by Frances Correia

The murder of Senzo Meyiwa is front page news, and dominating social media. His shocking death has stunned us as a nation. Here is a young man who was a symbol of hope and an inspiration for many other young South Africans. His tragic death reminds us all of the reality we live with, that ours is an incredibly violent society.

South Africa is not the poorest country in the world. But we are one of the most violent. I believe that this is because Apartheid has left us with deep psychological wounds.

I think that greatest harm we suffer from Apartheid is one we rarely talk about. It is a subtle damage done to our sense of self and to our sense of others. For generations people were regarded as things. The mines demand for cheap labour was used to justify the 1913 land act, and the migrant labour system. From this resulted a profound disruption of family life, which continues to today. Most South African children are not brought up by both parents, not were their parents or their grandparents. This terrible disruption is primarily not as a result of any wilful choice by their parents to abandon their children, but as a result of socio-economic pressures many of which were wilfully imposed by the state in order to create a situation of cheap labour. In the post-Apartheid era this profound disruption of family life has continued and become worse with the rise of HIV AIDS and the illness and deaths of many parents. I think that some of the extreme violence we see in our country, is as a direct consequence of the many children who have been inadequately loved or parented themselves. The nature of our violence, whilst it is often economically motivated, is also domestic and frequently targets the most vulnerable.

We are a damaged and damaging people. Children who have been abused, neglected or raped, are more likely to grow up to be violent adults. In a context where we know that family life is seriously compromised, we also know that our education system is also failing. While schooling can never replace the love and formation of the home, it seems that mostly South African schooling has further failed children in the secondary system that should support them.  It has shifted from an ‘education for servitude’ of the past to education for unemployment.  Little wonder then that our youth are so angry and violent.

How can we help the current generation of children better? How can I help my local school to do better? How can I help the young adults around me as they embark on the difficult task of creating a family and having children? How can we as their extended families help them to make the commitment to marriage and family life? How can I better support the people around me who are carrying the burden of childrearing, whether they are single parents, married parents, grandparents, or other family members? This crisis is old and on-going, and can only be solved if we all consciously begin to work to solve it. If we fail to solve it then its effects will continue to plague our society with violence and abuse.

Below is a transcript of an interview Archbishop Brislin gave to Vatican Radio.

(Vatican Radio) The concerns and the challenges of the family in Southern Africa have been brought to the Synod arena by the Archbishop of Cape Town, Stephen Brislin, who is also the President of the Southern African Catholic Bishops Conference (SACBC).

Pointing out how hard Synod participants are working, with long and intense sessions that require much concentration and focus, Archbishop Brislin said the Synod is a wonderful opportunity to listen to first-hand accounts of different realities across the globe with the aim of finding ways of giving pastoral help to families in crisis. “Getting away from judging and condemning” he said “we have to find ways to give support” by finding and taking “what is good, and building upon that”.

Speaking to Vatican Radio’s Linda Bordoni, Archbishop Brislin said the social and family reality he and his brother bishops are faced with in Southern Africa is quite particular as, according to recent research, in South Africa there is no “typical” family…

Listen to the interview:

00448702.mp3

On behalf of the SACBC Brislin says he presented the input and concerns about the pastoral concerns of families, noting that in his geographical area there is no such thing as a “typical” family in the sense that only 27 % of African children grow up in families where both biological parents are present.

That – he says – is just an example: “there are many broken families, many families experience abuse, conflict and violence, and we do realize that many children are growing up in families that are characterized by trauma and violence”.

Pointing to the fact that at the opening of the Synod Pope Francis invited all participants to speak freely and to listen carefully to the input of others – and Brislin says that it is his impression that everyone is doing just that, Brislin says “There is nobody pushing a particular ideology or a particular standpoint”.

Of course – he said –  people are bringing up their concerns and there is a great diversity, but he says he  believes people are listening and trying to understand the particular local circumstances brought to the forum.

