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Catholic 'big day out' By Peter Rosengren The Year of the Great Jubilee in the Catholic Archdiocese of Perth will culminate later this year in an unparalleled two-hour event with organisers planning to fill Subiaco Football Ground's 42,000 seats. In one of the largest events of its kind ever to be celebrated in Perth, Benediction before the expected massive crowd centring on the theme of Christ the King will conclude the afternoon's celebrations on Sunday, 26 November. Catholics around the archdiocese have been urged to begin thinking about organising groups from their parishes and schools to be present from 4pm-6pm at Subiaco Oval, Servile Father Christopher Ross told The Record last Monday. Fr Ross is the chairman of the committee organising the event. The Great Jubilee Celebration, as the event is being called, will focus on four themes - the first three consisting of the official Perth jubilee themes of Christians journeying through time, space and with others. The emphasis on Christ the King will make up the fourth and final part of the evening. Organisers want parishes and schools to see the mega-ceremony as the culmination of their own jubilee Year activities. While details of the evening have not been finalised a script for the event is in the process of being prepared.
Those organising the event are conscious that it will be viewed by people sitting in the stadium's seats and looking down towards the surface of the ground. Song, dance, music, dramatisation and common worship through Benediction will therefore aim to make the event spectacular and will involve the audience as much as possible, Fr Ross said. "That's not easy to do . . . . but we don't want people to just sit down and watch," he emphasised. "You can't do these things except on a grand scale . . . . we want to capture people's imagination as much as possible." it has to be big, with movement and action - it has to fit the size of this place," he said at the ground last Monday week. Fr Ross said the committee was aiming to organise an internationally-known guest speaker for the Eucharistic part of the evening. "We want a 'name' that will attract people to come," he said. Although there will be no Eucharistic procession, Archbishop Barry Hickey will conduct the Benediction ceremony in the centre of the stadium. The Archbishop will welcome people to Subiaco oval and speak later in the celebration as well. Fr Ross said the committee was hoping to begin the ceremony with the sound of horns, hearkening back to the use of ram's horns as described in the Old Testament. The term 'jubilee' originates in the Jewish word for a ram's horn - lobe!' - he said. However the committee also wants to add a distinctly 'Australian' flavour to the
Fr Chris Ross at Subiaco Oval - hoping large parish contingents will fill the stadium.
evening through the use of didgeridoos and, possibly, Aboriginal dancers. The Great Jubilee Celebration committee was also working on transport, logistics and the usual problems to be expected in organising such a large-scale event, he said. Parishes could regard travel to and participation in the evening as a way of making a symbolic pilgrimage, he suggested. While people would ordinarily go to Subiaco for weekend football games by themselves "we want to see whole parish groups come along," he said as he called parishes to begin thinking about the date
and organising their own groups to attend. The committee hoped to involve Catholic schools in a major way as well, Fr Ross said. Parishes could also see the celebration as the culmination of everything they have been doing in the Jubilee Year called by Pope John Paul II. "Everything they've done [in the parish] should all come to a head when they come to the central event," he said. "The tapering-off, or coda, could perhaps be the Christmas celebration [at parish level]," he suggested.
Roman custom returns in seven churches Lenten walk By Glynnis Grainger Around 300 people of all ages took part in last Saturday's Z5km Seven Churches Walk for Lent around the central city Catholic churches. This walk was based on the famous Lenten Seven Churches Walk in Rome, established by Pope Gregory the Great, and during which a great plague was said to have ended. Labor MP Ted Cunningham collected $1,020 in a quick whip around at Parliament House from 61 MPs and two journalists as sponsorship of his participation in the walk The money will go to
Mgr McDonald blesses the walkers.
Project Compassion. The walk began around 9.50am at St John's Pro-Cathedral, Victoria Avenue. It then progressed on pilgrimage to All Saints Chapel in Allendale Square, Perth; St Brigid's Church in Fitzgerald Street. West Perth: the Redemptorist Monastery in Vincent Street, North Perth; St Andrew's Melkite Church in Glendower Street. Lunch was taken in Hyde Park before returning to the pilgrimage at Sacred Heart Church in Mary Street, Highgate, and concluding at St Mary's Cathedral. Victoria Square, for the Jubilee Indulgence. After Confessions at 8.15am. Father Paul Fox, the walk co-ordinator, said Mass at 8.45am in St Mary's Cathedral, after which Mgr Thomas McDonald blessed the pilgrims. Fr Pad Fox leads the walkers on pilgrimage from the Redemptorist Monastery in North Perth. "I think people should do it more often; we should be more water or food today - I am fast- fill the journey. "It is lovely to see more will come," Mary said. One involved and proud to be ing." Fr Fox, Sr Lisette, from the so many people participating and man pushed his wife the whole Catholic," Enrico, one of the pil- Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary, and very invigorating," another pil- way in a wheelchair. A 20-seater grims, said at the Redemptorist five Franciscan Sisters of the grim said. "It is a wonderful thing. bus accompanied the pilgrims to Immaculate, took part in the walk The Stations of the Cross in each enable the elderly to rest. Monastery later. of the churchesIthink is marvel"I'm a little bit tired because of and led the prayers and hymns. "I was delighted with the The Stations of the Cross, with lous, particularly bringing peo- response and many people have my back," a Chinese-Australian pilgrim said. "I feel very happy two stations recited at each ple to get an indulgence. requested that a similar event be "It was good to have the Reli- held next year," Fr Fox told The and it is a lift in my spirits," his church, recitation of the Rosary wife said. "I try not to take any and hymns along the way, helped gious there. Next year, I hope Record