiff who ex- ercises his teaching authority by virtue of being the lawful successor of the Apostle Peter,” Archbishop Brislin said. “The faithful are expected to avoid what- ever does not accord with the teaching of the Catholic Church regarding the ordination of women.” The pastoral statement comes after the or- dination of Dr Mary Ryan, 60, in Hermanus in late September. The Catholic Church regards the ordination illicit and invalid. By that act, Dr Ryan and those who presided at the ordi- nation are considered automatically excom- municated, latae sententiae. Dr Ryan, a mother of four, was ordained by Patricia Fresen, a former Dominican nun who was expelled by her order after being ordained a priest in Barcelona in 2003. Archbishop Brislin said Pope John Paul II issued a definitive pronouncement on the question of admitting women to the priestly ministry in his apostolic letter Ordinatio Sacer- dotalis (“On Priestly Ordination”) in 1994. In it, Pope John Paul II declared that “the Church has no authority whatsoever to confer priestly ordination on women and this judgement is to be definitively held by all the Church’s faithful”. The SACBC statement pointed out that Pope Francis had stated in his apostolic exhor- tation Evangelii Gaudium (“The Joy of the Gospel”) that “the reservation of the priest- hood to males as a sign of Christ the Spouse who gives himself in the Eucharist is not a question open to discussion”. “Catholic women who accept to be or- dained to the priesthood separate themselves from the Church and the sacraments,” the statement said. “It is therefore contrary to the spirit of the Catholic Church to be involved in the promotion of the ordination of women to the priestly ministry.” The archbishop added that it is “contrary to the teaching of the Church” to offer or cre- ate platforms where conversations are held with women who claim to have been or- dained. “It is wrong for Catholics to participate in the invalid celebration of the ‘Eucharist’ of- fered by individual women who do not recog- nise the teaching authority of the Church and who have consequently separated themselves from the Catholic Church,” his statement said. “It is equally inconsistent to use Catholic premises and the Catholic media to under- mine the authoritative teaching of the magis- terium of the Catholic Church.” He said Catholics who align themselves with the cause and promote the ordination of women are seen by the Church authorities to be “in open defiance” of the Church’s “clear and unambiguous teaching on the subject”. “These Catholics are undoubtedly on a col- lision course with the Church’s authority and can under no circumstances claim ignorance of the Church’s definitive teaching,” the bish- ops’ statement said. “As your pastors we urge all Catholics to ‘keep to what is taught and know to be true’,” the statement said, adding that it is important that Catholics don’t allow themselves to be “tossed one way and another and carried along by every wind of doctrine”. The statement said that, together with Pope Francis, the bishops believe that there are many important ways of promoting women in the Church. This month Spanish Claretian Father Pablo d’Ors, a consultant to the Pontifical Council for Culture, was quoted as saying that he was “absolutely” in favour of opening up the priesthood to women. Fr d’Ors told Italian daily La Repubblica: “Am I in favour [of the ordination of women]? Absolutely, and I am not the only one. The Continued on page 5 The key to understanding Pope Francis Page 5 The Catholic spirit of Paris Page 10 Fr Rolheiser: How to defeat the devil Page 9 Rome WITH PAPAL AUDIENCE | Assisi | Venice | Padua | Florence | Milan | Cascia (St Rita) | Siena (St Catherine) | Norcia (St Benedict) | Birthplace of St John XXIII Rome, Assisi, Florence, Padua, Milan, Venice and more 6 - 18 September 2015 Led by Fr EMIL BLASER OP Southern Southern Cross & Radio Veritas Cross & Radio Veritas Pilgrimage Pilgrimage THE SAINTS OF ITALY Phone Gail at 076 352 3809 or 021 551 3923 or e-mail [email protected] fowlertours.co.za each year on November 11, the school community of St Henry’s Marist College in durban gathers in the quad at the Memorial Bell Tower to remember the 18 young men from the col- lege who gave their lives in the Second World War, and the Marist Brothers who have taught generations of Marist pupils and who have since died. This year, special mention was made of 2nd Lieutenant dennis Chambers (Class of ‘33) who served in Burma in Queen Alexan- dra’s Own Gurkha Rifles and was killed in action in 1943. History master Gary Brits was suitably dressed in WW2 military uniform and wearing the belt of another St Henry’s student, Cecil Boyd, who died in action in Italy in 1945. Here Mr Brits shows Lt Chambers’ Gurkha Rifles’ sword to Grade 8 pupils Sydney van Voorst and Tyrese Pillay. Grade 8 classes have been studying this period in history and a number came to the service dressed as members of one or other of the armed forces. Pope: Clergy don’t know everything BY CINdY WOOdeN P OPE Francis has said that the Church’s ministers—bishops, priests and dea- cons—must be aware of how merciful and compassionate God has been with them, because such honesty makes them “humble and understanding of others”. Recognising that his call “flows only from God’s mercy and God’s heart” ensures that a minister “will never assume an authoritarian attitude, as if everyone were placed at his feet and as if the community were his prop- erty or personal kingdom,” Pope Francis said. “One does not become a bishop, priest or deacon because he is more intelligent or bet- ter than others,” the pope said, “but only be- cause of a gift: God’s gift of love poured out by the power of the Holy Spirit for the good of his people,” the pope said at a general au- dience in the Vatican. “Woe to a bishop, priest or deacon who thinks he knows everything, who thinks he always has the right answer to every ques- tion and thinks he does not need anyone,” the pope said. While bishops and priests are called to “courageously safeguard” and share the teachings of the Church, they also must recognise that they “always have something to learn, even from those who may still be far from the faith and from the Church”. By working together, supporting one an- other and examining questions together, the Church’s ministers will demonstrate “a new attitude, one marked by sharing, co-respon- sibility and communion.” Quoting St Paul’s letters to Timothy and to Titus, Pope Francis outlined the human qualities a minister must have: “Acceptance, moderation, patience, meekness, trustwor- thiness and goodness of heart.” Those human qualities, he said, help the Church’s ministers go out to meet others with the attitude of respect necessary for of- fering “a service and a witness that is truly joyful and credible”.—CNS

Transcript of SouthernCross · PDF fileThis month Spanish Claretian Father Pablo d’Ors, a consultant...

Page 1: SouthernCross · PDF fileThis month Spanish Claretian Father Pablo d’Ors, a consultant to thet Pontifical Council form Culture, was quoted as saying that he was

R7,00 (incl VAT RSA)www.scross.co.zaReg no. 1920/002058/06 no 4900

TheTheSSoutherouthernn CCrossrossNovember 19 to November 25, 2014

Bishops: Acceptteaching onwomen priests

By STUART GRAHAM

THE Southern African Catholic Bishops’Conference has warned against support-ing women priests, saying it is “con-

trary”to the teaching of the Church to offer orcreate platforms where conversations are heldwith women who claim to have been or-dained.In a tersely worded pastoral statement,

SACBC president Archbishop Stephen Brislinemphasised that the ordination of women tothe priesthood “is not recognised in theCatholic Church”.“The Catholic faithful are required to give

‘a religious submission of mind’ to the defini-tive teaching of the Supreme Pontiff who ex-ercises his teaching authority by virtue ofbeing the lawful successor of the ApostlePeter,” Archbishop Brislin said.“The faithful are expected to avoid what-

ever does not accord with the teaching of theCatholic Church regarding the ordination ofwomen.”The pastoral statement comes after the or-

dination of Dr Mary Ryan, 60, in Hermanus inlate September. The Catholic Church regardsthe ordination illicit and invalid. By that act,Dr Ryan and those who presided at the ordi-nation are considered automatically excom-municated, latae sententiae. Dr Ryan, a mother of four, was ordained by

Patricia Fresen, a former Dominican nun whowas expelled by her order after being ordaineda priest in Barcelona in 2003.Archbishop Brislin said Pope John Paul II

issued a definitive pronouncement on thequestion of admitting women to the priestlyministry in his apostolic letter Ordinatio Sacer-dotalis (“On Priestly Ordination”) in 1994. Init, Pope John Paul II declared that “the Churchhas no authority whatsoever to confer priestlyordination on women and this judgement isto be definitively held by all the Church’sfaithful”.The SACBC statement pointed out that

Pope Francis had stated in his apostolic exhor-tation Evangelii Gaudium (“The Joy of theGospel”) that “the reservation of the priest-hood to males as a sign of Christ the Spousewho gives himself in the Eucharist is not aquestion open to discussion”.

“Catholic women who accept to be or-dained to the priesthood separate themselvesfrom the Church and the sacraments,” thestatement said. “It is therefore contrary to thespirit of the Catholic Church to be involvedin the promotion of the ordination of womento the priestly ministry.”The archbishop added that it is “contrary

to the teaching of the Church” to offer or cre-ate platforms where conversations are heldwith women who claim to have been or-dained.“It is wrong for Catholics to participate in

the invalid celebration of the ‘Eucharist’ of-fered by individual women who do not recog-nise the teaching authority of the Church andwho have consequently separated themselvesfrom the Catholic Church,” his statementsaid.“It is equally inconsistent to use Catholic

premises and the Catholic media to under-mine the authoritative teaching of the magis-terium of the Catholic Church.”He said Catholics who align themselves

with the cause and promote the ordination ofwomen are seen by the Church authorities tobe “in open defiance” of the Church’s “clearand unambiguous teaching on the subject”.“These Catholics are undoubtedly on a col-

lision course with the Church’s authority andcan under no circumstances claim ignoranceof the Church’s definitive teaching,” the bish-ops’ statement said.“As your pastors we urge all Catholics to

‘keep to what is taught and know to be true’,”the statement said, adding that it is importantthat Catholics don’t allow themselves to be“tossed one way and another and carriedalong by every wind of doctrine”.The statement said that, together with

Pope Francis, the bishops believe that thereare many important ways of promotingwomen in the Church.This month Spanish Claretian Father Pablo

d’Ors, a consultant to the Pontifical Councilfor Culture, was quoted as saying that he was“absolutely” in favour of opening up thepriesthood to women.Fr d’Ors told Italian daily La Repubblica:

“Am I in favour [of the ordination of women]?Absolutely, and I am not the only one. The

Continued on page 5

The key to understanding Pope Francis

Page 5

The Catholicspirit

of ParisPage 10

Fr Rolheiser:How to defeat

the devilPage 9

Rome WITH PAPAL AUDIENCE | Assisi | Venice | Padua | Florence | Milan |Cascia (St Rita) | Siena (St Catherine) | Norcia (St Benedict) | Birthplace of St John XXIII

Rome, Assisi, Florence, Padua, Milan, Venice and more6 - 18 September 2015

Led by Fr EMIL BLASER OP

SouthernSouthern Cross & Radio Veritas Cross & Radio Veritas PilgrimagePilgrimage

THE SAINTS OF ITALYPhone Gail at076 352 3809

or 021 551 3923or e-mail

[email protected] fowlertours.co.za

each year on november 11, the school community of St Henry’s Marist College in durbangathers in the quad at the Memorial Bell Tower to remember the 18 young men from the col-lege who gave their lives in the Second World War, and the Marist Brothers who have taughtgenerations of Marist pupils and who have since died. This year, special mention was madeof 2nd Lieutenant dennis Chambers (Class of ‘33) who served in Burma in Queen Alexan-dra’s own Gurkha Rifles and was killed in action in 1943. History master Gary Brits was suitably dressed in WW2 military uniform and wearing the beltof another St Henry’s student, Cecil Boyd, who died in action in italy in 1945. Here Mr Britsshows Lt Chambers’ Gurkha Rifles’ sword to Grade 8 pupils Sydney van Voorst and TyresePillay. Grade 8 classes have been studying this period in history and a number came to theservice dressed as members of one or other of the armed forces.