Brislin says that because of its history and political past, the situation in Southern Africa is quite different to the situation in other Sub Saharan African Nations, but he notes, there are common threads – not only in Africa but throughout the world.

He points to the issue of divorce and separation which is a growing problem in Africa as it is in the rest of the world. But the example of polygamy – brought up by some of the other African Bishops – is a first for a Synod and he says it is a very interesting question.

Brislin agrees that inter-religious marriage and coexistence presents issues that are, generally speaking, not a problem in Southern Africa where – he says – there is a respect for the other. And in his experience the issues that come to the surface in mixed marriages are issues that can be sorted out pretty peacefully.

The Archbishop of Cape Town speaks very positively of the testimonies provided by the couples who have been invited to speak to the Synod Fathers of their thoughts and experiences which he says have been very helpful: “we should never forget this is a pastoral synod that recognizes that there are many families in pain, many families that are failing, that are seeking help, solace, comfort and consolation”.

What we are saying – Archbishop Brislin said –  is that the Church does and must teach about marriage “but this is not about laying down the law, it is about how can we reach out to people? How can we recognize that in all the imperfections of our humanity and all the imperfections that exist in families, how can we take what is good and what is positive and try to develop that even better?”

Brislin says the issue of the effects of forced migration on families is a huge one at the Synod and it is coming out from a number of countries. South Africa – he says – deals with this problem because of the legacy of apartheid where so many families were forced apart, mainly because of work (men who worked on the mines were forced to leave their families for years at a time), and he says this continues today where people have to leave their families to seek work in the cities, and from this many problems derive with a huge impact on Southern African families.

“The whole Synod in a sense is going further than family life itself in it that it is asking itself: what sort of a Church should we be?” he said.

“ We should be a church that is reaching out to people, a Church that is caring, a Church that is compassionate, a Church that is not judging or condemning people, but a Church that is welcoming and accepting” he said.

And finally, asked what he will be taking back with him once the Synod comes to a close Brislin said : “What I will be taking back to Cape Town and to South Africa is the urgency about having to find ways of giving pastoral help to families in crisis”.

“We have to get away from judging and condemning and to say how can we give support? How can we build? How can we take what is good and build upon that?” he said.

And if that message can get across and into our Parish communities then I think we really will become a better Church” he said.

by Fr Russell Pollitt, SJ

“Synod assemblies are not meant to discuss beautiful and clever ideas; or to see who is more intelligent,” Pope Francis said last Sunday at the opening mass of the Synod on the Family. This Synod is important and is being watched closely by people from all walks of life, not just Catholics. It has the potential to be a turning point for the Catholic Church.

The Pope’s homily at the mass was brief but forceful. He told the 191 Synod Fathers from all over the world that “God’s dream clashes with the hypocrisy of some of his servants.” He also said “Bad pastors lay intolerable burdens on the shoulders of others, which they themselves do not lift a finger to move.” It is clear that Pope Francis wants open and frank discussion about real issues affecting the family today and the teaching of the Church. On Monday, in his opening remarks at the Synod, Francis urged the bishops present to “speak boldly and listen with humility.”  There has already been rigorous public debate and disagreement between senior Cardinals about a few issues; the most debated being that of the possibly admittance to communion of divorced and remarried Catholics.

Each session of the Synod opens with a married couple giving testimony from their own experience on the topic of that session. On Monday afternoon an Australian couple spoke candidly about their sex life and said that it was “extremely hard to appreciate the beauty” of the Church’s teachings prohibiting contraception.

The first days of the Synod covered some interesting ground. Two things struck me.

The first, Fr Thomas Rosica reported, was a discussion on how to change the “harsh language” used by the Church. Often the Church labels people, the Synod Fathers heard, with words that “are not necessarily words that invite people to draw closer to the Church.” A few members of the Synod referred to three terms commonly used by the Church:

–          “living in sin” – referring to couples who live together before marriage

–          “intrinsically disordered” – referring to gay people

–          “contraceptive mentality” – to refer to a society that does not respect life.

