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No. 3138.
ORGAN
OF
THE
ARCHDIOCESE
OF
PERTH
,Registered at the G.P.O., Perth, for Perth, Thursday, April 23, 1964. transmission by post as a Newspaper.)
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Laymen's Duty To Unity Each Has Real Role To Play Milan: Catholic laymen have a "grave duty toward Christ and toward the Church" to work for the unity of all Christians, says Augustin Cardinal Bea. The German Cardinal, who heads the secretariat for Promoting Christian Unity addresed a conference on the subject of "What the Unity of Christians Expects from Laymen." He first stressed the real possibilities that exist to foster unity work as demonstrated by developments in the ecumenical field in recent years. "Things have been seen in these past few years that have not been seen for centuries," he said. "These are (acts which speak for themselves, but also speak above all as a testimony of the irresistible work of the Holy Ghost in the Church and in all those who have been baptised. This divine help will be able to move, though only little by little, the mountains of obstacles which still exist in the path towards unity." The Cardinal stressed that against this background of the reawakening of the world to a desire for unity. the layman has a real role to play. "The unity of the Church, that perfect unity willed by Christ, depends on the contribution of each and all of its members," he stated. "Consequently all are in fact in a position to contribute to the realisation of unity and therefore every member has the grave duty towards Christ and towards the Church to interest himself in the unity of all believers in Christ and to work for it."
Collective Effort The Cardinal warned, however, that the work for unity can fail "if the support were to lack a collective effort of sanctification on the part of the whole Church." He continued: "Experience shows this greatest contribution to the cause of unity comes from the example of those virtues which shine forth eminently in Christ, that is humility and charity; while pride, indifference and selfishness have been and always are the main causes of division." In reviewing what laymen can do in the field of unity work, Cardinal Bea first noted that -it is often thought that as a consequence of firmness and absolute faithfulness to the sacred deposit of Faith, there is nothing more to be done in the matter of doctrine in the ecumenical field. This is not exact." The Cardinal pointed out that he does not mean a compromise which he said cannot take place in the field of Faith. • "Often ideological differences which divide us are not dogmas but misunderstandings, which come from differences in mentality and terminology," he stated. "In these cases, it is possible to eliminate them with a fuller explanation of doctrine, an explanation which takes into account the mentality and language used today by nonCatholic brethren." The Cardinal concluded: "While Christianity of the Middle Ages was called on to give mankind the sublime creation of the cathedrals, our era seems to be called on or at least to prepare thoughtfully an incomparably greater, more sublime, more fruitful gift—the reconstructed temple of the unity of all those who believe in Christ."
THE
NEW
CONVENT
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NORTH
BEACH
Archbishop Blesses New Convent At North Beach The first West Australian Convent to be built for the Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth was opened at North Beach last Sunday, by His Grace the Archbishop. The double-storey building, which will be known as the Convent of Our Lady of Grace, is built fronting Kitchener Street on one of the highest points in North Beach, with commanding views of the ocean,. less than a quarter of a mile away. The dignified and serviceable building houses a chapel, two parlours, a modern and well-equipped kitchen, dining-room and a large community room. Its appointments will provide the Sisters with modest comfort, but are without luxury. Following the blessing and official opening of the convent, His Grace expressed Nis gratitude to the Sisters for deciding to begin their work in the fast-growing parish of North Beach. He said that they had brought with them the splendid traditions of their own country and academic distinctions from universities in the United States. He thanked Monsignor Dzieciol for bringing the Sisters to Western Australia and the Polish people for providing the Sisters with their first home in Charles Street, North Perth. His Grace said that changing circumstances had made it imperative for the Sisters to build the convent close to the North Beach school. He assured those present that the nuns would continue their work
for the Polish cominunity, particularly with t he Polish children. His Grace also paid tribute to the parish priest, Father J. Depiazzi, for his efforts in encouraging the Sisters to expand educational facilities for Catholic families in the district. In his appeal for contributions towards the cost of the new convent, Father C.SS.R., McCarthy, C. praised the work of the nuns who, he said, have won respect wherever they have been. He described the new building as "a flaming beacon to hlighlight the highway to Heaven." The official ceremonies concluded with Solemn Benediction given by His Grace. The deacon was Father P. Quinn and subdeacon Father T. Phelan. Among about 500 guests were members of Polish families from many parts of the metropolitan area A and country districts. large number of clergy also attended the function. The builder of the convent was A. B. Power and the plans were drawn up by Mother M. Neomesia, in conjunctUan with the builder. • The Order of the Holy Family of Nazareth was founded in Poland more than a hundred years ago, and is now particularly strong in America. The five nuns at the new convent are all of Polish extraction. After their arrival in W.A. in 1957, the five Sisters started a kindergarten in North Perth and two years later began their association with the school at Noth Beach. Since then, the school enrolment has increased from 42 to 150. catering for children from first grade to Junior Certificate standard.
Congo Bishop Urges End To Violence KIKWIT, The Congo.—The Catholic Bishop of this Congolese trouble centre has called for an end to murder, pillage and other forms of violence. At the same time he advocated greater distribution of wealth as a means of justice. Bishop Andre Lefebvre. S.J., of Kikwit, urged a return to law and order in Kwilu Province, which two months earlier saw a wave of terrorism inspired by Peking-trained Pierre Mulele. Bishop Lefebvre issued a pastoral letter condemning outright all persons organised in Kwilu "to spread death, destruction, disorder and systematic pillage." He said that responsible before God are not only those who have taken part directly in the violence, "but also those who make this possible by giving to such gangs information, provisions, etc," The Belgian-born prelate told the people of the region—the 425,000 Catholics of the Kikwit diocese constitute 40 per cent of the population: "T h e Church condemns violence. We must at the same time condemn all excesses which are not justified by the need to restore order and peace. "Naturally, good citizens are obliged to defend themselves, to organise villages and groups to protect their own lives, and the lives of their women and children, and the installations which are a source of the country's
wealth. This defence can in all justice be organised with hand arms. "But at the end of the fighting, those taken prisoner must be treated humanely. Does it not violate Christian charity to treat them in ways we would not even treat an animal which has no soul redeemed by Christ?" Looking towards overcoming problems which abet violence, Bishop Lefebvre said: "Do you not think, my brothers, that the many young men who joined this movement did so simply because they were embittered? They have been embittered because they have been out of work for months, sometimes for years. They are embittered because, being ordinary labourers, they compared their meagre w ages to those of old friends who had well-paid jobs, not always because of personal ability, but sometimes by reason of their clan or because of favouritism. "Having condemned all kinds of terrorism, I view it as my personal duty to draw the attention of public officials to this big task which is before them, so as to prepare for the future now."