Pope: Clergy don’t know everythingBy Cindy Wooden

POPE Francis has said that the Church’sministers—bishops, priests and dea-cons—must be aware of how merciful

and compassionate God has been with them,because such honesty makes them “humbleand understanding of others”.Recognising that his call “flows only from

God’s mercy and God’s heart” ensures that aminister “will never assume an authoritarianattitude, as if everyone were placed at hisfeet and as if the community were his prop-erty or personal kingdom,” Pope Francis said.“One does not become a bishop, priest or

deacon because he is more intelligent or bet-ter than others,” the pope said, “but only be-cause of a gift: God’s gift of love poured outby the power of the Holy Spirit for the goodof his people,” the pope said at a general au-dience in the Vatican.“Woe to a bishop, priest or deacon who

thinks he knows everything, who thinks healways has the right answer to every ques-

tion and thinks he does not need anyone,”the pope said.While bishops and priests are called to

“courageously safeguard” and share theteachings of the Church, they also mustrecognise that they “always have somethingto learn, even from those who may still befar from the faith and from the Church”.By working together, supporting one an-

other and examining questions together, theChurch’s ministers will demonstrate “a newattitude, one marked by sharing, co-respon-sibility and communion.”Quoting St Paul’s letters to Timothy and

to Titus, Pope Francis outlined the humanqualities a minister must have: “Acceptance,moderation, patience, meekness, trustwor-thiness and goodness of heart.”Those human qualities, he said, help the

Church’s ministers go out to meet otherswith the attitude of respect necessary for of-fering “a service and a witness that is trulyjoyful and credible”.—CNS

Page 2: SouthernCross · PDF fileThis month Spanish Claretian Father Pablo d’Ors, a consultant to thet Pontifical Council form Culture, was quoted as saying that he was

LOCAL2 The Southern Cross, november 19 to november 25, 2014

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STAFFRePoRTeR

ASOUTH African has been ap-pointed as a presidency coun-cillor of the worldwide

Secular Franciscan Order.Jenny Harrington from the Sa-

cred Heart Fra-ternity of theSecular Francis-can Order inJohannesburgwill be respon-sible for theUnited States,Canada andthe English-speaking coun-tries of Africa. The Secular

F r a n c i s c a nOrder’s general and elective chaptertook place in Assisi, Italy, thismonth. Hungarian Tibor Kauser isthe order’s new general minister. The new Presidency Council was

installed by taking possession of itsservice during a thanksgiving Eu-charist celebrated in the UpperBasilica of St Francis, with the TORgeneral minister, Fr Nicholas Polich-nowski, as its main celebrant. Mrs Harrington is from St

Charles’ parish in Victory Park, Jo-hannesburg.

Great honourfor SA woman

By STAFF RePoRTeR

SOUTH Africa’s only Catholicuniversity, St Augustine Collegein Johannesburg, is calling for

nominations for the post of presi-dent.The university says the post en-

tails “leading a South AfricanCatholic institution of higher educa-tion as it seeks to grow in studentnumbers and in the range of aca-demic degrees and diplomas offered.“The position of president is the

equivalent of rector/principal orvice-chancellor at a state universityand the incumbent should prefer-ably be a practising Catholic whohas embraced the Catholic intellec-tual tradition,” the university said.The candidate should hold an

earned doctorate and be suitablyqualified academically to lead thisseat of learning and be able to takecomprehensive responsibility forthe academic, administrative and fi-nancial activities of the university,“particularly fundraising”.The university’s president should

also be able to promote the growthof student enrolment, the expan-sion of its intellectual offerings, and

be able to promote the institutionand its place in wider tertiary edu-cation in South Africa.St Augustine College was estab-

lished in 1999 by a group of aca-demics and “other interestedpersons” who felt that the CatholicChurch in South Africa had a signif-icant contribution to make tohigher education.Its campus is in the tranquil sub-

urb of Victory Park, Johannesburg.The university currently offers

only post-graduate degrees. It plansto reintroduce a range of under-graduate degrees in the future.The board of directors is estab-

lishing a selection panel which willconsider candidates who meet theabove requirements.Nominations should be received

by January 31, 2015, and the newpresident should be able to com-mence duties by mid-2015.n Persons seeking to nominate a can-didate should obtain the candidate’sconsent, prepare a written motivation,and send the motivation and candi-date’s CV to Helen Hartwig, St Augus-tine College, PO Box 44782, Linden,2104. E-mail: [email protected]

St Augustineneeds new head

Twenty-four men gathered for a weekend in Hornlee, Knysna, to share theirexperiences of being a man in contemporary society. Members of the “Menfor Change Ministry” of St Mary Magdalene parish in Lentegeur, Cape Town,travelled to Knysna to facilitate the workshop. The workshop, organised bythe parish council of Knysna, was a follow-up to the SACBC national seminaron masculinity in 2013. Seen in the photo are the Knysna participants.

The parish church at Hermanus in the archdiocese of Cape Town held a 12-hour vigil of silent prayer from 8:00 to 20:00 before the Blessed Sacramentexposed, for the repose of the souls in purgatory, as part of their ongoingprayer during this month of prayer for the departed. A total of more than 50people came to the vigil. (Photo: duncan Ray)

FIVE charities, including Help theRural Child, are collaborating fora charity booksale in Ronde-

bosch, Cape Town, this weekend.There will be a wide range of

books in categories such as fiction,non-fiction, children’s, Africanaand cookery at the sale, held at StPaul’s Anglican church.On Friday evening, November

21, light snacks will be sold whenAndrew Brown, a Cape Town advo-cate and police reservist will be inconversation with Mary Bock abouthis new book, Devil’s Harvest.

Breakfast will be sold on Satur-day morning. Coffee, tea and juicesare available throughout the three-day sale. The sale will be open from14:00 to 20:30 on Friday, 8:30 to17:00 on Saturday and 9:00 to 13:00on Sunday.The sale is organised by St Paul’s

church, Help the Rural Child inMowbray (an initiative of theGoedgedacht Forum), Cafda Book-shop in Claremont, Marsh Memo-rial Homes in Rondebosch, and StGeorge’s cathedral second-handbookshop.

RADIO Veritas and St Benedict’sCollege in Bedfordview, Jo-hannesburg, will again co-host

a Christmas carol service, with As-sumption Convent in Malvern join-ing in the festivities. The choirs of both schools will

be collaborating in singing popularcarols. Scriptural readings by thestudents will tie the musical story ofChristmas together. The one-hour service will be held

on November 28 at 18:30 in StBenedict’s school hall. Tea and re-freshments will be served in theschool’s gazebo from 17:30.

In lieu of a ticket price, attendeesare asked to bring wrapped Christ-mas gifts, marked for a girl or a boy,and non-perishables for childrenwho are less fortunate. “We are very passionate about

giving back to society, which iswhat we are called to do,” said FrEmil Blaser OP, station director ofRadio Veritas. “Society sustains usand therefore we have the responsi-bility to take good care of societytoo.” n For more information contact Ma-hadi Buthelezi at [email protected] or 011 663 4700.

Choirs to sing for Advent

Charities to hold booksale in CTJenny Harrington

deborah Harris has been named asthe principal of de La Salle HolyCross College in Victory Park, Jo-hannesburg. isabel Hancock, amember of the school’s board ofgovernors, said the appointment ashead of the high school would be ef-fective as of January 1. Mary Hyamwill take on the duties of head-mistress of the junior school.”

Page 3: SouthernCross · PDF fileThis month Spanish Claretian Father Pablo d’Ors, a consultant to thet Pontifical Council form Culture, was quoted as saying that he was

LOCAL The Southern Cross, november 19 to november 25, 2014 3

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By STAFF RePoRTeR

THE bishops of Southern Africawill show their appreciationfor the contribution that the

religious have made in the regionby issuing a pastoral letter andholding two Eucharistic celebra-tions during their plenary sessionsnext year.Fr Grant Emmanuel, associate

general-secretary of the SouthernAfrican Catholic Bishops’ Confer-ence (SACBC), said the two celebra-

tions would be held in Gauteng andMariannhill, KwaZulu-Natal, tomark the Church’s Year of Conse-crated Life, which will run from No-vember 30 this year to February 2,2016.“The bishops want to show their

appreciation for the wonderful con-tribution that the religious havemade in our region, both spirituallyand socially,” said Fr Emmanuel.“They therefore have decided to

issue a pastoral letter reflectingthese sentiments, as well as to host

two Eucharistic celebrations to cel-ebrate with the religious.”Fr Emmanuel said Johannesburg

and Pretoria were tasked withpreparing for the Gauteng event,since the January plenary takesplace in Pretoria. The second ple-nary, in August, will be held in Mar-iannhill.All religious will be invited to

these events and will play an activerole in the celebration, said Fr Em-manuel.Each bishop in collaboration

with the religious working in hisdiocese will plan diocesan events tocelebrate the role that the religioushave played in the diocese.It is hoped that through all these

celebrations, greater awareness andappreciation for the religious lifewill be promoted and hopefullynurture the call to follow our Lordas a religious in our times.The Year of Consecrated Life will

have an evangelical focus, helpingpeople to recognise and celebratethe beauty of following Christ in

various types of religious vocations.Its purpose is to make grateful re-membrance of the past and to em-brace the future with hope.Each parish and religious com-

munity in the SACBC will launchthe year on the 1st Sunday of Ad-vent, November 30. The prayer forthe Year of Consecrated Life will besaid at all the region’s Masses thatweekend.Each diocese will organise cele-

brations, seminars, prayer days ac-cording to its customs.

Bishops to celebrate religious life

EVERY year Radio Veritas andthe Interdiocese CatholicChurch Choirs Music Associa-

tion (ICCCMA) stage a “Clash ofthe Choirs” in celebration of musicand life. This year, from November29-30, they will descend upon theMmabatho Civic Centre. The festival attracts over 3 500

choristers and supporters fromaround South Africa, Botswana,Swaziland, and as far as Uganda. Bishop Abel Gabuza of Kimbler-

ley and Mafikeng’s executive mayorLena Miga are scheduled to attend. The event will include an

HIV/Aids commemoration duringthe service on the final day. “This isn’t just another choir

competition, it’s a real celebrationand a chance to show off our God-given talents”, said ClementMenyuko of the ICCCMA. The best choirs will be awarded

across the board. For the first time,the Radio Veritas St Cecilia Award,for the patron saint of music, willbe awarded to the best conductor. n For more information contact AkaniMalobola at [email protected] or 011 663 4700.

By STAFF RePoRTeR

SOUTH Africa’s Catholics havebeen challenged to push theirboundaries and widen their mis-

sionary endeavours as the Churchseeks to move forward on a missionto “enlarge the space of its tent”.Sr Stephany Thiel said the reso-

lution was passed during the Johan-nesburg Archdiocese MissionaryCongress, held at St Benedict’s Col-lege in Bedfordview.“The aims of the congress were to

explore ways for us, the Church, tofulfil our vocation to proclaim thegospel and to move from mainte-nance to being on a mission,” said SrThiel. “We also aimed to celebrateour baptismal call together and totake back to our parishes the moti-vation to move forward.”The congress was attended by

representatives of 50 parishes in thearchdiocese of Johannesburg andwas inspired by God’s call throughthe prophet Isaiah to “Enlarge thespace of your tent” and to “Gomake disciples of all nations”.Sr Thiel said the congress ex-

pressed appreciation for the greatcontribution of foreign missionariesto the South African Church.“Congregations of men and

women have had an influence in

many spheres of life, including ed-ucation and the medical world,”she noted. “This impact of religiousand priests was not felt only in thepast, but is continuing in the pres-ent through people such as the var-ious speakers at the congress.”One resolution passed at the

congress was to promote supportfor the Comboni Missionaries’Marpuordit missionary project inSouthern Sudan, a hospital ward for

the “desperately needy” South Su-danese.Sr Thiel said one of the most sig-

nificant points that emerged at thecongress was a reaffirmation that“by virtue of their baptism” all themembers of the people of God aremissionary disciples and agentswho become actively engaged inevangelisation whatever their posi-tion in the Church.Lay speakers at the congress in-

cluded Beatrice Nkuna who an-swered a call to open her home toabandoned children and to give herlife to “bring Jesus’ love and com-passion to the lost children of thenation”.“In order to do this. Beatrice left

the job she had as an executivemarketing manager in the businessworld,” said Sr Thiel.Another speaker, Dillon Naicker,

found that his dream to become astar in the entertainment world—perhaps even get to Hollywood—left him feeling empty. “He experienced ‘a Paul mo-

ment’, a conversion to Christ,” saidSr Thiel. “He left his career to pur-sue his true career, his heart’s desire.A missionary was born. He is in full-time ministry as a youth leader,presently in Youth for Christ.”Adilia de Sousa, an associate of

the Scalabrini Sisters, felt a call fromGod to become involved in theministry of the sisters in their proj-ect Bienvenu Shelter which wel-comes, especially, refugee womenand children.“She responded to God’s call as a

woman, a mother and a granny.Her ministry is to welcome womenin need, accompany them throughdifficult times, and share the wordof God with them,” said Sr Thiel.

By dyLAn APPoLiS

THE family was at the centre of the seventh an-nual retreat for 31Grade 5-7s of Blessed Sacra-ment in Virginia, Durban. The retreat of the

catechetical EDGE programme took place atSkogheim, near Port Shepstone. “It included prayer, meditation and reflection

time, family-themed games, a movie, a teddy bearspicnic, the making of a family tree, Mass at thelocal parish, and a skit performed by the Edge Corewhich focused on God’s Word,” said MargaritaFuller of Virginia parish. “The feedback we received from the children

and parents has been very positive,” Mrs Fuller said.