Fr Rosica said that there were strong feelings in the Synod Hall that language has to change in order to meet the very difficult situations people find themselves in.

The second interesting discussion was on the theological notion of “graduality.” This means that Catholics grow towards adherence or understanding of Church teaching throughout their lives, it doesn’t just happen. The search for holiness is something we move towards, step by step, and God is with us now as we journey to holiness.

These discussions were framed but yet another point of view. Hungarian Cardinal, Péter Erdö, suggested that the Church re-propose and re-read the controversial 1968 Encyclical ‘Humane Vitae’ as a ‘positive message.’ He also pointed out that mercy, which has been a consistent theme for Pope Francis, “does not do away with truth nor relativise it, but seeks to interpret it correctly in the hierarchy of truths.” Nor does mercy, he said, “do away with the demands of justice.”

“Do not thwart God’s dream for his people!” Pope Francis said on Sunday.  There will be much more discussion as the Synod unfolds. What will be thwarted will be intriguing to watch: God’s plan? The ways things have always been? Or, perhaps, the aspirations and hopes of Catholics who long for change? Watch this space.

Please find attached details of this most exciting event planned for the beginning of the new term.

[gview file=”http://adct.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Meditation-15-16Oct.pdf”]

Below please find a letter and poster giving details of the upcoming Holy Childhood Mass

[gview file=”http://adct.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Poster-Holy-childhood.doc”] [gview file=”http://adct.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Holy-CHildhood-2014-Letter.doc”]

Below are some pictures of the SPRED annual Mass of Thanksgiving which was celebrated by chaplain Fr Mark Foster at St John’s, Maitland on Saturday 20 September 2014

SPRED (Special Religious Development) is a catechesis specially designed for the disabled.

Photos by Stephen Engelbrecht.

Below are some pics of the final session of the 2014 Catechetical Formation Programme at Lansdowne and Koelenhof.

Ending off with a braai at Koelenhof

The group at Koelenhof

Lansdowne

Lansdowne

Lansdowne

Lansdowne

Lansdowne

Please find below daily reflections for the National Week of the Older Person, 29 September – 5 October

[gview file=”http://adct.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/National-seniors-week.pdf”]

Attached is an introductory video for Ecclesia: Brave New Church for Youth and Young Adults.

Themes:

1. Fearless Love

2. Renew the Face of the Earth

3. An Instrument of Transformation

4. If you suffer, I suffer

5. Sisters and brothers on a journey

5. We are all Africans.

Monsignor Anthony Seba (14 November 1912–2 September 2014) died peacefully at Nazareth House, Cape Town and was buried from Christ the King Church in Pinelands on 9 September 2014. The Requiem Mass was presided over by Archbishop Stephen Brislin, and Fr Hugh O’Connor preached the homily. The funeral was well attended by priests of the Archdiocese, religious and parishioners alike.

Below are some pictures of the funeral, plus an account of his life and ministry.

Monsignor Anthony Seba was the sixth and last born child of Hanna (John) and Miriam (Mary) Seba. He was born in Cape Town on the 14th of November in 1912 and was baptised in St Mary’s Cathedral and later started schooling with the Cabra Dominican Sisters at St Mary’s Convent School and continued his schooling with the Marist Brothers. After making his First Communion he became an altar server and served until he was accepted by Bishop Bernard O’Riley for studies to the priesthood. In 1932 he was sent to Rome to begin his studies at Propaganda Fide. Fellow students at the time included Mgr Con Lynch and Owen Cardinal McCann.

In 1938, after the completion of his studies and ordination, he returned to Cape Town as the first South African of Lebanese descent to be ordained a priest. Bishop Francis Henneman SAC, of whom he was very fond, sent him as curate to Holy Cross in Nile Street under Mgr J.Galvin.

