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The Parish. The Nation. The World.
Thursday May 12,
Western Australia’s Award-winning Catholic newspaper
Perth, Western Australia ● $1
WITNESS WAS JOHN PAUL II’S STRENGTH: New nuncio Page 2
KALUMBURU APPEAL: Help rebuild cyclone-affected mission Page 3
School offers JPII’s vision of sexuality AFL star to present parent, student seminars at Santa Maria College ■ By Jamie O’Brien
Former AFL star Stephen Lawrence will speak to parents about Pope John Paul II’s dramatic Theology of the Body at Santa Maria College on Friday evening, May 27. He will also speak on the same subject to students and youth at an all-day workshop. The seminar for parents and the all-day workshop for students and youth has been organised by Santa Maria College mother Josephine Stone and the archdiocesan Respect Life Officer Clare Pike. Mr Lawrence, who played for Hawthorn until the late 1990’s was a highly-skilled ruckman and star of the 1991 Grand Final game against the West Coast Eagles. These days Lawrence is still making his mark – but not on the football field. At present Mr Lawrence is the Convenor of the Catholic Chaplaincy at the University of Sydney. He has worked extensively with young people particularly in the areas of sexuality, contraception, and relationships. He has completed courses at the John Paul II Institute in Melbourne and taught at the University of Sydney. He has also taught at the Emmanuel School of Mission in Rome where he was director. A report in the Pregnancy
Australia’s first private medical school Help battlers: Saunders
about the human person. John Paul II taught the Theology of the Body, which is based on scripture, during his Wednesday audiences from 1979 to 1984.
Many families are still struggling to meet the basic necessities of living and must not be forgotten by a prosperous Australia, said the Chairman of the Australian Catholic Social Justice Council. They need a wage that guarantees dignity. The comment from Bishop Christopher Saunders of Broome, who chairs the Australian Bishops’ social justice lobby, came as he issued a pastoral letter for the Feast of the Church’s patron saint of workers on May 1. “At this time of national prosperity, we should remember the needs of people both in and out of work on the margins of the labour market. “Their need and entitlement is for a wage that ensures dignity for the worker and the family”, Bishop Saunders said on the Feast of St Joseph the Worker. “The Australian Catholic Commission for Employment Relations recently called for a significant increase in the minimum wage because, after tax and government benefits, many families are still struggling to meet the very
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Continued - page 2
Meet the staff and students (pictured above) of Australia’s first private medical school, established by the University of Notre Dame Australia and opened for classes in February this year - VISTA 1-3 in the centre of this week’s edition.
Assitance agency’s Abundant Life magazine in 2000 said Mr Lawrence is widely credited for his gift in presenting the Theology of the Body in a beautiful and simple manner. The ‘Theology of the Body’ is
Pope John Paul II’s integrated vision of the human person - body, soul, and spirit. As he explained, the human body has a specific meaning and is capable of revealing answers regarding fundamental questions
Commonwealth announces $3m Budget grant for Cathedral The Commonwealth Government has made a grant of $3 million towards the completion of St Mary’s Cathedral. The money was allocated in Tuesday night’s budget in the Environment and Heritage grants administered by WA Senator Ian Campbell, Minister for the Environment and Heritage. “That’s wonderful news,” said Archbishop Barry Hickey when he received the news while at the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference in Sydney on Tuesday
night. “The grant has come at an ideal time,” he said. “We have lodged our building plans with the Perth City Council and are awaiting their approval for the project to proceed.” “I am very grateful that the Commonwealth Government has supported major works programs at both the cathedrals in Perth,” he said, referring to a similar grant made in last year’s budget for restoration works at St George’s Anglican Cathedral. Archbishop Hickey also expressed
A BIRTHDAY TO REMEMBER The Archdiocese of Perth turned 160 this month. In the first of a new series Perth writer MARY BUSHER looks back on how the desire of the faithful started it all off.
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his gratitude to another WA Senator and Federal Minister, Senator Chris Ellison, for the work he had done in presenting the case for a grant to Prime Minister John Howard last year. Senator Ellison had made himself familiar with all aspects of the plans for completion of the Cathedral before taking the case to the Prime Minister. “I am thrilled the grant has come through,” Senator Ellison said on Tuesday night. “St Mary’s Cathedral has signifi-
cance for all Catholics in Western Australia and when it is finally completed after 140 years it will be a magnificent cathedral that will enhance the City of Perth,” he said. Archbishop Hickey also expressed his thanks to the many WA MPs and Senators from all political parties who had written to the Prime Minister supporting the request for a Federal grant. “They were generous in their support of the project as a genuine community asset, as were a number of businessmen and other commu-
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nity figures who also wrote to the PM,” he said. “I think there will be widespread satisfaction that the grant has come through,” he said. Mgr Thomas McDonald, chairman of the building project and Dean of the Cathedral, said he was very happy that the Commonwealth Government had included St Mary’s among the list of cathedrals, major churches and other important community buildings that had been assisted by the government in recent years.
SUFFER THE CHILDREN... - Page 6 - Page 7 - Pages 8-9 - Page 10
The head of the Vatican’s Missionary organisation for children will be in Perth in June with a message on behalf of millions of children living in poverty. Come and hear him.
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