Sunday, 18th October 2009
The beautiful, the ugly and the controversial
Nice and ugly things happen all the time in the Church, whether in Malta or in the world at large. It's natural to be so since the Church is a mega-structure made up of human beings endowed with virtues and vices alike.
Black is beautiful
One of the nice things happening at the moment is the Synod of the African bishops. For the last few weeks, the bishops of this continent were meeting in the Vatican. They were accompanied by several experts and Vatican Curia officials. The Synod, headed by the Pope, tries to analyse the state of the Church in a particular continent and plans the way forward.
While the number of Catholics has decreased in other continents, one finds a different picture in Africa. In 13 years Catholics increased by more than 62 million people. This rate of growth between 1994 and 2007 was almost twice as high as the rate of growth among the general population in Africa. The church in Africa saw a rise in the number of bishops, priests, deacons, people in consecrated life and laypeople. The number of priests increased by 49 percent, seminarians by 44 percent and lay missionaries by 94 percent.
The Church in Africa is faced by many problems. Suffice it to say that the two most common words during the deliberations of the Synodal Fathers were "war" and "justice". The first reflects the hardship that many countries are going through, the second reveals the yearning for a real solution.
The Church in Africa is relatively a young Church. Problems there are aplenty but dynamism and creativity are not missing. The future seems bright.
The Synod will be concluded on Sunday 25 October.
An ugly blemish indeed!
At present, one of the ugliest blemishes on the image of the Church is happening in Canada. Bishop Lahey, who abruptly resigned as bishop of Antigonish, Nova Scotia, for "personal reasons" September 26, was arraigned five days later in Ottawa on charges of possessing and importing child pornography. He was released on bail and is scheduled to appear again in court in the beginning of November. Officers at an airport made a random check on the laptop of the bishop and are now accusing him that he had child pornography on the laptop.
The story quite naturally sent shock waves across the Church in Canada. Archbishop Luigi Ventura the outgoing papal representative, during a homily, invited his listeners to "prayer, silence and hope" that the church can overcome such sins. Archbishop Ventura reassured those present that the Canadian Catholic Church was working to "establish safe environments and protect children and young people."
"The church in Canada bears the wounds together with the victims of a tragic past and has made and continues to make systematic efforts to prevent the repetition of such abuses and exploitation," said Archbishop Ventura, who is being transferred as apostolic nuncio to France.
"Yet we can never underestimate the destructive power of sinfulness and evil that tears apart the fabric of our community. God's grace will overpower these forces," he added.
Church members should be angry and sad at the same time when confronted by such acts but they should not be discouraged by the sins and failings of some of the church's members. On the other hand, they should do everything possible so that the due process of law takes its course.
The Church should do everything possible to heal those wounded by abusers within its fold. The Church in Ireland is setting an example. Catholic bishops have just met with representatives of abuse victims in what both parties called a momentous and fruitful effort to bring closure to the issue. The representatives of four groups representing victims met for three hours with the bishops and discussed ways to help the healing process continue. They agreed to meet again.
The controversial: Archbishop vs. Cardinal
There can hardly be a more prim and proper position that that of the role of papal theologian. The Swiss Cardinal Georges Cottier held such a position under Pope Paul John II.
Recently Cardinal Cottier "dared" to speak positively about the speech President Obama delivered at the University of Notre Dame. In his speech, Obama expressed commitment to reducing the number of abortions and guaranteeing conscientious objection rights for health workers. Cardinal Cottier said in July that the president had moved in the direction of finding "common ground" with the church, and that "his words go in the direction of diminishing the evil."
These words brought the ire of Archbishop Charles J. Chaput of Denver. Chaput wrote in the Italian paper Il Foglio saying that Cardinal Cottier had been overly generous in his appraisal of the president's words. He said that since many US bishops had criticised the invitation extended to Obama than he (Cottier), should have left judgement of the issue in the hands of the US bishops. Chaput conveniently did not point out that there were other bishops who were positive about Obama's speech.
"Regrettably and unintentionally, Cardinal Cottier's articulate essay undervalues the gravity of what happened at Notre Dame. It also overvalues the consonance of President Obama's thinking with Catholic teaching," Archbishop Chaput wrote.
Archbishop Chaput added that the president's search for "common ground" with the church, praised by Cardinal Cottier, is not necessarily a good thing. "So-called 'common ground' abortion policies may actually attack the common good because they imply a false unity," he said. "The common good is never served by tolerance for killing the weak -- beginning with the unborn."
Many in Malta are scandalised when priests do not agree in public. Overseas not just priests but cardinals and archbishops engage in public controversy and publicly criticise each other.
I think that such discussion, in Malta and abroad, is a healthy sign. Any overt or covert attempt to block such free discussion would be a very negative development.