Catholics called to ‘push boundaries’

Participants at the Johannesburg Archdiocese Missionary Congress, held atSt Benedict’s College in Bedfordview.

‘Clash ofChoirs’ forMafikeng

The children ofthe parish of theBlessed Sacra-ment at their an-nual retreat inSkogheim.

Durban retreat with EDGE

Page 4: SouthernCross · PDF fileThis month Spanish Claretian Father Pablo d’Ors, a consultant to thet Pontifical Council form Culture, was quoted as saying that he was

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Vatican’s new ’foreign minister’ from EnglandBy Cindy Wooden

POPE Francis has named the 60-year-old nuncio to Australia,Archbishop Paul Gallagher, to

be the Vatican’s new foreign minis-ter.The position, formally known as

the secretary for relations withstates, was held by French Arch-bishop Dominique Mamberti, whowas named the new prefect of theApostolic Signature, the Vatican’shighest court.Archbishop Gallagher, who was

born in Liverpool, England, will bethe first native English-speaker tohold the post.“I don’t think it is particularly

significant, though it does indicatethat the Holy See is continuing toundertake necessary innovations asthe true Catholic identity of theChurch is reflected in the curia,” hesaid.“Without passing judgment on

myself,” he said in an e-mail replyto questions, “I believe the criterionhas to be the right person for the

job irrespective of nationality. Thediplomatic service has long beentruly international, with membersfrom very many countries. Obvi-ously, the proportions tend to re-flect the size of a national Catholiccommunity and the number ofpriestly vocations, so there are biggroups of Vatican diplomats fromcertain countries and smallergroups like Great Britain.”Archbishop Gallagher, who had

been named nuncio to Australia byPope Benedict XVI in 2012, said heexpected to begin his new duties atthe Vatican in mid-January.In his first posting as a nuncio,

Pope John Paul II sent him to Bu-rundi in 2004 to replace ArchbishopMichael Courtney, who was gunneddown by unknown assailants. Thenuncio’s death in Burundi markedthe first time in the modern agethat a papal ambassador had beenassassinated.Known for his efforts to con-

tinue providing pastoral ministrywhile serving as nuncio in various

countries, Archbishop Gallaghersaid: “I think you have to hold onto a pastoral heart and see thingsfrom a pastoral perspective. It willbe necessary for me to rememberthat politics is ultimately about peo-ple and their lives.”He said he hoped to find ways to

provide pastoral ministry in Romeeven as he serves as the Vatican’sforeign minister.Ordained to the priesthood in

1977, he later earned a degree incanon law and studied at the Pon-

tifical Ecclesiastical Academy, whichtrains Vatican diplomats. He joinedthe Vatican’s diplomatic service in1984, serving in nunciatures in Tan-zania, Uruguay and the Philippines.He worked at the Vatican Secretariatof State from 1994 to 2000, focus-ing particularly on Southeast Asia.From 2009 to 2012, he served as

nuncio to Guatemala.Archbishop Mamberti, 62, had

been secretary for relations withstates since September 2006.Ordained to the priesthood in

1981, he holds degrees in civil andcanon law. As prefect of the Apostolic Signa-

ture, he succeeds US Cardinal Ray-mond Burke, 66, whom the popeappointed to a largely ceremonialpost of cardinal patron of theKnights and Dames of Malta.Cardinal Burke’s appointment,

seen by many as a “demotion”, hadbeen widely expected since an Ital-ian journalist reported it in Septem-ber, and the cardinal himselfconfirmed it to reporters the follow-

ing month.It is highly unusual for a pope to

remove an official of CardinalBurke’s stature and age without as-signing him comparable responsi-bilities elsewhere. A prominent devotee of the tra-

ditional liturgy and outspoken de-fender of traditional doctrine oncontroversial moral issues, CardinalBurke had appeared increasinglyout of step with the current pontif-icate.After Pope Francis invited Ger-

man Cardinal Walter Kasper to ad-dress a meeting of the world’scardinals in February, CardinalBurke emerged as a leading oppo-nent of Cardinal Kasper’s proposalto make it easier for divorced andcivilly remarried Catholics to re-ceive Communion.Cardinal Burke also warned that

efforts to streamline the marriageannulment process—the mandateof a commission that the pope es-tablished in August—should not un-dermine the process’ rigour.—CNS

Archbishop Paul Gallagher

Shock at sterilisation camp deathsBy AnTo AKKARA

THE Church in India has ex-pressed shock over the deaths ofmore than a dozen young moth-

ers in government-run sterilisationcamps in central Chhattisgarh state.“It is not enough to punish the

guilty responsible for this shockingtragedy. The systemic faults behindthis tragedy must be exposed and cor-rected,” said Archbishop PrakashMallavarapu, chairman of the healthcare commission of the Catholic Bish-ops’ Conference of India.While 13 of 83 poor village women

who underwent free government ster-ilisations at a private hospital in Bi-laspur this month died of subsequentmedical complications after beingsent home, local government officialssaid at least 20 more women were crit-

ical and were being treated in differ-ent hospitals.Following the national outcry over

the rising deaths from the botchedsurgery, police have registered crimi-nal charges against half a dozenhealth officials, including a seniordoctor who performed more than 80sterilisation surgeries, more than dou-ble the limit for one day.“What is the motive behind such

sterilisation camps? Is it for the needof the people or to meet the sterilisa-tion targets of the government?”Archbishop Mallavarapu asked.Recently, the federal government

doubled the incentive for such surger-ies from R100 to R230 for women andR180 to R330 for men, along withraising the incentive for governmenthealth workers to R40 each for bring-ing in “volunteers” for the surgery.

Bishop: After Gaza, Holy Land needs hopeBy MARK PATTiSon

THE 18 US bishops who con-ducted a 12-day prayer pil-grimage for peace in the Holy

Land in September came away withnew perspectives on the ongoingtensions in the Middle East, BishopOscar Cantu of Las Cruces, NewMexico, told the November meet-ing of the US episcopate in Balti-more.The message from the media in

the United States “seems to leanheavily on the side of pro-Israel”,Bishop Cantu said at a press con-ference. However, “on the ground,the injuries were primarily [com-mitted] on the side of the Israelis,”

Bishop Cantu said. “That certainlywas the truth that we witnessed.There were injustices on bothsides. But they were not parallel.”Bishop Cantu, in his remarks to

his fellow bishops, said, “We wentto pray for peace and to pray for atwo-state solution and an openand shared Jerusalem.” However,“arriving in the wake of the recentGaza war,” he said, “we encoun-tered pain, intransigence and cyn-icism.”He added, “Even young people

were discouraged. The rubble thatonce was their homes weighedheavily on them.”One sign of encouragement re-

ported by Bishop Cantu was the

delegation’s visit to BethlehemUniversity, which he billed as “theonly Catholic university in Israeland the occupied Palestinian terri-tories. The student body is 70%Muslim and 30% Christian. Theystudy together to create the futureof Palestine.”Bishop Cantu noted that “the

Christian community is emigratingat alarming rates”.“We know peace is possible,”

Bishop Cantu said, “because God isour hope.” But “after another Gazawar, hope is now in short supply.What is needed now is the trans-formation of human hearts, so thatone side’s hearts is less deaf to theconcerns of the other.”—CNS

Bishops edward Weisenburger and oscar Cantu of Las Cruces stand amidrubble from buildings destroyed in the bombing of Gaza, during a pilgrim-age to the Holy Land in September. (Photo: Matt McGarry, CRS)

Page 5: SouthernCross · PDF fileThis month Spanish Claretian Father Pablo d’Ors, a consultant to thet Pontifical Council form Culture, was quoted as saying that he was

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Continued from page 1reasoning which claims that women cannot be-come priests because Jesus was a man and be-cause he chose only men [as his apostles] is veryweak. That is a cultural consideration, not ametaphysical one.”Fr d’Ors said the “change is necessary” be-

cause to deny women the priesthood represents“an unacceptable discrimination”.He said that in preparing a report for a ple-

nary assembly of the Vatican’s Council for Cul-ture, titled “Women’s Cultures: Equality andDifference,” in February, he had spoken to manywomen, Christian and non-Christian alike, fromvarious social backgrounds, and that “all butone” were in favour of the ordination ofwomen.He acknowledged there are many in the

Church, priests and laity alike, who oppose sucha move, but argued that it would be a “sin” toresist this change because “life is a continualevolution”.Vatican spokesman Fr Federico Lombardi SJ

told The Irish Times that Fr d’Ors was not speak-ing on behalf of the Vatican on this occasion.

Vatican consultoron women priests

Why Francis is ‘thepope of surprises’

By PATRiCiA ZAPoR

POPE Francis is clearly “a popeof surprises”, according to Ger-man Cardinal Walter Kasper,

and those who would try to under-stand the pontiff should rememberhis Argentine roots and how theyinfluence his theology and hisworld view.The president emeritus of the

Pontifical Council for the Promo-tion of Christian Unity, CardinalKasper was at The Catholic Univer-sity of America in Washington toaccept the Johannes Quasten Medalfor Excellence in Scholarship andLeadership in Religious Studies.In a 45-minute address about the

pope’s ecclesiology and ecumenicalvision to a crowded hall that in-cluded many seminarians, CardinalKasper said that Pope Francis has,“succeeded in a short time inbrightening up the gloomy atmos-phere that had settled like mildewon the Church”.However, he acknowledged,

every pope has his “proponents andhis enemies”. Likewise, Pope Francishas his own detractors, the cardinalsaid. “What for some is the begin-ning of a new spring, is for others atemporary cold spell,” he said.Cardinal Kasper said Pope Fran-

cis “is the first pope to have grownup in a multicultural megalopolis inthe southern hemisphere”. Thatshaped him with some Europeaninfluences, but he also was stronglyaffected by Argentine culture, in-cluding its films and music.The cardinal compared the theo-

logical influences on Pope Franciswith those of his predecessor PopeBenedict XVI. Pope Benedict comesfrom the best European theologicaltraditions, seeking to put the doc-trine of the faith into practice.“Pope Francis works differently,”

Cardinal Kasper said, and not nec-essarily in the way in which he is

sometimes portrayed. “He’s not a Franciscan in dis-

guise; he’s a Jesuit, through andthrough.” That means, according tothe cardinal, that he begins with aconcrete situation and seeks to as-sess it according to the rules for dis-cernment drawn from the Ignatianspiritual exercises, before arriving ata concrete action or position.That method corresponds to the

approach of St John XXIII duringthe Second Vatican Council, “read-ing the signs of the times”.

Understanding Argentina’s vari-ant of liberation theology also

is instructive for those who wish tounderstand Pope Francis, the cardi-nal said.The same “see, judge, act” ap-

proach of the Jesuits describes Ar-gentine liberation theology,Cardinal Kasper said. While in other places in Latin

America, the approach focused onthe social and political conditionsthat led to societal inequality, some-times in a Marxist manner, “Argen-tinian liberation theology is atheology of the people and theirculture”.It proceeds from a historical and

cultural analysis of popular culture,in which people are unified byshared conscience, he said. “It doesnot want to instruct people, but lis-ten to their wisdom.”

Cardinal Kasper said the pope isa deeply spiritual man who is con-vinced that the light of the Gospelis the only thing that can help peo-ple fully understand and interpretreality.For Pope Francis, he said, “faith

is a light, but not like a lighthousewhich expels all dark, but a lightedtorch which guides our steps intothe night”.That insight helps to understand

how Pope Francis operates, from abasis of the Gospel as an instrumentof joy and of reform.“Pope Francis stands in a great

tradition,” Cardinal Kasper said.“He does not represent a liberal tra-dition, but a traditional position,”as in going back to the Gospels asthe source and strength of renewalfor the Church.“He does not represent a tradi-

tionalist or a progressive scheme,but builds a bridge back to the ori-gins. He has constructed a bridge tothe future.”Pope Francis doesn’t intend to

revolutionise faith and morality, as“he wants to lead faith and moralityback to their original centre”, to theheart of the Gospels, the cardinalsaid.Particularly through his constant

message of the need for mercy, PopeFrancis emphasises that, as StThomas Aquinas said, “God is notbound by our views of justice”, butonly to God’s own desires. “God al-lows himself to be moved by theneeds and sympathies of man.”Cardinal Kasper said another

message of Pope Francis is that it isimportant that the Church not beso self-centred.“A self-centred person is sick,”

Cardinal Kasper said. “A self-cen-tred Church is a sick Church.” PopeFrancis wants to leave behind theself-centred, self-pitying Churchimmersed in its own suffering, headded.—CNS

Pope on the kind ofpriests Church needs

By Cindy Wooden

THE Catholic Church needspriests who show their peoplethat being Christian is a life-

long journey toward holiness, ajourney that proceeds by servingGod and serving their brothers andsisters, Pope Francis has said.The Catholic Church cannot

“improvise” when it comes to train-ing such priests and supportingthem throughout their ministry,Pope Francis told the bishops ofItaly.“The formation we are talking

about is the experience of perma-nent discipleship, one which drawshim to Christ and helps him in-creasingly become like him,” thepope wrote in a message to thebishops who were meeting in Assisi.Pope Francis suggested that as

the bishops review and devise ongo-ing formation programmes for theirpriests, they keep in mind the manyholy priests who inspired andtaught them and who minister intheir dioceses in parishes, schools,hospitals and among the poor.

