THE RECORD
National news:
EASTER 2008
Why do so many love this fat man?
the Parish. the Nation. the World.
PAGE 10
Western Australia’s award-winning Catholic newspaper - Wednesday April 2, 2008
www.therecord.com.au
Perth, Western Australia $2
Celebrating His victory Our special edition: Throughout Holy Week, Western Australian Catholics in parishes and communities relived the events of the Passion and Resurrection that occurred in Jerusalem approximately 2000 years ago. Even more, they tried to connect with the person at their centre - Jesus Christ
Sister beats knife attack in convent
Perth parishes report Easter attendances this year were ‘through the roof.’ ■ By Sylvia Defendi
Thousands flocked to their local Church over Holy Week to attend ceremonies throughout the city of Perth, where parish priests noted unprecedented attendance. According to Dean of St Mary’s Cathedral, Monsignor Thomas McDonald, the closure of St Mary’s due to construction works made very little difference; hundreds spilled out of St Joachim’s Pro-Cathedral at each Easter ceremony. Although St Joachim’s is a slightly smaller church building, Mgr McDonald said crowds had definitely increased since last year’s Easter celebrations. He said he was surprised by the numbers, even more so by the overflowing crowd that congregated for Holy Thursday’s Mass of the Last Supper. “Typically, Holy Thursday Mass receives smaller numbers, however this year many flooded the Pro-Cathedral at Victoria Park. “It was good to see how many appreciated the centrality of the Holy Thursday celebration as the installation of the Holy Eucharist, and Holy Orders,” he said. Mgr McDonald said many who had previously attended the Cathedral’s Holy Week celebrations were pleased to see the ceremonies had not changed despite the change in location. “Keeping the ceremonies as they were celebrated within the Cathedral was a must, and even those who were loyal parishioners of St Joachim’s truly appreciated the processions, full choir and intricate details that made each ceremony special,” he said. Other parishes throughout the Archdiocese commented similarly on record attendances. Parishioners at Applecross were pleased to utilise the newly built Church of St Benedict with attendance doubling for each Holy Week celebration. “The new Church already holds an extra 130
■ By Cindy Wooden
Come, Holy Spirit: Archbishop Barry Hickey prays over the jars containing the Oil of Chrism at Mary MacKillop Parish in Ballajura. The Oil, used for baptisms, confirmations and anointing of the sick, was later distributed to parishes for use through the coming Church year. PHOTO: SYLVIA DEFENDI
seats, and yet crowds were still flowing out of the Church,” parish priest, Fr Peter Whitely said. The attractive new Church was certainly a draw-card, according to Fr Whitely, who said it drew people inside and, much like the many beautiful churches of the world, lifted
spirits to God. Speaking at Masses on Easter Sunday morning, Fr Whitely described the Church building before it was consecrated as an empty shell and that without Christ we too would be just an empty shell. One other Perth Church that was not an empty shell over Holy Week was Bateman
parish, which determined that approximately 14,000 people attended services during Holy Week. At Bateman’s 3pm Good Friday service, over 4,000 attended alone. Tents were required outdoors to accommodate all those attending and four priests offered the Sacrament of Reconciliation for
one and a half hours prior to the Masses. Parish priest at Bateman, Monsignor Michael Keeting welcomed 22 adults into the Catholic community from his parish alone Continued - Page 3 HOW WA CATHOLICS CELEBRATED EASTER: stories and photos: Pages 4-11
LAHORE, Pakistan (CNS) - A member of the Sisters of Charity of Jesus and Mary has survived a knife attack at her convent in the southern outskirts of Lahore. Two young men broke into Sister Nuzrat Shafi’s convent and slashed her throat on March 8. The convent is in Youhanabad, the largest Christian area in Pakistan, on the outskirts of Lahore. The 34-year-old nun received nine stitches and has badly damaged vocal cords. Sister Shafi told the Asian church news agency UCA News that she was alone in the convent when she heard a knock on her door at about 3 pm. Suddenly, two young men, about 25 years old, burst into the room. “First they asked for money and then for keys to the cupboards of other nuns. When I told them I was the youngest and had no idea where money is kept, they became furious, wrecked my cupboard and then slapped me. I cried for them not to touch me but was thrown on the bed,”she said. She said the last thing she recalls before passing out was hearing her attackers say “Finish her.” Other attacks have occurred in Youhanabad. Last year, in separate incidents, a religious sister was beaten and had her teeth broken, and a missionary priest was attacked and tortured.
Muslim baptised by Pope says he wanted to show others not to fear Journalist opted for public ritual as a sign to inspire others. ■ By Cindy Wooden
Welcome: Journalist Magdi Allam, centre, was baptised a disciple of Jesus by Pope Benedict XVI. The baptism has caused controversy because Allam was born a Muslim; he has lived under threat of death for the last five years.