Quotable quote
I am reproducing in the original a paragraph from a speech delivered recently by Bishop Mario Grech. He is pointing towards a very important reality that is being undervalued by many in our society. I invite the readers of this blog to reflect on this subject before it is too late.
"Serqulna Jum il-Mulej! Il-kuxjenza ta' ħafna tant hija rieqda li mhux qed jindunaw li l-jum tal-Ħadd itteħdilna! Ilu żmien isiru għażliet żgħar, li bil-mod il-mod kienu qed inaqqru l-jum tal-Ħadd. Ir-raġunijiet li minħabba fihom fittixna li niġġustifikaw il-qerda tal-Ħadd huma varji: pressjoni ta' xogħol matul il-ġimgħa, nuqqas ta' ħin biex inlaħħqu mal-bżonnijiet ta' kuljum, il-ħtieġa li ngibu 'l quddiem l-ekonomija biex joktor il-ġid, it-turiżmu u l-eżiġenzi tiegħu, eċċ.
Imma diġà qed naraw sinjali li juruna li proprju għax ma rrispettajniex il-Jum tal-Ħadd, qegħdin inħallsu prezz familjari u soċjali għoli."
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Comments
. In my opinion the conservative approach of Archbishop Chaput tends to focus on divisive factors. Rather than helping resolve conflict such approach may aggravate it. On the other hand Cardinal Cottier adopts a pragmatic approach; -of course- without sacrificing principles. A sensitive politician adopts a realistic approach and seeks to resolve conflict not to exacerbate it.
Furthermore one cannot close one eyes to the genuine efforts President Obana is engaged in for relieving poverty ( both in the USA and in the world) and for bringing about world peace. Whether he will succeed or not is another matter.
Perhaps the saintly Pope John XIII would have adopted the same approach as Cardinal Cottier'
It matters not whether one puts up one's feet or not, on a Sunday. Or a Tuesday for that matter. The important thing is for one not to dedicate time......to what, exactly?
I think psychologists nowadays tend to help patients suffering from depression, with holistic approach to a healthier way of living. The Church can be proud that within her ranks, men of grand intellectual stature like St Benedict of Norcia (480-507) proposed a scheme to his ‘men’: moments of work, study, relaxation and reflection. The manner how these dynamics could be apply to ‘us’, in this ‘modern’ world, is for one-self to discover and adapt.
Dear Franco,
you needn't worry! I am not so insensitive as to not take into consideration the neighbours next door on the few and far between occasions when the house called for a redecoration.
Never a complaint has come our way, and we've been living here forever. So that goes to show!
But I do agree that it could happen exactly the way you mention, so I wouldn't advise it unless prudence is practised, and only if it is simply unavoidable.
Christ never spoke of Sunday as the day of rest, but always abode by the Sabbath, which is clearly Saturday (even Prof Saydon, who translated the Bible into Maltese, says this as "is-sbit")
Most Christians say that the day is the Lord is Sunday, because he rose from the dead on Sunday. Even here they are wrong. He rose from the dead on the third day, and in another Biblical text it says 3 days and 3 nights to be precise.
Fancy squeezing 3 days from Good Friday to Easter Sunday!! Christ was crucified in the midst of the week, meaning exactly Wednesday, and hence counting 3 days and 3 nights gives us Saturday=Sabbath.
Should one want chapter and verse I would oblige.
Unfortunately, few people can allow themselves the luxury to rest on a Sunday for with the women going out to work, it is the day when they catch up with the housework. Actually, for many women, Sunday is more of a hectic day than a day spent doing paperwork in an office. It is also the day when the men are called upon to do certain odd jobs around the house that need seeing to.
Life has become too stressful and it is telling on the stability of a marriage.
There is an upside to the situation, however, for if Sunday were turned into a day where husband and wife take it upon themselves to help each other in the work that needs doing, they can make of it a joint occupation which can draw them closer together - I have spent pleasanter Sundays helping my husband redecorating the house than having him spending most of the day either reading the newspaper or else at his computer. On such days as the latter I either follow suit or else immerse myself in the activity that gives me satisfaction.
Though I understand Bishop Grech's message invoking today's pressures, I still think it is quite unrealistic to talk of putting your feet up and do nothing just because it is Sunday. Well but I'm no Catholic. So, please explain, is doing work on Sunday a sin?
take Poland this country I understand is experiencing a marked decline in christian inclinations
The west? it does not feel opression so it does not feel to be attracted to any Hope
Hope / Church is such a powerfull potential and it is a grat tragedy that Politicians of all hues seem to ignore the immens Social implications the church could play in the social fabric
in my opinion the church needs to make radical changes in way of public perceptions so as to allow It a place in agendas of any country where social matters exist AND where " social" is not involved ??
West Liberalism needs direction and not total liberty to not include such a formidable (social) institute as the church
(B) flus and profit The unbeleivable thing is how weak are governements to accept such unhealthy and dipressing ways of living