Without attachment to things ortheir own self-interest, he said, suchpriests demonstrate how “loweringthemselves and keeping nothingback is the path toward the heightswhich the Gospel calls love”.“Holy priests are forgiven sinners

and instruments of forgiveness.Their existence speaks the languageof patience and perseverance; theyare not ‘spiritual tourists’ eternallyundecided and unsatisfied becausethey know they are in the hands ofone who always keeps his promisesand whose providence ensures thatnothing can ever separate themfrom belonging to him,” he wrote.“The Church does not need cler-

ical priests whose behaviour risksalienating people from the Lord,nor does it need functionary priestswho, while fulfilling a role, seektheir consolation far from him,” thepope said.The experience of community or

at least of “priestly fraternity”, hesaid, is essential for ensuring that apriest does not become isolated andbegin thinking of himself as the“epicentre of everything”.—CNS

Priest convicted of bishop’s murderBy FRAnCiS nJUGUnA

ACATHOLIC priest was amongfive people found guilty andsentenced to death in Kenya

for the 2005 slaying of ItalianBishop Luigi Locati.As the eight-year trial concluded,

Judge Fred Ochieng described FrGuyo Waqo as the mastermind ofthe plot.The judge said he believed the

priest recruited Mohammed MoluBagajo, Adan Ibrahim Mohammed,Mahati Ali Halake and Diqa Wario

Mohammed to carry out the shoot-ing death of the 77-year-old bishopin July 2005 after a disagreementover cash donations to the Isioloapostolic vicariate which the bishopwas overseeing.A sixth co-defendant, Roba Balla

Bariche, was acquitted by JudgeOchieng, who said he “was not in-volved in the plot despite the factthat the gun used in the crime hadbeen obtained from him”.Judge Ochieng immediately im-

posed the death sentence on the de-fendants. But it is unlikely the

sentence will be carried out. Al-though capital punishment is notformally abolished, Kenya has notcarried out any executions since1987.The defendants’ attorney,

Ojwang Agina, told the court thatthey planned to appeal the deathsentence.Ordained a priest in 1952,

Bishop Locati arrived in Kenya in1963. He established the vicariate inIsiolo, 230km north of Nairobi, thatyear and was ordained a bishop in1996.—CNS

Pope Francis poses for a selfie with a mother and her child during hismeeting with members of the italian Adult Catholic Scouting Movement innervi Hall at the Vatican. (Photo: ePA/CnS via L’osservatore Romano)

Cardinal Kasper (Photo: CnS)

Page 6: SouthernCross · PDF fileThis month Spanish Claretian Father Pablo d’Ors, a consultant to thet Pontifical Council form Culture, was quoted as saying that he was

xdfnbsdfnsdfnbsdfnbsdn

Ordination rulesRESPONDING to the letter fromJames Boshell et al (November

5), is it an “unjust law” that onlymen can be ordained? The real issueis whether it is “‘of the Lord” thatonly men can be ordained. There is such a thing as fair and

unfair discrimination. That a person has a doctorate in

theology is no guarantee of beingright about something. How can undergoing an invalid

ordination and presenting oneselfas a “Catholic priest” be“prophetic”?I have no doubt that these

women are well intentioned, butthey are just plain wrong. They arein schism.Pope John Paul II in the apos-

tolic letter Ordinatio Sacerdotalis(1994) made it clear that theChurch has no authority to ordainwomen and ruled that the issue isnot open to debate.It is perhaps regrettable that

Church authority has to put a lidon free discussion of this question,but the popes have to preserve thepeace and unity of the wholeChurch which has members frommany cultures and mindsets. It ispart of being a Roman Catholic thatwe accept the authority of theBishop of Rome.If ever the Church does decide

that it does have the authority toordain women, it will be through avery long process, first to reach con-sensus and, thereafter, to preparethe whole Church for this change. The Church is not just one

among many other organisationsand institutions. It is a unique di-vine-human reality. Church author-ity is not just management and thepope is not just a CEO. His responsi-bility is not just to the “company”.

Ann Rooney, Gauteng

Why discard aChurch asset?IHAVE always been under the im-pression that if anyone is excom-municated, they have committed

the gravest of sins. So you can imag-ine my concern when I read thatthis was being done to a dedicatedservant of God. It would seem thatthe Church has lost all understand-ing of the real world. Dr Mary Ryan was ordained to

the priesthood in Volmoed chapeltowards the end of September. Ithought that your readers wouldlike to learn what Dr Ryan shared atthis joyous service by quoting herverbatim:“I am a married Catholic woman

who has long felt a call to priest-hood, but because my Church haslegislated that only celibate malesmay be ordained, I have been ex-cluded. After completing theologi-cal study and immersing myself indifferent aspects of educational andpastoral ministry, I encountered theRoman Catholic Woman Priestmovement, and two years agobegan a process of preparationwhich lead to my ordination at Vol-moed. “Volmoed has been a space of re-

treat and spiritual nourishmentever since my husband and I movedback to Cape Town in 2002, a placeof welcome and beauty, with its ec-umenical outreach and commit-ment to reconciliation andforgiveness. I find resonance withthe dimensions of my ministry assome called to participate in heal-ing and reconciling of differencesthat have long been wounds in ourcountry and in our Church.”Can someone please explain how

the Church can summarily discardsuch a highly educated and dedi-cated member of their community?

Owen Gush, Cape Town

Nun rememberedIWAS saddened to hear in yourobituary (October 29) of the pass-ing of Dominican Sister FrancesEmke, a beautiful soul, and gratefultoo that my road of life crossedhers, when she was in her 50s and Iin my 30s. I had the privilege of working

alongside her for a mere two yearsat the Marymount Maternity Hos-pital in the premature baby unit asa nursing sister.It was a pity we were transferred

to Cape Town as I would have lovedto stay on. I was not a Catholic atthat stage; I converted when I was40 years old.Sr Frances never tried to con-

vince me to change my religion, shejust showed me what it was like tobe truly Christian. I loved to hear the Sisters chant-

ing the Divine Office at Mary-mount. Once when I was veryworried about my father's health wewent into the chapel and knelt to-gether and prayed for his recovery.It was like a weight falling off myshoulders. I just knew he would bewell again.We kept in contact for a few

years and I treasured her letters.Thank you, Sr Carmen Brokamp,

for the obituary. May Sr Frances’beautiful soul rest in peace.

Jenny Daly, Knysna

Living rosaryTHANK you very much for pub-lishing Michael Shackleton’s

sympathetic review of my bookletThe Living Rosary (November 5). Readers whose interest may have

been aroused can order the bookletat R20 from Pauline Books & Mediaat [email protected] orphone 011 622 5195 or fax 011 6167153, or buy it at the Pauline book-shop in Johannesburg or otherCatholic bookshops.Ideally, it is also on sale in parish

repositories (if not, perhaps theymight be nudged into ordering asupply from the Paulines). Bishop Hubert Bucher Emeritus

of Bethlehem

LEADER PAGE6 The Southern Cross, november 19 to november 25, 2014

The Editor reserves the right to shorten or edit published letters. Letters below 300 words receive pref-erence. Pseudonyms are acceptable only under special circumstances and at the Editor’s discretion.Name and address of the writer must be supplied. No anonymous letter will be considered.

LETTERS TOTHE EDITOR

Editor: Günther Simmermacher

The historical Jesus

opinions expressed in The SouthernCross, especially in Letters to the editor,do not necessarily reflect the views of theeditor or staff of the newspaper, or of theCatholic hierarchy. The letters page in par-ticular is a forum in which readers may ex-change opinions on matters of debate.Letters must not be understood to neces-sarily reflect the teachings, disciplines orpolicies of the Church accurately.

Letters can be sent to PO Box 2372,Cape Town 8000 or [email protected]

or faxed to 021 465-3850

CATHOLICS will be exasper-ated by the periodic claimsby experts, many of them

self-proclaimed, that Jesus didnot exist or that “new findings”reveal some controversy or otherabout him.Christians are regularly con-

fronted with all manner of “newevidence” that supposedly com-promises the credibility of theGospel. While much research on the

historical Christ, even when it iscritical, is undertaken with aca-demic integrity and sincerity, thenew “revelations” which we re-ceive in the media tend to be sen-sationalistic, disingenuous,ignorant and malicious. Often these “revelations” refer

to documents that are describedas long-lost. Usually they wereneither long-lost nor credible inthe first place.This month the English Daily

Mail proclaimed the startling rev-elation that a long-lost, 1 500-year-old “gospel” claims thatJesus married Mary Magdalene,with whom he had two children.“If true,” the Daily Mail

breathlessly declared, “thiswould make it the greatest reve-lation into the life of Jesus innearly 2 000 years.”It is not true, of course. The

potential world-changing discov-ery turned out to be an ancientJewish novel titled Joseph andAseneth, which was never “lost”but was subjected to a fancifulreinterpretation by people whohad a book to write.Many a book deal is to be had

for authors who dispute thegospel account of Jesus, nevermind his divinity. Often theirline of argument centres onpagan myths which they claimwere used to create a Christ fig-ure.They may also raise arguments

such as the absence of legal docu-ments or references to Jesus innon-Christian, non-Jewish litera-ture—a cunning exclusion indeed.Some absurdly suggest that the ab-sence of biographical details in thePauline letters provides evidencethat the man St Paul writes aboutwas an invention. Such scholars are on the fringe

in the study of the historicalJesus, and tend to work towardsan agenda. Serious scholarshipmight disagree over the extent towhich gospels and tradition por-tray Jesus of Nazareth accurately,but there is an academic consen-

sus that the man Jesus existed. The weight of documentation

of Jesus’ existence—if one doesnot exclude Christian and Jewishsources and accepts historical ref-erences such as that of the first-century historian JosephusFlavius—is substantial. Asidefrom the canonical gospels thereare several books by early Chris-tians which were not included inthe New Testament. It would bean impressive deception if all ofthese writers fell for a hoax.But the most compelling argu-

ment that there not only was aman called Jesus of Nazareth, butthat he also inspired a followingwhich grew even after his death,resides in the fact that peoplewere willing to lay down theirlives as his disciples—even inJerusalem, within living memoryof Jesus’ execution—withouthaving prospects of material ben-efit from perpetuating a fraud.Indeed, if the story of Jesus of

Nazareth was pure invention, itwould be a spectacular, uniqueand unlikely swindle. That notwithstanding, the

sincerely conducted inquest intoJesus’ actual existence is a validacademic exercise. In the game ofhard evidence, the sceptics asksome difficult questions. It is also valid to debate,

within the setting of scholarship,whether Jesus was all that theNew Testament claims him to beor to what extent the gospels arebiographically reliable. The latter debates, which chal-

lenge a too literal reading of thebiblical narrative, can serve to en-rich our understanding of thefaith. Bible study can be enhancedby the interrogation of thegospels: the meaning of Jesus’ pro-nouncements and actions, the lit-erary symbolisms the evangelistsapplied to drive home a point tohis audience, and so on. A better understanding of the

historical Christ and the textswritten about him can bring uscloser to him and provide uswith a more intimate under-standing of his mission. As Christians, we accept the

word of first-century witnesses—those who recorded the gospelsand the Acts of the Apostles—that Jesus was the Christ, and in-vest in their testimony a faithwhich by definition requires noproof. Sensationalistic, disingen-uous, ignorant and malicious“revelations” should not shakeus in that faith.

YOUR edition of November 5 wasfull of very interesting reading.

The editorial highlights the factthat many pioneers in the field ofscience were either Catholic clergyor laity. It is interesting to note thatBl Nicolas Steno was originally aLutheran.Living in Denmark, Bl Steno first

studied anatomy, at which he ex-celled. He then left Denmark andended up in Florence where he wasappointed physician to the duke ofFlorence. Whilst dissecting a shark,he realised what fossilised shark’s

teeth actually were, not “tonguestones” that had fallen from thesky, as people thought in that era,the 17th century.From a palaeontological and ge-

ological perspective, people in thatera could not understand how seashells could be found on mountaintops, many of them fossilised andencased in rocks. Steno solved theproblem by realising firstly thatmountains had not always beenmountains, and secondly thatresidue had covered the sea shellsover time and then solidified.