FOR THE BEST DEAL ON A NEW HONDA, ACCESSORIES, PARTS, FINANCE OR FROM OUR RANGE OF QUALITY USED VEHICLES.
www.hondanorth.com.au
new@hondanorth.com.au hondanorth.com.au 432 Scarborough Bch Rd, Osborne Park, 6017 Ph: 9449 9000 new@ ‘DEALER OF THE YEAR’ 1996 ❙ ‘WA OVERALL EXCELLENCE’ 1996, 1998, 2003 ❙ ‘WA SALES EXCELLENCE’ 1996, 1997, 1998, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005
DL0891
ROME (CNS) - The Muslim-born journalist baptised by Pope Benedict XVI at the Easter Vigil said he wanted a public conversion to convince other former Muslims not to be afraid of practicing their new Christian faith. But a representative of a group of Muslim scholars who recently launched a new dialogue with the Vatican
INDEX News - Pages 2-3 Easter WA 2008 - Pages 4-10 Easter in Rome - Page 13 Opinion - Page 14 Official dates - Page 15 Panorama - Page 15 Classifieds - Page 15
said the prominence given to the baptism of Magdi Allam, a frequent critic of Islam, raises disturbing questions. Allam, 55, was one of seven adults baptised by the Pope on March 22 in St Peter’s Basilica. Aref Ali Nayed, a spokesman for the 138 Muslim scholars who initiated the Common Word dialogue project last October and who established the Catholic-Muslim Forum for dialogue with the Vatican in early March, said conversion is a private matter, but the very public way in which Allam was baptised appeared “deliberate and provocative.”
In a front-page editorial on March 25, the Vatican newspaper said Allam’s baptism was given no greater emphasis during the vigil than the baptism of the other six adults Pope Benedict received into the church that night. Allam’s decision to be baptised and the Vatican’s decision to include him in the papal ceremony did not carry with it any “hostile intention in the face of a great religion like Islam,” said the article signed by Giovanni Maria Vian, the editor of L’Osservatore Romano. “For decades the Catholic Church has shown a desire to
AN IRISH EASTER
meet and dialogue with the Muslim world despite a thousand difficulties and obstacles,” he wrote. “But difficulties and obstacles must not obscure what we have in common.” In a March 25 interview with Il Giornale, an Italian newspaper, Allam said thousands of Italian Christians have converted to Islam with no repercussions. “On the other hand, if a Muslim converts it is the end of the world and he is condemned to death for apostasy. In Italy there are thousands of converts who live their faith in secret for fear they will not be protected,” Allam said.
“I publicly converted to say to these people: ‘Come out of the catacombs, live your faith openly. Do not be afraid,’” he said. In a March 23 article in Corriere della Sera, the newspaper for which he writes, Allam said, “His Holiness has launched an explicit and revolutionary message to a church that, up to now, has been too prudent in converting Muslims.” He said Catholics were “abstaining from proselytism in countries with a Muslim majority and being silent about the reality of converts in Christian countries out of
A CHURCH FOR A NEW MEDICAL SCHOOL
SIAN WHITE spent a day visiting a little-known site in Ireland associated with the great St Patrick. Barely big enough to hold several people, the chapel of Maum Turk is believed to be one of Patrick’s resting places on his journeys throughout the Emerald Isle.
Continued - Page 2 Why I chose Christ - Page 12 Lutheran comes home - Page 2
FOR THE BEST DEAL ON A NEW HONDA, ACCESSORIES, PARTS, FINANCE OR FROM OUR RANGE OF QUALITY USED VEHICLES
The University of Notre Dame Australia has opened its newest medical campus in Sydney. At the same time it took the opportunity to refurbish a dis-used inner city Church and to make it an integral part of the life of the university.
Pages 11-12
fear - the fear of not being able to protect the converts in the face of their condemnations to death for apostasy and for fear of reprisals against Christians living in Islamic countries.” “Well, with his witness today, Benedict XVI tells us we need to conquer our fear and not be afraid to affirm the truth of Jesus even to Muslims,” Allam wrote in Corriere. Allam told Il Giornale that although his mother was a devout Muslim she sent him to Catholic preschool, ele-
w w w. h o n d a n o r t h . c o m . a u 432 Scarborough Beach Road, Osborne Park, 6017 Ph: 9449 9000 new@hondanorth.com.au ‘DEALER OF THE YEAR’ 1996 ‘WA OVERALL EXCELLENCE’ 1996, 1998, 2003 ‘WA SALES EXCELLENCE’ 1996, 1997, 1998, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005
Page 7