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Sport can help build up civilisation of love: Pope
Players hard after the ball in the Jubilee exhibition soccer match between the Italian team and foreign stars who play in Italy's premier league.
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A child reacts in front of Pope John Paul II as Italy nearly scores a goal during an exhibition soccer match in Rome's Olympic stadium last Sunday to celebrate the Jubilee for Athletes.
ROME (CNS) - As Sydney basked in post-Olympics bliss. the Vatican celebrated its own sports extravaganza and the Pope reminded the world that sports' positive values. common to all countries of the world. could help build the "civilisation of love." Rome's Olympic Stadium played host to the highlights of last weekend's Jubilee for Athletes: a Sunday Mass celebrated by Pope John Paul II. followed by a soccer
game between the Italian national team and foreign stars who play in Serie A, Italy's premier league. While the Holy Year event marked the first time a Pope officially attended a stadium soccer match, one Vatican observer's research found that Pope Sixtus IV sporadically watched a game vaguely resembling the contemporary sport way back in the late 1400s — a violent, all-day affair that brought the pontiff to his dow every few hours to check on the teams' progress. Archbishop Crescenzio Sepe, secretary of the Vatican's jubilee committee. said the last soccer game Pope John Paul saw before the Holy Year match was a televised 1982 World Cup clash between Poland and Italy. The [tope, a goalkeeper during his boyhood in Poland and an avid skier and hiker throughout much of his 80 years, said the Jubilee for Athletes brought to mind . 'many memories of my life tied to sporting experiences:* "Today, playing sports takes on great importance, because it can encourage young people to affirm significant values like loyalty, perseverance, friendship,
sharing (and) solidarity," he said to a cheering, banner-waving c:rowd of 70,000. Sports' positive values, common to all countries of the world, could also overcome "differences between cultures and nations," the Pope said. "Sports can, in fact," he said, "make a valid contribution to peaceful understanding (among) peoples and help the worldwide spread of a new civilisation of love." To illustrate sports' cross-cultural message, after lighting the stadium's Olympic flame, athletes released doves, a traditional sign of peace. into the air. The jubilee event, said the Pope. should spur athletes and sports officials to heed Holy Year 2000s call to reflection and conversion. VVhile promoting the positive aspects of sport, he said. industry leaders also must recognise instances that cloud sport's educational and spiritual potential. Among those present at the Mass and at a 28 October Vatican-sponsored conference on sports was Juan Antonio Samaranch. president of the International Olympic Committee. Continued on Page 15
Unity plea to bring Christ to Australia By Peter Rosengren Unity within the Church was essential if Australia was to be converted to Christ, Archbishop Barry Hickey told a special Jubilee Year gathering of archdiocesan movements and organisations at Aquinas College last Sunday. In fact, the sight of Catholics criticising each other in public upset him and he would like to see such disagreements kept within the Church, he said. The Archbishop also urged Catholics engaged in social tice work to refrain from criticising each other. And if God calls someone to great generosity, and that person responds to God's call, his or her generosity will be repaid a hundred-fold, he said. The Archbishop also urged people to give themselves generously to their families and, if they are not married, "to look for the real I Sject of our love and devotion." He asked those at the meeting to join him in re-proclaiming the final words of a Mexican priest martyred in 1927 by anti-Catholic
forces: "Viva El Christo Rei" or 'long live Christ the King.' This is a cry Catholics should adopt as their own. the Archbishop said. Sunday's meeting, modelled on a 1998 Rome meeting of Pope John Paul II with members of Church movements from around the world, was a rare occasion in the life of the Church in Perth. Although Church movements are engaged in a huge variety of fields of work - from helping drug addicts and the homeless, to marriage and faith education, helping the disabled, prayer and health ministI .s, to name a few - they rarely meet together. The day-long meeting saw a large number of archdiocesan As Bishop he is a symbol of unity particular area and that it is movements in attendance as representatives from each gave short in the Church; worldwide the impossible to do everything. presentations on the work they Holy Father is a symbol of the Likewise, a pro-life worker had unity, he said, adding: told him the same thing. he said. Io. 'i i must work at that and On the importance of unity "So we "Ithink people involved in social has helped. We know that today among Catholics, the Archbishop justice issues should not criticise said: "Australia needs the mes- I. , . ,iversity we are united." each other but support each said that,one The sage of Christ, therefore unity Archbishop said. priest, well-known for his work other," the among us is very important." he wanted to be a As Bishop, His comments came in an for social justice for Aboriginals, he said, adding of unity, symbol address focusing on the variety of had told him that he had been personally, who is not he, that it is being involved criticised for not Church movements and organiimportant but his position as a sations and the need the world in other social justice issues. has for Catholics to shine the light However the priest had told him successor of the Apostles. Meanwhile, he said. "it is imporof Christ. he feels his call from God s I this H'ishop
Archbishop Hickey cans for unity at the Jubilee movements conference at Aquinas College last Saturday. Left, local Indonesian Catholic musicians added laughter and excitement to the conference. Photos Peter Rosengren
tant that you stay in unity with me andI with you." "It upsets me very much when Catholics criticise each other in public, so let's keep our disagreements within the Church," he said. Meanwhile, he said, one of the extraordinary features of the pontificate of Pope John Paul II had been the number of beatifications he had carried out. Some might dismiss this as unimportant. On the contrary, S ea cations were very important, he said. "VVhat the Holy Father has said is 'tell me about your holy people and martyrs and the Church will I old them up to the world'." Continued on Page 5