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“We are called to live life to the full, to enjoy all that God has given us and not be so serious”
Flight of faith, lost baggage By Robert Hiini HE WENT to World Youth Day for “the worst of reasons” but it seems God’s will won out. Marcus Beard shared his story with a crowd of about 400 at the post-World Youth Day “Sunday Sesh” on 18 September, organised by Perth’s Catholic Youth Ministry. Eighteen months ago, he said, he was struggling with depression and anxiety when he heard about WYD Madrid from a friend. “I decided World Youth Day would be a good idea – to get a cheap plane to Europe, make a few
apearances at Mass and then go off around Europe and do my own thing,” he said. “It didn’t exactly work out like that.” Going to Mass in the lead-up to WYD, he “fell in love with the Church” and the “awesome people” around him. He then ended up becoming a youth leader at Our Lady of the Mission in Whitford. The WYD experience also got him thinking about his vocation. He came to realise, he said, that all vocations – marriage, religious and single life – were valid and he would try to “keep his heart open” to discern the right one for him.
He recalled the storm that hit Madrid the night before the apex of WYD, the final Mass celebrated by Pope Benedict XVI. Huddling with his fellow pilgrims, it was his turn to lead the
“God loves it when we have a good time.” Rosary; something he had never done before and was reluctant to do. After some gentle persuading, he relented. “It was the most at peace I’ve felt in a long time,” he said. “I was sur-
rounded by these people praying against the storm; people I had only known for a few weeks but I really care deeply for and know that they felt the same way.” Marcus was one of several speakers at the Sunday Sesh event held at Corpus Christi College’s gym following a special WYD reunion mass at nearby St Thomas More Church, in Bateman. The night also featured music from the band Youth Impact and international Catholic recording artist Fr Rob Galea. In an hour-long performance punctuated by preaching, Fr Rob
Heaven’s that away .... Catholic music minstry Youth Impact puts the advice of international priest performer Fr Rob Galea into action.
roused the crowd with material drawn from his four-album repertoire as well as several choice covers of songs by the Black Eyed Peas and Taio Cruz. “One of the greatest passions I have is to tell people that God loves it when we have a good time,” Fr Rob said to a jubilant crowd. “We are called to live life to the full, to enjoy life and all that God has given us and not be so serious. “As Catholics sometimes we there with a candle in our hand so sweat and so holy. But that’s not what holiness is about. Continued on Page 5
PHOTO: MICHAEL CONNELLY
Case casts cloud over Adelaide process By Tim Wallace IT BEGAN as one man’s mission to make peace with his past and reconcile with the bride he deserted but still loved. But now the personal story of the Traditional Anglican Communion’s global prelate, Archbishop John Hepworth, has become something more. Archbishop Hepworth’s allegations of byzantine delays by the Archdiocese of Adelaide in acting on his complaints of sexual abuse, first raised in 2007, against two priests now dead and one still alive and running an Adelaide parish, have ignited a media firestorm. Contradictory versions of events proffered by Archbishop Hepworth
and the Archdiocese of Adelaide have put on the line the credibility of a leading figure in the most significant rapprochement of Protestants with the Catholic Church since the Reformation and the presiding head of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference. The issue that will vex the archdiocese is not why it took four years to begin a formal investigation but its alacrity since the complaint was formalised in February, given the back history and the complainant’s role in the reunification of Anglicans to the Catholic communion. On the periphery conspiratorial theories circulate. These involve the revelations’ timing, on the eve of
the Australian bishops’ five-yearly “ad limina” trip to report to the Vatican; the breaking of the story by The Australian reporter Tess Livingstone (biographer of George Cardinal Pell); and the contrast of Adelaide’s response to that in the Melbourne archdiocese, where Archbishop Hepworth’s complaints against two dead Victorian priests were upheld by independent commissioner Peter O’Callaghan QC. Melbourne’s protocol to handle abuse complaints, established by the then Archbishop Pell, predates the 1996 adoption of national “Towards Healing” guidelines. In a statement intepreted by some as implicit criticism of the Adelaide archdiocese’s response, Cardinal
Pell said: “More information seems to be needed to explain further to the the public any unusual delays in acting on this complaint, and the decision not to stand aside the person who has been accused.” Yet he also noted that: “Towards Healing procedures are genuine, adequate and work well.” Differences between the socalled “Melbourne Response” and Towards Healing were not about principles but procedure, said the executive officer the Australian bishops’ National Committee for Professional Standards, Sr Angela Ryan CSB. Melbourne directed complaints to an independent commissioner, Peter O’Callaghan QC, who assessed their validity and
then, if appropriate, referred them on to a compensation panel. Under Towards Healing, a contact report was first prepared by the relevant Church authority (in this case the Adelaide archdiocese). If an investigation was necessary, professional assessors were appointed to interview the parties and commake and assessment. The Adelaide archdiocese has adhered rigorously to the guidelines before proceeding to an assessment. Section 37.3 of Towards Healing stipulate a complainant not wishing to go to the police must sign a statement before the Church takes any action. That statement notes that the Church has “strongly urged” the Continued on Page 4