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ARCHITECT The remarkable story of Geraldton's architect priest and builder, emerges in a new highly praised biography. See pages 4, 5, 10 and 11.

PERTH, WA: 21 — 27 February, 1985

Number 2417

A DDRESS 26 John Street. Perth, WA 6000 PO Box 50 Aberdeen Street, Perth, WA, 6000

TELEPHONE: (09) 328 1388

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ASHES Ashes in Lent, if not the sackcloth are signs that there has to be a conversion back to God says Pathways of The Spirit. Pages 8 and 9.

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and r g i 111 ISSue •

How to define equality is a key to solving the Aboriginal land rights issue, a Catholic lawyer said in Perth this week. -The average Australian probably starts off with a reaction against land rights and summed up in phrases like: 'Treat people equally', or 'We don't like apartheid,- said Rev Frank Brennan SJ. -Only when the average Australian asks what it means to treat people equally is the problem posed. Treating people equally means to look at their situation and see what justice demands in their case. Rev Frank Brennan is on his third visit to WA in connection with land rights legislation and will address a public meeting in Mercedes College hall on Friday March 1 at 7.30 pm to comment on moral issues in the WA legislation. The Jesuit student, who is a qualified lawyer, and who will be ordained priest later this year was asked initially by his Jesuit superior to take an interest in Aboriginal matters. The Queensland bishops asked him to be their adviser at the time of the Queensland discussions in 1982. Archbishop Foley invited him to Perth last year and recently the Australian conference of bishops has enlisted his help. He feels that although most people have not seen the proposed legislation the issue has become an emotional one with little factual content. He also believes that Christians and Catholics have problems similar to their Australian neighbours. "Those of us who sit in the pews are just as racist as everyone else; we have to admit that racism is in most of us, as part of the human condition, as part of original sin, if you like. "The Christian answer is to go to the Book of Genesis where every person no matter what their race is made in the image and likeness of God and has a dignity to be upheld in society.

Lett: It was a family moment in St Mary's Cathedral last Saturday when newly ordained priest Father Paul Fogarty gave a sign of peace to his John, his father mother Patricia, sister Nuala and (not in the picture) his sisters Edel (Hales) and Janice. See also Page 2

"We have to ask what Aican do to uphold the dignit of people in society. "At the moment the sense of dignity of the Aboriginal people is low either became they are miserable people — which they are not — or because of their history. If so, we have to accept some responsibility as a society and see what we can ck, about it. "Land rights is no magical answer. It will only provide a land base for some Aborigines who have some sort of kinship structure and tribal life to live without constraints. "For the urban Aboriginal land rights whether good or bad, offers very little. These people through dispossession and history have lost not only land but tradition and tribal identity and fall between the two cultures." Frank Brennan said that his numerous meetings around Australia with groups and lobbies for and against land rights had convinced him the Church could be a bridge beiween competing groups amongst whom there is often no discussion and where there is suspicion of malice though none exists and to alleviate misunderstandings because such groups often cannot sit down and discuss the issues. "Some Aborigines would say my views do not go far enough but I can assure

them that on the moral goods we will stick to our guns "To other groups we can say that there are some issues to which they will take exception and they will follow other political solutions but this moral point of view can be upheld." A second lesson he had learnt was that although interest in Aboriginal issues appeared to be political, it should in the end be the product of gospel values and that was the role of the Church to evangelise what the gospel means in a society context. "The alternative is to wipe our hands and say we do not want to be involved in the lives of people whereas the Incarnation is involvement in life, crystallising gospel values. Asked what would be his text for a two-minute sermon on land rights, Frank Brennan unhesitatingly quoted the rich young man in the gospel who walked sadly away from Christ because of his wealth. "Jesus looked steadily at the man and loved him. He walked away, sad not because he could not cope with Jesus' logic but because he was unable to return that unrequited love offered him. Once he had accepted that love of Christ the logic would have flowed."