Bl Steno then converted toCatholicism. He later gave up hisscientific studies and entered thepriesthood. He was appointed firstvicar apostolic for the Nordic Mis-sions and then auxiliary bishop ofMünster, Germany, living a very as-cetic life. He was unhappy beingbishop and requested being givennormal duties as a parish priest.This was duly granted and he diedshortly after at the age of 48.Bl Steno’s cause for sainthood

was brought about in 1938 and hewas beatified by Pope John-Paul IIin 1988.

Patrick Dacey, Johannesburg

Bl Nicolas Steno: a fossils pioneer

THE JOURNEYS OF A LIFETIME!

Contact gail at 076 352 3809 or 021 551 [email protected] • fowlertours.co.za

Holy Land & JordanLed by Fr Stefan Hippler

9 to 21 August 2015

Holy Land & RomeLed by Fr Brian Mhlanga OP

30 Aug to 10 Sept 2015

Jo’burg AD NewsPilgrimage

Holy Land & CairoFr Patrick Maselwane OMI

7 to 17 October 2015

Page 7: SouthernCross · PDF fileThis month Spanish Claretian Father Pablo d’Ors, a consultant to thet Pontifical Council form Culture, was quoted as saying that he was

ASPECIAL ecumenical vocation wasborn when a French priest met anAnglican aristocrat on a Portuguese

island.Fernand Portal was born in 1855 in

France. At 25 he became a Vincentianpriest, with the intention of going to Chinaas missionary. For reasons of health he wasrather retained to teach in a major semi-nary.A bout of tuberculosis in 1890 brought

him to the island of Madeira, where he metCharles Wood, 2nd Viscount Halifax, pres-ident of the English Church Union, a soci-ety dedicated to the promotion of Catholicprinciples and practices within the Churchof England. Their friendship, rooted in mutual un-

derstanding and respect, would soon fosterdialogue, giving birth to the desire to worktowards union between the Catholic andthe Anglican Churches. Bishop Jean Calvet, who was a seminar-

ian at Cahors when Abbé Portal was supe-rior, testified: “We were absolutely amazed…when we

saw [Lord Halifax] in the chapel...followingthe liturgy with a missal—Roman, obvi-ously—kneeling down and making thesign of the cross. This got our brains work-ing feverishly. After all, this man was aheretic! … He was attending Mass with ob-vious fervour; he therefore believed in theMass!”Abbé Portal and Lord Halifax organised

debates between Catholics and Anglicanson the question of Anglican orders asmeans of bringing the hierarchies of thetwo Churches together. Indeed, there was excitement when a

pontifical commission met in Rome withthe aim of studying the Anglican Orders ingreater depth. Lord Halifax and other An-glicans were hopeful that with Pope LeoXIII as bishop of Rome there would be ahappy outcome. But the result was a kickin their teeth. The pope concluded: “Therefore adher-

ing entirely to the decrees of the pontiffs,our predecessors on this subject, and fullyratifying and renewing them by our au-

thority, on our own initiative and with cer-tain knowledge, we pronounce and declarethat ordinations performed according tothe Anglican rite have been and are com-pletely null and void” (Apostolicae Curae36).Needless to say, the Anglicans were

deeply disappointed. Abbé Portal, no lessdisenchanted, soothed Halifax with thesewords: “The future is with the peaceful.What you and your group have done forthe reunion of Christianity will be to theeternal glory of the Anglican Church. Youhave shown perfect loyalty and generosity.” Then he added confidently, this time

with a tinge of prophecy: “In nature noth-ing gets lost; this is even more true in therealm of the supernatural. A single act oflove is more effective in producing infinitereverberations than the displacement of anatom. How many acts of love towards OurLord and the Holy Church have not youand your friends made. Sooner or later theentire Church will be shaken. Let us not getdiscouraged, my dear friend.”

Aman with an open spirit such as AbbéPortal just could not yield to discour-

agement. He quickly attracted Catholicsand non-Catholic into a study circle thattreated various issues. He also founded thejournal La Revue Catholique des Eglises inwhich he published the works of the studycircle. But another dampener was forthcom-

ing, this time from Pope Leo’s successor,

Pius X. Accused of modernism, Abbé Por-tal was taken out of the seminary and de-finitively banned from publishing orspeaking in public.Despite all setbacks, Abbé Portal and

Lord Halifax were determined to forgeahead. Through the help of Cardinal Mercier,

archbishop of Malines, the two managed toobtain the approval of Rome to organisemeetings of Anglican and Catholic theolo-gians in Malines, giving rise to the “Ma-lines Conversations”. Thus dialogue wasre-established, but before it could bear fruittragedy struck.Their sponsor Cardinal Mercier died on

January 23, 1926, and in June that yearAbbé Portal died also. The ecumenical flame was dimmed. It

would take several years before Vatican II,the meetings between Pope Paul VI and theArchbishop Michael Ramsey of Canter-bury, as well as Pope John Paul II’s visit toEngland in 1982, to revive the vision ofAbbé Portal and Lord Halifax. For Abbé Portal and Lord Halifax, who

died in 1934 at 95, the Church is universalwith no fixed borders; its borders mustconstantly be pushed further out in orderto embrace new members. Both saw OneHoly Catholic and Apostolic Church thatrises above the distortion of the denomina-tional divisions.Abbé Portal leaves us with this legacy:

“The union of the Churches cannot, infact, be achieved except by real apostles, inother words men of faith using spiritualmeans first of all: prayer, which is thesource of grace; charity, which gives under-standing of persons, even those fromwhom we are separated; humility, whichleads us to accept our defects and ourfaults. “There, it seems to me, we have the es-

sential elements of all action in favour ofunion.”n This month the US bishops formally en-dorsed the sainthood cause of Fr Wattson.

A Catholic-Anglican bond

Abbé Fernand Portal in 1881 (left) and LordHalifax

WHILEworking on training materialfor a communications course re-cently, I was reminded of some-

thing one of our teachers told us way backin Grade 9 (or Standard 7). In class we were discussing the issue of

calling people names and the hurt causedby our words. Our teacher told us that onecan never take back the spoken word. AndI have never forgotten that advice.My dad used to tell us to remember al-

ways that “sticks and stones may breakyour bones, but words can never hurt you”.But I remember being very hurt by thewords of children in my neighbourhood. As a child I was very timid and thin, and

children had all kinds of names to callme—so much so that I feared walking pastcertain children’s homes on my way to theshop because I dreaded them spotting meand calling me names. It hurt me terriblyat the time. Once my mom went with me to one of

the children’s homes to speak to her par-ents about her calling me names, and I re-member her mother being very dismissiveand saying to my mom: “Ag, she didn’tmean to hurt your daughter.” It’s interesting how often people are dis-

missive of the power of our words. “Oh,she was just teasing”, or “He didn’t reallymean it”, or even “Maybe you are too sen-sitive”—these are phrases frequently usedto explain away hurtful words.A few weeks ago, I was reminded of just

how much words can hurt when I spoke toa woman in one of our training workshopswho shared that during an argument with

a friend of hers many years ago, the friendhad said to her: “I regret that I ever metyou.” For a short while thereafter theirfriendship ceased, but they became friendsagain and have remained so ever since. Now, many years later, she realises that

those words, and the hurtful feeling, havealways stayed with her. She has never for-gotten it. She says she does not know whether her

friend remembers saying those words toher, but she has decided to bury it and notbring it up now, nearly 15 years later. Whether this remark was deliberately

malicious or just thoughtless, its effect hasnot gone away. Words that hurt people canstay with them for a lifetime.Earlier this year, Pope Francis spoke

about how we should speak to and aboutour brothers and sisters. The pope said: “Inour day we think that ‘not killing our

brother’ means simply not actually mur-dering him—but no. Not killing ourbrother means not [even] insulting him,the insult comes from the same root of thecrime: hatred.” During arguments or times of high emo-

tions, when it is so easy to say hurtful thingsto one another, we ought to remember thecounsel of the Sufi mystic Rumi: “Clam upyour mouth and be silent like an oystershell, for that tongue of yours is the enemyof the soul, my friend. When the lips aresilent, the heart has a hundred tongues.” Proverbs 16 reminds us that gracious

words are like a honeycomb, sweetness tothe soul and health to the body. A soft an-swer turns away wrath, but a harsh wordstirs up anger.How beautiful does this sound, but how

difficult it is to always remember and ac-complish. Soft and gracious words can bespoken only from our heart, where Goddwells. Hurtful things are spoken from aplace of hatred.In her novel Salem Falls, Jodi Picoult

says: “Words are like eggs dropped fromgreat heights; you can no more call themback than ignore the mess they leave whenthey fall.” And so, my dear beloved Standard 7

teacher had it right all those years ago:“You cannot take back the spoken word.”With that in mind, let us keep our wordssweet.

Keep your words sweetPERSPECTIVES The Southern Cross, november 19 to november 25, 2014 7

Fr Evans Chama M.AfrSaints of Christian Unity

Judith TurnerFaith and Life

What sort of kingis Our Lord?

POPE Pius XI instituted the feast of Christ theKing, this year on November 23, in 1925. Yettoday our people of different tongues and cul-

ture fail to comprehend this kingship.How do we make sense of the paradox and mys-

tery of a king who reigns over the hearts of menfrom a criminal’s cross, and disturbs the entire so-cial order by proclaiming that the very poor anddowntrodden, the prostitutes and sinners, wouldpossess the kingdom ahead of the pious learnedwho professed, taught and lived the Jewish law tothe letter. What kind of king publicly asks his followers to

be “like little children” in order to enter his king-dom; to sell all their possessions, renounce theworld and suffer? A king who asked his people todie to self in order to live forever, who even daredto preach that all men were equal; that we were toforgive the unforgiveable and love the enemy andthe unlovable! Then came his illogical declaration that we

should eat his body and drink his blood in orderthat he may live in us and we in him. No earthlyking ever made such preposterous demands.Yet this king also spoke of love and tenderness,

of justice, truth and peace.He told Pontius Pilate that his kingdom was “not

of this world”. How could it be when he alsoclaimed that the “kingdom of God is among you”and even “within you”. That was, of course, the very core of Jesus’

preaching.Jesus came to establish the kingdom of heaven

here on earth, not only in the spiritual but also thesocial domain for this song of the kingdom wasmeant to be sung within and among us in the verymoral fibre of our daily Christian living. He speaks of the kingdom as past, present and

future for it is an eternal kingdom, beyond all time.It is already and not yet here, simply because

man has delayed it by preferring his own will to thedivine. It is to be fully established and finally tri-umphant only when man submits to the will ofChrist, for only then will he have absolute domin-ion over all his subjects. In the perfect prayer, Jesus prays that “thy king-

dom may come, that thy will may be done on earthas it is done in heaven”. For, surely, this remarkablekingdom is with us, among us and in us only whenwe submit to his will and surrender to his rule andlordship over us, and when he is glorified in all thatwe do. From the psalms, the prophets and the teaching

of the master, we are left in no doubt that here isan eternal kingdom portrayed, as is with all spiri-tual realities, in human imagery. Jesus offered certain human images to display

the mysteries of the kingdom by speaking in para-bles. His miracles were “signs” of the kingdom. Hecame to rule over the hearts and minds of his sub-jects, but also to heal the ill and wounded—andeven death. His glorious resurrection was a sign ofthe ultimate triumph of his kingdom.On the other hand, there are those whose decla-

ration we hear even in our age: “We have no king,only Caesar!” We are fully aware that Christ’s kingdom does

not reign over all the earth. Satan reigns where heis given permission to rule—where there is corrup-tion, injustice, greed, drug and alcohol abuse,racism, gangsterism, religious persecution, exploita-tion of the weak, human trafficking and so on.The kingdom of God is here to upset and reverse

the whole social order; it must dictate a new vision,a new social perspective, a cry for truth and justiceand mercy among us—without which peace is im-possible. This is the Church’s mission in this world, and

every Christian has a part to play, for every act oflove, respect and justice will be building a new so-cial order, beginning with the family and affirmingthe basic right to life itself. Just as a mustard seed is tiny and has yet to grow

into a mighty tree, so the kingdom is already withus and yet not fully accomplished until we Chris-tians hear the call to live the life of the kingdom.