After serving at Holy Cross for two years he was appointed as one of the curates at St Mary’s Cathedral and for the next 10 years he ministered to the people of St Mary’s, serving also as the first official Catholic Chaplain to the Roeland Street Jail.

In 1950 he was appointed as Parish Priest of Sts Simon and Jude in Simon’s Town as well as Chaplain to the Royal Navy and later the South African Navy. While in Simon’s Town he witnessed the transfer of the Naval Base from British to South African Naval Command. During the time of forced removals under the Group Areas Act he appeared before the Group Areas Board testifying against forced removals in Simon’s Town receiving a letter of appreciation from the Chairperson of the Simon’s Town Group Areas Liaison Committee for his efforts.

After leaving Simon’s Town he went to Pinelands. He arrived there in 1960 and took up residence at St Joseph’s Sanatorium, now St Vincent Pallotti Hospital. The Pinelands Church at this time was in essence a Mass Centre served from the hospital. According to Mgr Seba it was only when he moved out of the hospital that the parish really came into its own.

During his time in Pinelands he oversaw the building of the hall, the purchase of the presbytery, the beautification of the grounds with the establishment of a garden planted with many of the trees and shrubs that are mentioned in the Holy Scriptures. He oversaw the renovation and extension of the church building. He secured the use of a piece of land in front of the Church which was developed into a parking area for the parishioners.

In 1977 he went to Rome to attend the canonisation by Pope Paul VI of St Charbel Makhluf, a relative of his. This brought him great joy and happiness as well as a tremendous sense of pride.

While in Pinelands he played an active role in civic, community and religious life of the suburb. In recognition of his long service to the people of Pinelands a public bench was dedicated in his honour by the municipality. The bench, which stands outside of the parish hall, is inscribed: “Donated by the people of Pinelands in recognition of service by Rev Anthony Seba, Parish Priest of Christ the King, Pinelands, 1960-1988.” During his time in Pinelands he also acted as an examiner for the junior clergy and wrote some sub leaders for the Southern Cross as well as book reviews. On occasion, with special permission, he also celebrated the Tridentine Mass.

After twenty eight rewarding years in Pinelands it was back to the seaside, for in 1988 he retired to St Theresa’s in Camps Bay. In 1992 he was made a Prelate of Honour and added the title Monsignor to his name, recognition by the Church of his long years of faithful service. He spent three happy years there but with failing eyesight it became time for another move. In 1991 he moved back to St Mary’s Cathedral. He was warmly welcomed there by Mgr Donald de Beer, and though in retirement Mgr Seba continued to assist the parish when necessary. It was at St Mary’s in 1998 that he celebrated his 60th anniversary of ordination to the priesthood while Mgr Andrew Borello was Administrator. At this celebration, quoting Marcus Aurelius he said, ”Think of what you have, rather than what you lack. Of what you have select the best. And then reflect how eagerly you have sought it, if you did not have it”. Of his priesthood he had this to say, “I cannot imagine what my life would have been without it. It has given me, even on a human level, all that I prize most. It has allowed me to develop as me. It has been an enrichment of my mind, my heart and personality as nothing else could have done. I believe that without it my life would have been an arctic waste”.

In the years that followed he moved into frail care at Nazareth House. He lived through the pontificates of Popes Pius X, Benedict XV, Pius XI, Pius XII, John XXIII, Paul VI, John Paul I, John Paul II, Benedict XVI and and died during the time of Pope Francis. In terms of the local Church he has lived under the following bishops of Cape Town: John Rooney, Bernard O’Riley, Francis Hennemann SAC, Owen Cardinal McCann, Stephen Naidoo CSsR, Lawrence Henry and Stephen Brislin. In March 2014 on the Feast of St Joseph he celebrated his 76th anniversary of priestly ordination.

Mgr Seba died peacefully in his room on 2 September 2014 at Nazareth House.