IN THIS EDITION: Parish Alive – The Way forward for Parishes; Six Pre-requisites for Effective Ministry; Buckets of Love 2022; Caritas Parish Program Support; The Rite of Election; Surprise Appearance at the Salesian Institute; Liturgical Ministries Training; Special Religious Development; Maitland Centenary; Lent at Sea; Focus on Vocations; Reducing our Carbon ‘Footprints’ at St Kizito; Access to Education Denied (again); St Gabriel’s Gugulethu Outreach; I left my heart in China; Miracles are happening at St Joseph’s Home.

FROM AD NEWS 4 OF 2022:

Is Climate Change real, or are the current weather patterns natural? Do you believe it will all be fine, and that there is too much hype around Climate Change? Do you feel that the way we live – our habits, and lifestyle – do not need to change?  

On 25 June 2022 Dr Christopher Jack from the Climate System Analysis Group (CSAG) at UCT said: …we’re really dealing with multiple things changing at the same time, which makes it very dynamic and quite complex. And, of course, we’re thinking across multiple timescales… many of us are very aware of climate change through the lens of increasing droughts and decreasing water availability, yet in Cape Town we still have flooding events, which is… too much rainfall, too much water, and these would seem to be somewhat contradictory”

Current projections suggest that “Cape Town will likely continue to get drier into the future… but we need to be aware that we must not expect less-extreme flooding events like we experienced in June and we’ve experienced previously. We need to be aware that potentially, extreme events will be increasing.

Believe it or not, we all must play our part in conserving our immediate environment, which will assist in the adaptation and, if necessary, the mitigation of disasters. We all need to be part of the end of Climate Change and work towards the restoration of a thriving Mother Earth for those of us living now, as well as for future generations.

Are we aware that what is happening in the environment around us is due to our actions? Are we aware of the hurt we cause our Creator when we litter? Are we aware of the thirst we create when we waste water?

As a new year’s resolution begin your own personal eco-audit for yourselves, in your homes, in your community, and in your parish. Become aware of your lifestyle. Ask yourself if you are part of the solution to this restoration or if you are a part of the problem?

We need to ‘see, judge and act’ – which the Church calls us to both in the Synod of Synodality and in Caring for Creation. There are seven Laudato Si’ Goals, which are also part of the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals. These are fully inclusive of all areas of life on the planet and need everyone’s attention to achieve a sustainable and thriving future on Mother Earth.

On the Archdiocese website you will be able to link to the Eco-audit https://adct.org.za/laudato-si-caring-for-our-environment/ that you can begin. The Seven Goals need to be met for an end to Climate Change and harmony on Mother Earth. See where you are at, discern the most important areas to begin and then take the plunge and make changes in your life.

Berni Crewe-Brown

A SYNOD RESPONSE, FROM AD NEWS 4 OF 2022:

The synod report promulgated by the Archbishop a short while ago gives the Church valuable insight into the most pressing needs of today. The synod’s role was not to find out which teachings need to be modernised and changed through majority vote, but to discover areas of growth, both as Church and as individuals. In the area of marriage and family (chapter 10, page 11) many constructive points were raised and I would like to give a few pointers on the different topics.

It is perceived by many that a family is, in the eyes of the Church, a heterosexual couple with children. While there is no doubt that this is indeed the model of a family, it is being challenged in society today as not the only model. Different and diverse models of family are now acceptable and the Church needs to move forward in the acceptance of such models. It is rightly argued that, at both parish and Archdiocesan level, recognition and acceptance of all types of families is welcomed, but the teachings of the Church has not moved forward towards this recognition. 

The heterosexual couple with children is indeed the model of the family. Families are cemented together either by biological ties (parenthood, blood-relations) or by the ties created by the Sacrament of Matrimony. Family is more than just people living together or getting along and liking each other. Families need constancy and lifelong commitment, which the marriage vows should represent. It is important that we as Church need to value and safeguard this sacred space of the family as the ideal for every Christian to follow. We all need to work constantly on strengthening the bonds of family love in our own lives. Jesus himself “set forth a demanding ideal, yet never failed to show compassion and closeness to the frailty of individuals” (AL 38). We should, therefore, not compromise our high standard when it comes to the ideal family and feel pressurised to recognise and accept any and every form of human relationship as equal to marriage and family. 

Lowering the ideal so that everyone feels included does not help genuine growth, conversion, and change for the better. Loving is hard, commitment is hard, sacrifices are hard, and most of the time we do not get it right. In every situation, we as Church need to embrace and welcome everybody, but we also have “the responsibility of helping them understand the divine pedagogy of grace in their lives and  offering them assistance so they can reach the fullness of God’s plan for them” (AL 297). As a Church we need to acknowledge that we might have not done that well and many times might have left people alone in their difficulties and struggles.

Family life, in whatever form it takes, is seen as the bedrock of society, and the breakdown of family life is a sad occurrence, happening all too often in society today. Questions are raised around marriage preparation given by the Church, which is seen by many as inadequate. There is a call for marriage preparation to be more thorough, more developed and more expansive. 

The sad reality of failing marriages and the breakdown of family life is not only caused by a lack of marriage preparation. Many other factors have a strong influence on this. Wounds received in one’s own family and during one’s own upbringing have the habit of surfacing later in life and influencing our own decisions and actions. The obsession of society with individualism, the reduction of love to a mere emotion, the fear of commitment, and many other societal factors influence the way we conduct our married and family life. It is crystal clear that a quick chat in Father’s office before the wedding will not adequately prepare couples for the challenges of marriage. I am grateful for the suggestion of a more thorough marriage preparation programme. The popes have called for this for the last 30 years without much changing on the ground. A few months ago the Vatican promulgated a lengthy document dealing with a more thorough “journey of preparation” that will hopefully be implemented gradually in our Archdiocese too. 

Fr Dominic Helmboldt

Marriage & Family Co-ordinator in the Archdiocese of Cape Town