Fr Ralph de HahnPoint of Reflection

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Hurtful words may be forgiven, but they can’tbe taken back. (Photo; morguefile.com)

Page 8: SouthernCross · PDF fileThis month Spanish Claretian Father Pablo d’Ors, a consultant to thet Pontifical Council form Culture, was quoted as saying that he was

COMMUNITY8 The Southern Cross, november 19 to november 25, 2014

Peterose Wolde and eden endale of Addis Ababa, ethiopia, were married at St Anthony’sparish in Randfontein, Johannesburg. Frs Jude nnorom CSSp and Melese Tumato ShulaMCCJ presided. The wedding celebration was held at Fort Beaufort community hall, withdeacon Anthony Ventel and evangelist Hailu Adalo presiding.

The Catholic Men’s Association (CMA) of Sacred Heart parish in Ackerville, Witbank diocese, and theMost Holy Trinity parish (including outstations) in Tzaneen diocese, held two bilateral discussions atSacred Heart parish. The men of both CMAs are pictured together. The CMA’s patron saint is StJoseph and their motto is “Faith! Action! Knowledge!”.

St Raphael’s choir from Khayelitsha in Cape Town took part in the Xhosa festival of thearchdiocese of Cape Town held at St Monica’s parish in Lwandle, Strand.

The children of St Martin de Porres parish in Lavistown, Cape Town, received their first Holy Com-munion. They are pictured with Fr John d’Souza, deacons Arthur Arries, Terry okkers, eddie Hansenand catechist Agnes Julie.

Brescia House School handed over three wheelchairs to Little eden, a home for se-verely intellectually and physically disabled children and adults, in edenvale, Johan-nesburg. The wheelchairs each had a story: one was donated by a Grade 8 pupil whohas overcome many physical challenges of her own. The second was donated by aBrescia House School family on the death of a family member. The third was earned bythe school body, who collected plastic bottle tops and bread tags for the eco-committeeand Junior School earth Keepers Group. These bottle tops and tags were handed overto interwaste, who then donated a wheelchair to Brescia House School for Little eden. (From left) L norman (head of counselling and community outreach), Mary Hyams ofLittle eden, Grade 6 pupils Tatenda Mudzana and Genevieve Michael, and K vanCrombrugge, eco-schools coordinator.

Four Holy Cross sisters made their First Profession at St Charles parish in Victory Park, Johannesburg.(From left) Sr Beatrix eita from namibia, provincial leader Sr Monica Madyembwa, Sr Vimbai Majajaand Sr Connie Torevei from Zimbabwe, administrator of Christ the King cathedral Fr Thabo Motshegoa,Sr nomfundo Mani and novice directress Sr Theresa Mafuta. (Photo: Sr Maureen Rooney HC)

Frail/assisted care in shared or single rooms.

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NOAH OLD AGE HOMES

St dominic’sPriory School in

Port elizabethwas again rep-resented at the

annual Remem-brance day

Parade at theWalmer Ceno-taph. This year

the outgoinghead boy and

girl, SimonMowatt and

Michela Wells,laid a wreath on

behalf of theschool’s staff

and pupils. onnovember 11 at11:00 the sound

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Page 9: SouthernCross · PDF fileThis month Spanish Claretian Father Pablo d’Ors, a consultant to thet Pontifical Council form Culture, was quoted as saying that he was

FAITH The Southern Cross, november 19 to november 25, 2014 9

FIFTY years ago, during the Sec-ond Vatican Council, theChurch adopted the text Lumen

Gentium (1964), the Dogmatic Con-stitution of the Church. It emphasised the universal call

of all Christians—ordained andlay—to holiness, called for Chris-tian unity and introduced a form ofChurch government which stresseda combination of collegiality—gov-ernance by all the bishops—andpapal supremacy. As we look back to its adoption,

we see today many of its fruits—notleast in the first phase of the Synodon the Family last month—as wellas many promises and a few chal-lenges.The three main themes in the

text should be seen as intercon-nected. The universal call to holi-ness cannot but feed into the callfor Christian unity: the ancient for-mulae of the Church as “one, holy,catholic and apostolic” in theCreeds are not options on a menubut a definition of what we reallyshould be. One cannot really talk of holi-

ness while the scandal of disunitypersists. Holiness is both piety andwholeness, after all. Similarly the principle of episco-

pal collegiality “with and neverwithout” the Bishop of Rome isboth a sign of the unity in diversityfor which we strive and a source ofchallenge to Christian unity, onwhich so much of the call to holi-ness stands or falls.Many years ago, a book titled

Bishops–But What Kind?, a collec-tion of essays by Catholic, Ortho-dox, Anglican and Protestantscholars, examined different under-standings of the role of bishops inChristianity. It argued for the necessity and

importance of the ministry of epis-copos—the “overseer”—for theChristian tradition, but noted thatthe episcopate, or ministry ofbishop, had a long and complexhistory of development traceableback to the Apostles. There was a shift, the authors ar-

gued, from directly elected over-

seers, through locally appointedbishops confirmed by the pope, todirect papal appointments.What held bishops together was

a common faith and commitmentto serve as leaders of the localChurch, bonded in communionwith each other and the pope, whoenjoyed a primacy of honourrooted in the tradition that St Peterhad been bishop of Rome. The bishop had authority in his

own diocese. Bishops resolved localissues locally, while councils of theChurch brought them together toaddress broader doctrinal questions. This collegiality was weakened

by the 11th-century schism that ledto what we call today Eastern Or-thodoxy and was further damagedby the Reformation. With the expansion of Catholi-

cism to mission territories aroundthe world, episcopal appointmentswere centralised on Rome, thoughonly in the 1917 Code of CanonLaw was it made the general norm(with a few exceptions) that thepope appointed bishops.At the First Vatican Council

(1869-70) the authority of the pa-pacy was strengthened, not least bythe declaration of limited papal in-fallibility. Where previously doctri-nal issues had been resolved bycouncils of the Church or by indi-vidual bishops seeking the expertadvice of theologians, now doctri-nal and administrative authoritywas centred on Rome.

During Vatican II, this centralis-ing tendency was challenged by

the majority of bishops, some ofwhom even toyed with the idea ofconciliarism—the supremacy of auniversal Church council over thepope. What emerged from the de-bate, Lumen Gentium, was a compro-mise document that could be readat least two ways. Supporters of supreme papal au-

thority objected to an earlier draftwhich they felt gave the assemblyof bishops (the collegium) authorityover the pope. As a result the finaltext stated that the Church wasgoverned by all the bishops to-gether with and never without thepope, while giving the pope exten-sive ordinary governance over thewhole Church. In the wake of Vatican II, succes-

sive popes tended to emphasise thelatter over the former. Given the re-tention of direct papal appointmentof bishops, it has been suggested,with some justification, that manynew appointments were of bishopsmore sympathetic to papal su-premacy over collegiality.

A recent book, How Can thePetrine Ministry Be a Service to theUnity of the Universal Church? (onceagain by an ecumenical collectionof scholars) ably demonstrates thatthe question has major significancefor Christian unity. With varyingdegrees of sympathy for the papacy,the Catholic, Orthodox and Protes-tant theologians all agree: thePetrine ministry is es-sential to any genuineand lasting Churchunity. The problem isin how this ministry isexercised.Quite simply, Or-

thodox and Protestantscholars cannot acceptthe kind of highly cen-tralised structure of theCatholic Church underthe pope. Some see itas a historical accidentthat breaks with thelonger tradition. Orthodox theologians in partic-

ular (whom we see as theologicallyclosest to us), while accepting papalprimacy of honour, cannot accepteither the idea of direct papal ap-pointment of bishops or the notionof papal infallibility exercised out-side a Church council.Yet Lumen Gentium, in emphasis-

ing collegiality, points towards aprocess that makes growth towardsunity at least possible. The recogni-tion of other Christian churches as“separated brethren”, as the councilin general and Lumen Gentium inparticular described them, makesthe struggle for unity desirable, as I

would argue does the universal callto holiness.The universal call to holiness it-

self should not be seen simply as akind of pious exhortation but aspart of the wider renewal of theChurch. It firmly set aside any false im-

pressions Catholics had that theChurch comprised two streams, a

“professionally holy”class (bishops, priests,religious men andwomen) and the“rest” (the laity). Allwere called to be“whole” Christians.It’s a point that was

reiterated time andagain in the otherdocuments of theCouncil: renewed in-terest in Scripture andrevelation, participa-tion (as opposed toobservation) in the

liturgy, renewal of priestly, religiousand family life, theological educa-tion and the promotion of justice inthe world.

Inevitably the call to holiness andrenewal had a tremendous impacton everyone willing to engage withit. Committed laity took it up—reading the Bible, studying theol-ogy, taking responsibility forcatechesis and leadership in thelocal church and society, renewedinvolvement in spirituality, notleast in the Charismatic Renewal. Inevitably, too, this had an im-

pact on other areas, notably the

drive towards Christian unity andcollegiality.As they read the Bible, got in-

volved in prayer groups and workedfor social justice, lay Catholics,bishops, clergy and religious foundthemselves working with non-Catholics, with whom they foundmuch common ground. And infinding common ground, they builtup a grassroots (if sometimes hap-hazard) ecumenism that drew manyof them to seek greater Christianunity. In exercising their particular

ministries, many too found them-selves actively collaborating withclergy and religious, bringing newinsights to the Church through a di-alogue in life. Though boundariesof leadership and teaching author-ity remained, a sense—perhapsmore accurately an expectation—was created of a kind of collegialityin common faith. Of course this new sense of col-

legiality in holiness and grassrootsecumenism led to many complica-tions. Some were disappointedwhen the sense of collegiality didnot go what they perceived was farenough. Others found the changesin the Church distressing, a shatter-ing of long-held identities and prac-tices. The latter welcomed the reining

in of the “democratising” tenden-cies and the restoration of a moreconservative theology and practicein the late 1970s. The “progres-sives” reacted against what hassometimes been called the “reformof the reform”.What seems clear, however, is

that a return to a status quo beforethe Vatican II, before Lumen Gen-tium, is impossible. Understanding and taking on

the universal call to holiness, if it isto be more than piety, means thatlaity must have a voice in theChurch. This voice echoes the needfor unity in diversity that episcopalcollegiality presumes. And resolvingthe tensions inherent between epis-copal collegiality and papal leader-ship—the Petrine office—is crucialto attain the Christian unity thecouncil, and the Creed, calls for.This is the Church that Pope

Francis has inherited. His style ofleadership, epitomised in the recentsynod meeting, seems to be tryingto redefine once again Lumen Gen-tium’s collegiality in the light of hisclear belief in dialogue and the ho-liness he sees in everyone—includ-ing those outside the CatholicChurch. n Fr Anthony Egan SJ is a member ofthe Jesuit Institute in Johannesburg.

Fifty years ago, on No-vember 21, 1964, the bish-ops at Vatican II approveda document that changedthe Catholic Church. FRAnTHony eGAn SJ looksat the impact of LumenGentium.

50 years on, a call to holiness still echoes

Pope Paul Vi presides over a meeting of the Second Vatican Council inSt Peter’s basilica. november 21 will mark the 50th anniversary of thecouncil’s adoption of the dogmatic constitution of the Church, LumenGentium (“Light of the nations”). (Photo: Catholic Press Photo/CnS)

Taking on theuniversal call to

holiness, if it is tobe more than

piety, means thatlaity must have a

voice in theChurch.

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Page 10: SouthernCross · PDF fileThis month Spanish Claretian Father Pablo d’Ors, a consultant to thet Pontifical Council form Culture, was quoted as saying that he was

PILGRIMAGE10 The Southern Cross, november 19 to november 25, 2014

PARIS means all sorts of differ-ent things to different people.The city of love, of course. The

world’s fashion capital. The greatestconcentration of art anywhere. Thesetting of some of the greatestworks of literature and cinema. Thelandmarks of Eiffel Tower and theChamps Elysées.And then there is Catholic Paris.

For all the separation of state andchurch, and for every revolution’sassault on the faith, its spirit per-vades the great city.It is there in the neighbourhoods

named after saints—Saint-Germain,Saint-Denis, Montmarte (Mount ofthe Martyr, St Denis)—and in thetitle of the city’s most famous ceme-tery, the Cimetiere du Père-Lachaise, named after Fr François dela Chaise (1624–1709), confessor toLouis XIV, the Sun King.And the city’s Catholicism is

most evident in its many greatchurches: the Sacré-Cœur basilicaand Sainte-Trinité in Montmartre;

Saint-Séverin and Saint-Étienne-du-Mont, on the steps of which onewill find students from the nearbySorbonne University, in the LatinQuarter; the church of Saint-Louis-des-Invalides, next to Napoleon’stomb, and Saint-Eustache near theLouvre; Saint-Sulpice and Saint-Ger-main-des-Prés on the Left Bank; thestained glass extravaganza that isSainte-Chapelle on the Île de laCité, and nearby the great cathedralof Notre Dame de Paris (Our Lady ofParis).In our pilgrimage’s brief time in

Paris it was not possible to see all of

these churches. In fact, we saw onlytwo, both with a Marian theme.After St Peter’s basilica in the Vat-

ican, Notre Dame might well be theworld’s most famous church. Builtin the 12th century over the city’sfirst church, which was dedicated toStephen, it was in Roman times thesite of a temple to Jupiter.In literature it was the abode of

the bell-ringer Quasimodo in VictorHugo’s The Hunchback of NotreDame.Victor Hugo also used Notre

Dame as a metaphor in the novelLes Misérables, when the law-loving

and God-fearing but uncompas-sionate policeman Javert commitssuicide on the Pont au Changebridge, situated between Notre-Dame cathedral, representing God,and the Palace of Justice, represent-ing the law.The reliefs on the facade of Notre

Dame are richly symbolic, too.Above the right entrance, they playout the Last Judgment, with theArchangel Michael and the devilcontesting for souls.A striking image depicts a female

devil squatting in an obscene poseover the heads of a bishop and aking, a reminder that even the pow-erful and mighty are subject toGod’s judgment.The left entrance depicts the as-

sumption of Our Lady, surroundedby the apostles.While our group received de-

tailed instruction on the exterior ofthe cathedral, thanks to Paris guideand art historian Salvatore Rotolo,we were denied a good look aroundthe interior—but for a good reason.As we arrived in the morning, a

long procession of deacons, priests,bishops and Cardinal André Vingt-Trois of Paris was entering thechurch for an ordination Mass often permanent deacons.

Having seen many great Parislandmarks—the Eiffel Tower,

both Arcs de Triomphe, the Louvre,Alexander Bridge, Les Invalides andso on—and made time to exploreand shop in the Latin Quarter, ourgroup made its way to the bustlingRue de Bac in the Montparnassearea for our final Mass in the chapelof the Miraculous Medal.It was our fourth site of Marian

apparitions, after Fatima, Zaragozaand Lourdes. Between July and December

1830, a 24-year-old novice of theDaughters of Charity, Sr CatherineLabouré, reported three apparitionsof Our Lady, following earlier vi-sions of Christ and the heart of StVincent de Paul, co-founder of herorder. All took place in the chapel at140 Rue de Bac, built in 1813.In her apparitions, Mary in-

structed Sr Catherine to havemedals struck featuring the image

in which she appeared—inside anoval frame, standing upon a globe,with her hands coming out as raysof light—and the invocation: “OMary, conceived without sin, prayfor us who have recourse to thee.” After some investigation into Sr

Catherine’s claim by the archdio-cese, this was done, with a Parisiangoldsmith named Adrien Vachetteexecuting the design. Shortly after, in February 1832,

Paris suffered a cholera epidemicwhich killed 20000 people. TheDaughters of Charity distributedthe medals at that time and manysurvivors attributed their cure tothe protection received through themedal. And so it became known as the

Miraculous Medal. It remains a verypopular devotion in the CatholicChurch. I have had the opportunity to

visit the chapel twice this year; pri-vately in May and during this pil-grimage. What is particularlystriking is the presence of youngpeople at Rue de Bac. Many of themseem to pop in for a prayer, andthen go on their way. It is a busy place, as the long

queues in the gift shop testified.The chapel is a place of intenseprayer; the air is thick with faith. It has been remodelled several

times since St Catherine’s time. Itspresent appearance dates to 1930,the centenary of the apparitions.Only the tabernacle is unchanged.The altar of the apparitions hasbeen moved to the right of thesanctuary.It houses the tombs, in glass reli-

quaries, of St Catherine, who diedat 70 in 1876, and the co-founder ofthe Daughters of Charity, St Louisede Marillac, who died in 1660. Thetomb of St Vincent de Paul, whoalso died in 1660, is in the Vincent-ian church around the corner, inRue de Sèvres, but his heart is keptin the Miraculous Medal chapel.

And with a final Mass at Rue deBac our Marian pilgrimage of prayerfor the cause of Benedict Daswaended, a journey of faith that tookus through three countries to placesof Marian apparitions and theplaces of great saints.

In October a group of Southern Cross pilgrims, ledby Bishop João Rodrigues of Tzaneen, returned from apilgrimage to Portugal,Spainand France. In the final offour articles, GünTHeRSiMMeRMACHeR looks at the spirit of Catholicism in Paris.

The archangel Michael and the devil contest for souls in a relief above the main entrance to notre dame cathedral, and the interior of the MiraculousMedal chapel in Rue de Bac in the Montparnasse area of Paris. (Photos: Günther Simmermacher)

The pervasive Catholic spirit of Paris

Pilgrimage HighlightsHOLY LAND: Jerusalem, Bethlehem,Nazareth, Sea of Galilee, Jordan Riverand much more...ROME: Papal Audience, Mass in St Peter’s Basilica, Sistine Chapel, Catacombs, Major Basilicas, Ancientand Baroque Rome...FLORENCE: Dumo cathedral, Church of the Holy Cross with thetombs of Michelangelo and Galileo,Renaissance Florence...TURIN: Reserved viewing of the Shroudof Turin in the Cathedral of St John the Baptist, plus sites of Don Bosco on his bicentennial: Pinardi Chapeland Basilica of Our Lady Help ofChristians...

notre dame (left) and the portal to the Miraculous chapel in Rue de Bac.

Page 11: SouthernCross · PDF fileThis month Spanish Claretian Father Pablo d’Ors, a consultant to thet Pontifical Council form Culture, was quoted as saying that he was

iN MEMOriAMMALuKA—olga (née elis-sac). in loving memory ofmy wife, our mother whopassed away peacefully onSeptember 18, 2013.Fondly remembered bydennis (husband), Ches-lyn, dennis C, Reneé,Melvyn, Leroy, Joshua andgrandchildren. you will al-ways have a special placein our hearts. SACCO—Louise. in lovingmemory of our Louisecalled to her eternal re-ward on november 20,2011. Always rememberedby her family. Rest inpeace beloved Louise. Werecall with gratitude herteaching experience overmany years and particu-larly by her words, “Thislife is a preparation foreternal life and we shouldgo forward with confidencefaith and trust—what aprivilege it is to glorify theLord like this.” SHArKEY—Brian. Brianleft us on 25/11/ 2010 toplay golf on heaven’scourses. Missed and lovedforever, yours always Val.

PrAYErS

ST MiCHAEL theArchangel, defend us inbattle, be our protectionagainst the malice andsnares of the devil. MayGod rebuke him we humblypray; and do thou, o Princeof the Heavenly host, by thepower of God, thrust intohell Satan and all evil spiritswho wander through theworld for the ruin of souls.Amen.O MOST beautiful flower ofMount Carmel, fruitful vine,

splendour of Heaven,blessed Mother of the Sonof God, immaculate Virgin,assist me in my necessity.o Star of the Sea, help meand show me herein thatyou are my Mother, o HolyMary Mother of God,Queen of heaven andearth, i humbly beseechyou from the bottom of myheart to secure me in mynecessity. There are nonewho can withstand yourpower, o show me that youare my mother. o Maryconceived without sin, prayfor us who have recourseto thee. Thank you for yourmercy towards me andmine. Amen.ALMigHTY eternal God,source of all compassion,the promise of your mercyand saving help fills ourhearts with hope. Hear thecries of the people of Syria;bring healing to those suf-fering from the violence,and comfort to thosemourning the dead. em-power and encourageSyria’s neighbours in theircare and welcome forrefugees. Convert thehearts of those who havetaken up arms, andstrengthen the resolve ofthose committed to peace.o God of hope and Fatherof mercy, your Holy Spirit in-spires us to look beyondourselves and our ownneeds. inspire leaders tochoose peace over violenceand to seek reconciliationwith enemies. inspire theChurch around the worldwith compassion for thepeople of Syria, and fill uswith hope for a future ofpeace built on justice for all.We ask this through JesusChrist, Prince of Peace andLight of the World, who livesand reigns for ever andever. Amen. Prayer cour-tesy of the USCCB.

THANKSMARy da Silva wishes tosay a big, big thank you forall the lovely phone callson my birthday. Thanks toFr Bogdan for Holy Mass.God bless all my familyand friends.

PErSONAL ABOrTiON is murder—Si-lence on this issue is notgolden, it’s yellow! Avoid‘pro-abortion’ politicians.CAN YOu be silent onabortion and walk withGod? Matthew 7:21 Seewww.180movie.com

TAXATiON SErViCES:Tax & VAT returns pre-pared & e-filed by SARS-registered tax practitioner,(45 years’ SARS experi-ence now on your side).Contact Mike 082 9299874, 033 396 5471. [email protected] is the graphictruth that will set you free.

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LONDON: Protea House:Single ₤30, twin ₤45per/night. Self-catering,busses and undergroundnearby. Phone Peter 021851 5200. 0044 2087484834.CAPE TOWN: Fullyequipped self-catering 2-bedroom apartment withparking, in Strandfontein.R500 per night (4 per-sons). Paul 021 393 2503,083 553 9856, [email protected]. KNYSNA: Self-cateringaccommodation for 2 inold Belvidere with wonder-ful lagoon views anddSTV. 044 387 1052.KNYSNA: S/c accommo-dation for 2/3 on dairy farmin gorgeous valley. Winterspecial R600. 084 4588397.KZN SOuTH COAST:Pumula.Self-catering gar-den cottage. Sleeps 4-5.Fully equipped. Close togood beaches. R450 pernight. Call Jenny (039)684-6475 or 082 964-2110.MAriANELLA GuestHouse, Simon’s Town:“Come experience thepeace and beauty of Godwith us.” Fully equippedwith amazing sea views.Secure parking, ideal forrest and relaxation. Spe-cial rates for pensionersand clergy. Malcolm Salida082 784 5675, [email protected]: Beautifulself-catering garden holi-day flat, sleeps four, twobedrooms, open-planlounge, kitchen, fullyequipped. 5-min walk to la-goon. out of season spe-cials. Contact Les orBernadette 044 343 3242,082 900 6282.uVONgO: South CoastKZn. immaculate holidayaccommodation, well se-cured and lock-up garagein complex. Sleeps six.082 767 0228, 011 7644917 a/h.

CLASSIFIEDS The Southern Cross, november 19 to november 25, 2014 11

CLASSiFiEDSBirths • First Communion • Confirmation • engagement/Marriage •

Wedding anniversary • ordination jubilee • Congratulations • deaths • in memoriam • Thanks • Prayers • Accommodation • Holiday Accommodation •

Personal • Services • employment • Property • othersPlease include payment (R1,37 a word) with small advertisements for promptest

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SOLUTIONS TO 629. ACROSS: 5 Adverse, 8 Gar-den, 9 Ascents, 10 Lyceum, 11 Actors, 12 Sodality, 18Fidelity, 20 Shrove, 21 Presto, 22 Profane, 23 Unholy,24 Steeple. DOWN: 1 Ageless, 2 Brocade, 3 Sexual,5 Dismayed, 6 Events, 7 Satyrs, 13 Infernal, 14 Mis-sion, 15 Synonym, 16 Thirst, 17 Coffee, 19 Erring.

Southern CrossWord solutions Liturgical Calendar Year AWeekdays Cycle Year 2

Sunday, November 23, Christ the KingEzekiel 34:11-12, 15-17, Psalm 23:1-3, 5-6, 1Corinthians 15:20-26, 28, Matthew 25:31-46Monday, November 24, St Andrew Dung-LacRevelation 14:1-5, Psalm 24:1-6, Luke 21:1-4 Tuesday, November 25Revelation 14:14-19, Psalm 96:10-13, Luke21:5-11 Wednesday, November 26, St Leonard ofPort MauriceRevelation 15:1-4, Psalm 98:1-3, 7-9, Luke21:12-19 Thursday, November 27Sirach 50:22-24, Psalm 138:1-5, 1 Corinthians1:3-9, Luke 17:11-19 Friday, November 28, St James of the MarshRevelation 20:1-4, 11-21:2, Psalm 84:3-6, 8,Luke 21:29-33 Saturday, November 29, All Saints of theSeraphic OrderSirach 44:1, 10-15, Psalm 24:1-6, Mark 10:17-21 Sunday, November 30, First Sunday of Ad-ventIsaiah 63:16b-17, 19b; 64:2-7, Psalms 80:2-3,15-16, 18-19, Mark 13:33-37, First Corinthi-ans 1:3-9

The Southern Crossis a member of theAudit Bureau of Circulations of SouthAfrica. Printed byPaarl Coldset (Pty)Ltd, 10 FreedomWay, Milnerton. Published by theproprietors, TheCatholic Newspaper& Publishing Co Ltd,

at the company’s registered office, 10 TuinPlein, Cape Town, 8001.

The Southern Cross is published independently by the Catholic Newspaper & Publishing Company Ltd. Address: Po Box 2372, Cape Town, 8000. Tel: (021) 465 5007 Fax: (021) 465 3850 www.scross.co.zaEditor: Günther Simmermacher ([email protected]), Business Manager: Pamela davids ([email protected]), Advisory Editor: Michael Shackleton, News Editor: Stuart Graham ([email protected]), Editorial: Claire Allen ([email protected]), Mary Leveson ([email protected]) Advertising: elizabeth Hutton ([email protected]), Subscriptions: Avril Hanslo ([email protected]), Dispatch: Joan King ([email protected]), Accounts: desirée Chanquin ([email protected]).Directors: C Moerdyk (Chairman), Archbishop S Brislin, P davids*, S duval, e Jackson, B Jordan, Sr H Makoro CPS, R Riedlinger, M Salida, G Simmermacher*, R Shields, Z Tom

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

DurBAN:Holy Mass and Novenato St Anthony at St An-thony’s parish everyTuesday at 9am. HolyMass and Divine MercyDevotion at 17:30pm onfirst Friday of everymonth. Sunday Mass at9am. 031 309 3496.NELSPruiT:Adoration of theBlessed Sacrament atSt Peter’s parish everyTuesday from 8:00 to16:45, followed byrosary, Divine Mercy

prayers, then aMass/Communion serv-ice at 17:30pm.JOHANNESBurg:Carols by candlelightat St Charles parish,Road no 3, Victory Park.Sunday november 23 at18.30 for 19.00. Boere-wors rolls available andChristmas stalls to buygoodies. Children candress up as shepherdsor angels. Contact Mari-lyn on 084 461 2592 [email protected]

Community CalendarTo place your event, call Mary Leveson at 021 4655007

or e-mail [email protected] (publication subject to space)

DOMINICAN Sister PudentiaHosli died after a long ill-ness on October 21 at Sun-

ward Park Hospital, Boksburg.She was born on May 28, 1924

in Udenhout, Netherlands, whereshe grew up during World War II.Her desire to serve God and

neighbour prompted her decisionto enter the religious life.Sr Pudentia joined the Newcas-

tle Dominican Sisters at RosaryPriory, Hertfordshire, England,where she began her studies. Afterher novitiate training she wassent to South Africa.Her first assignment was to

Newcastle, in northern KwaZulu-Natal, where she joined the com-munity at St Mary’s inBlaauwbosch.

Her desire to serve the poorwas fulfilled. Her outreach knewno bounds. With the help offriends and family in Holland shebecame whole-hearted in thework of helping others. Sr Pudentia was a most creative

person. She loved and served Godsewing, knitting and doing em-broidery work. She was a womanof great faith and love for theliturgy.After years of service, her

health began to fail. She retired toMarian House, but remained incontact with the people ofBlaauwbosch. With assistancefrom the Liliane Fund in Holland,she was able to ensure the educa-tion of physically challenged chil-dren.

Sr Pudentia was well loved byall and supported by the commu-nity during her final weeks.Her Requiem Mass was cele-

brated by Dominican FathersLewis Tsuro and Martin Roden.She is buried in Marian Housecemetery, Boksburg.

Sr Pudentia Hosli OP

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Page 12: SouthernCross · PDF fileThis month Spanish Claretian Father Pablo d’Ors, a consultant to thet Pontifical Council form Culture, was quoted as saying that he was

SPIRITUAL literature has always high-lighted the primordial struggle be-tween good and evil, and this has

generally been conceived of as a war, aspiritual battle. Thus, as Christians, we have been

warned that we must be vigilant against thepowers of Satan and other forces of evil. And we’ve fought these powers not just

with prayer and private moral vigilance butwith everything from holy water, to exor-cisms, a dogmatic avoidance of everythingto do with the occult, the paranormal,alchemy, astrology, spiritualism, séances,witchcraft, sorcery, and ouija boards. ForChristians these were seen as dangerousroutes through which malevolent spiritscould enter our lives and do us harm.And scripture does, seemingly, warn us

about these things. It tells us that for ourworld to come to its completion and itsfulfilment, Christ must first triumph overall the powers that oppose God. And forthat to happen, Christ has to first van-quish and destroy death, darkness, evil,the powers of hell, the powers of Satan,and various “thrones, dominions, princi-palities, and powers”.What, concretely, are these powers and

how is Christ ultimately to triumph overthem? How should we conceive the battlethat’s taking place?We are clearer about how death will be

defeated: we believe that the resurrec-

tion—Jesus’ and our own—is how thatbattle is to be won. As to Satan and hell, each of us has her

own idea of what these are, but what weshare as Christians is the belief that thesewill continue to exist, alongside and op-posed to God and heaven, for eternity.That’s the common Christian belief,though not the universal one.

There have always been theologians andmystics who believed that the full tri-

umph of Christ will occur when Satanhimself converts and goes back to heavenalong with everyone else in hell. The loveof God, they believe, is so powerful that,in the end, nobody, not even Satan, willhold out against it.But that still leaves us with the

“thrones, dominions, principalities, andpowers”. Are these simply another way ofreferring to Satan and his powers? Or dothese refer to spiritual forces hidden insidethe paranormal? How might we conceptu-

alise evil spiritual forces?Each of us conceptualises them in some

way, usually in the graphic images givenus in the Book of Revelation and by cen-turies of Christian artists. And so we pic-ture some kind of spiritual warfarehappening beneath the surface of things,a spiritual battle between good and evil, awarfare wherein, eventually, Christ willtriumph by defeating and destroying allthese malevolent powers. But those are archetypal images, in-

tended to point us towards somethingdeeper. What really are the “thrones, domin-

ions, principalities, and powers” that areopposing Christ, and how are they to bedefeated? How might we conceptualisethe spiritual warfare going on beneath thesurface of things?The spiritual warfare that is being de-

scribed in scripture and inside all authen-tic spirituality has less to do with theoccult than it has to do the malignant gripof narcissism, greed, anger, bitterness, ha-tred, lust, woundedness, grudges and igno-rance. These are the real “thrones,dominions, principalities, and powers” inthe struggle between good and evil.Authentic spiritual warfare is to be pic-

tured this way: Inside our world and insideeach of us there’s a fierce battle waging, awar between good and evil.And these are the contestants: Hatred is

battling love; anger is battling patience;greed is battling generosity; bitterness isbattling graciousness, jealousy is battlingadmiration; choosing to remain inside ourwounds is battling healing; holding on toour grudges is battling forgiveness, egoand narcissism are battling compassionand community; and self-hatred is in a bit-ter battle with the acceptance of love andGod’s unconditional embrace. Paranoia iswaging a war against metanoia. That’s the real war that’s going on, in

our world and inside each of us.Hatred, anger, paranoia, greed, bitter-

ness, lust, jealousy, non-forgiveness andself-hatred are the “thrones, dominions,principalities, and powers” about whichscripture warns us.Hence the final triumph of Christ will

occur when the last of these forces is even-tually subdued, when we are finally atpeace with goodness, with love, with trust,with ourselves, with others, with our his-tory, with our mistakes, with those whohave hurt us, with those whom we havehurt, with our shortcomings, and with ourimpatience with God. In the meantime, there will be spiritual

warfare, primordial battles, all around.

How we will defeat Satan

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Conrad

1st Sunday of Advent: November 30Readings: Isaiah 63:16-17, 19; 64:3-8, Psalm80: 2-3, 15-16, 18-19, 1 Corinthians 1:3-9,Mark 13:33-37

NEXT Sunday we start a new liturgicalyear, with the first Sunday of Advent.And the mood that the Church wishes

to instil in us is, quite simply, one of longingfor God.It goes deeper than that, however, for there

is also in these readings a sense that it is inGod alone that we can trust.This is clear in the first reading that we

hear, which probably dates to those terribledays just after the Babylonian conquest ofJerusalem, days that were so terrible that thepoet even imagines the possibility that “Abra-ham not know us, and Israel not acknowledgeus”; but even under those circumstances, hecontinues: “You, Lord, are our Father, and ourRedeemer from of old you are named.”Then, but very gently indeed, the poet in-

dicates that it is really all God’s fault: “Whydo you make us wander from your ways?Why do you harden our hearts?”The reading ends in that powerful sense of

intimacy with God that is never very far fromIsrael’s heart: “And now, Lord, you are our Fa-ther; we are the clay and you are thepotter—all of us are the works of your hand.” All the poet can do is place his (and his na-

tion’s) trust in God, where it belongs. The psalm continues the intimacy with

the idea that God is Israel’s “shepherd”, “youwho lead Joseph like a flock”; the poet is wellaware that he cannot dictate terms to theAlmighty, “the One who dwells on the cheru-bim”.So God has to be addressed as “God of

hosts”, but the psalmist is not afraid to attracthis attention: “Please come back—look downfrom heaven and see! Visit this vine”—andthere is a particular plea: “Let your hand beon your right hand man…give us life, and weshall call upon your name.”The second reading continues the mood:

it is very near the beginning of Paul’s first let-ter to Corinth. Far from keeping their eyes on

their longing for God, the Corinthians were,as ever, squabbling among themselves, eachthinking themselves better than the other. Soin this reading, Paul has to remind them thatit is not they but God and Jesus who have itall to do: “Grace to you, and peace, from Godour Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”That is where we must keep our eyes, this

Advent, remembering that “grace” meansGod’s unconditional love, which comes to usregardless of who we are or what we do.Read closely through that second reading,

and see how Paul’s emphasis is not on theCorinthians’ great qualities, so much as thegifts that God has given them: “the uncondi-tional love given you…you have been maderich in him…the witness of Christ has beenmade strong in you…you lack no gift…hewill confirm you on the day of Our Lord JesusChrist”. If they were listening carefully the

Corinthians should have been shaken byPaul’s insistence that it is all a matter of God’sgift, not their own superior qualities. That iswhat we are waiting for in Advent.To wait for it, however, requires a certain

attentiveness. So the gospel for next Sunday

begins with the exhortation, “Keep looking!Don’t go to sleep” and ends with “Stayawake!”, and what we have to do during thistime is to keep our eyes on God. And the rea-son for this? “You do not know when thetime is”; and Jesus illustrates this with one ofhis rather shocking “stories” or “parables”,about someone (presumably the God whomwe long for) who goes overseas, leaving his“slaves” in charge of their works.Most important of all, of course, is the

“doorkeeper” (or the person in charge ofthose electronic devices with which you pro-tect your house. Or the Rottweiler), to whomgoes the simple instruction to “stay awake”.And this message is spread out to all of us:

“…because you don’t know what time theLord of the house is coming, in the eveningor the middle of the night or at cock-crow orin the morning”. And the point is that in our longing for

God we do not want “him to come suddenlyand find you sleeping”.So our task, this Advent, is to polish up

that longing for God that is the very deepestand best part of us.How about starting this week?

Advent signals longing for God

Southern Crossword #629

DOWN1. Eternal (7)2. Rich fabric in the vest-ment (7)3. Instinct shared by menand women (6)5. I dyed Sam, leaving himaghast (8)6. Special occasions (6)7. Woodland gods can bestrays (6)13. Like the depths of hell(8)14. Important assignmentfor evangelist (7)15. A word with the samemeaning (7)16. Christ’s dry feeling (6)17. Drink for a break (6)19. Getting doctrine wrong(6)

ACROSS5. Harmful contemporary po-etry (7)8. Biblical place of temptation(6)9. Risings of coin in the don-key (7)10. My clue for Aristotle’steaching place (6)11. They’re in the Passion Play(6)12. Religious group can bealso tidy (8)18. Faithfulness in marriage(8)20. Pancake Tuesday (6)21. Hey! The magician says itquickly (6)22. Commit a sacrilege (7)23. Kind of mess where nosaint is (6)24. It rises above the church(7) Solutions on page 11

Fr Nicholas King SJ

Sunday Reflections

Fr Ron Rolheiser OMI

Final Reflection

CHURCH CHUCKLE

AFTER hearing the Christmas story, andsinging Silent Night, a Sunday school classwas asked to draw what they thought the Na-

tivity scene might have looked like.One boy did a good likeness of Joseph, Mary,

and the infant Jesus, but off to the side was a roly-poly figure. The teacher, afraid that he had some-how worked Santa Claus into the scene, asked himwho that was. She wasn't sure whether she was re-lieved or even more worried when the boy replied:“Oh, that's Round John Virgin.”

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Claretian Missionaries Provincial Bulletin 3rd Quarter 2009

Claretian Missionaries Provincial Bulletin 3rd Quarter 2009

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SouthernCross - scross.co.za

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