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WYD: Sydney converted, it’s time to rein-in Spain
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On Sunday Pope Benedict will announce that Madrid will be the World Youth Day host city for the next event in 2011. The focus will then shift from Cardinal George Pell and Sydney, as the Catholic world focuses its attention to another battleground in the fight to resurrect a dying religion’s popularity. Spain is, for the Vatican, the last bastion. Not only is Spain experiencing the usual drop in Catholic adherence, but the country now has a socialist government within a society that is very liberal. Abortion, divorce and gay marriage are all legal, so the Church must make some inroads to reverse these trends. Leading the charge will be some of the most right-wing and conservative elements of the Church. The elite Opus Dei with their stranglehold on power in the Vatican will of course be there but not far behind are the newer and more youthful right-wing organisations. And they are all here in Sydney. From the outside, this big youth day event appears to be a religion united, but nothing could be further from the truth. Such is the rift between the right-wing and more liberal elements of the Catholic Church many within are busting at the seams to come out and say what they think. To understand the politics of what is happening domestically, it is vital to understand that Pell isn’t particularly popular among your rank-and-file Catholics and this whole World Youth Day event is less about the Pope, and more about our local Cardinal boosting his career opportunities in the Vatican and impressing the people that matter. With the Pope by his side, he can hurl a few two-fingered salutes to the liberal members of the congregation. Aside from Opus Dei, one of the organisations prominent in youth day events is a big contingent of neocatecumenals, an extremely conservative organisation that emerged out of Spain and has spread to more than 105 countries and more than 860 parishes worldwide. I understand that 40,000 neocatecumenal pilgrims have descended on Australia, 3000 from Spain. For a moment, forget about all the Guy Sebastian, hippy type guitar events, this World Youth Day is largely influenced by restorationist Vatican I theology. Out with new fangled liberal views on environmental concerns, the role of women in the Church, contraceptives and gays and in with Opus Dei, Eucharistic Adoration, aggressive evangelism, relics of stigmatics and a host of rites that haven’t been seen in Australia since the introduction of Vatican II. Cardinal Pell will be presiding over a meeting of the neocatecumenals on Monday and has asked them to make the Gospel spread around Australia and provide some spiritual help for a country that has some “very serious problems”. For the left of the Church these associations are having some very practical and alarming consequences. Stephen Crittenden reported in last week’s episode of the ABC’s Religion Report, that in one instance “the Jesuits have been ordered to withdraw their plan to host a forum with the gay Catholic group Acceptance and PFlag, the organisation for parents and friends of young gays and lesbians”. All this will very pleasing for the Opus Dei members in the Vatican. As soon as the Pope arrived, Pell swiftly transported him to Australia’s Opus Dei headquarters. Pell is one of its 500 or so members in Australia. Opus Dei isn’t particularly popular here and is at odds with many. “There is a great dissatisfaction with the Restorationist spirituality, which is also devoid of any commitment to social justice,” Fr Confeggi, a parish priest in the outer Sydney suburb of Mount Druitt, told The Sydney Morning Herald. Many of the kids flying in from all over the world would be unaware of this theological undercurrent. Nevertheless, they will be the ones taking part in these baroque rituals that will not necessarily take them closer to God, but will move them toward the Opus Dei view of the Church. At one stage, George Pell even wanted to get the Catholic conservative and sometime racist Mel Gibson to direct the WYD Stations of the Cross ritual. It never happened, but we are getting close to the type of doctrines exposed on the youth walking around Sydney with their red back packs. And none of this even comes close to the worries within the Church over the cost. It’s costing the Church an estimated $150 million on top of the $86 million that NSW taxpayers are throwing in. The left of the Church might have other ideas for where they would rather spend that money. Let’s see how they go in Madrid in three years time. |
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19 Comments
As a rank and file Catholic this whole World Youth Day traversty represents a profoundly disturbing trend in the life of the Australian Church. The whole truimphalist rhetoric of the conservative wing of the Church is deeply disturbing to many of the Vatican II generation. How can people take us seriously as attempting to imitate the life of Christ when the “leaders” of our Church get about like rennaissance grandees in two metres of brushed silk? In the long run demographics are on our side - in fifteen years there won’t be enough clerics to enforce the choking clericism in which the Church finds itself today
Nothing to tell in the way of gossip. Ah! Now I’ve got it. Have I got Hindi/Indian blood in me? I wish I had, I would have been better looking than I already was. If you know what I mean. No no. I used the word Gymkhana to imply something being ridden. As the world knows the Priests do an awful lot of riding. It’s just that they don’t ride horses. Do they?
Tell the truth Vene, you and Bene - it’s a rollercoaster love-hate-love thing
You may have a point about the battle between right and left wing factions in the Catholic church but at the end of the day they’re singing from the same hymn book in a very broad church.
But look under the surface and you will find thousands of people dedicated to social justice in a manner that should be an embarrassment to other branches of the Christian faith. WYD has provided international exposure for the Australian film “The Jammed” about people trafficking for slavery and sexual exploitation. See http://www.thejammed.com
George Pell and Anthony Fisher: The truly great exponents of “Love” ‘Catholic style’ Rape the kids; afterwards kick ‘em in the crutch.
It is not surprising to see this event as a re-triumph of the right wing of the Church - Has anybody bother to ask Danny Casey (CEO of WYD) of his family’s links with the good old DLP?
JamesK,
Welcome back; did you enjoy the Gymkhana? Crikey has been devoid of Catholics for the past 48 hours. You sound a bit spaced out????Whatever it is enjoy it. BTW the name is Venise and WTF does Bene mean? OMG it’s a joke isn’t it? Bene is short for Benedict isn’t it? I think you should join with JJ by not resort to humour; it doesn’t suit either of you.
what really ruffles my vestments is the aussie media constantly referring to these kids as ‘pilgrims’
my mum walked 500 km solo across spain with a shell around her neck, just to see some old bones, then turn around and walked back again - nobody handed her a special pope-branded meat pie.
what a weak, cushy journey of spiritual awakening. those protesters are pretty lame too.
“Gymkhana” yet again. You have a curious predilection for that hindi word Venise……..
Is there something you should share with us?
Thank you for this illuminating article, which explains a lot to me. As a (very) lapsed Catholic, I’ve observed the events of the current week with interest and also with an emerging sense of discomfort. I was a bit disturbed by the importation of the incorruptable remains of some 20th century Italian saint and other artifacts of a Catholicism my aged Mother might recognise but which is alien to me, despite 13 years of Catholic school education. These events, along with veneration at the tomb of Mary McKillop by the Pope strike me as archaic and superstitious. I don’t recognise them and that, for some reason, troubles me because it is repellant. I’m also troubled by the emergence of Opus Dei and the choice of the Pope to stay at this extreme organisations HQ but is probably explained by the fact that Cardinal Ratzinger was in charge of the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith before his election to the papacy, which was known as the Inquisition until 1908.
So, the Catholic church is moaning about the cost of the Gymkhana? That’s easily fixed. Flog off a few Michaelangelos, a few solid gold alter-pieces and some da Vincis. That should tide them over until Madrid.
The pope aka Ratzinger doesn’t give a rat’s ars*e about anyone who is not a Catholic. The porridge-faced Mary McKillop wouldn’t have rated a mention had her name been Doris Finkelstein, Chu Chin Chow or Fatima Mahmoud. Nothing like a bit of ethnic cleansing for the man who came in from the cold. Siegheil mein Furher!
I am appalled at the amount of taxpayer money put into this event. I am asking if someone can explain what NEOCATECUMENTAL” is, I have googled it and cannot find any definitions, just articles in spanish or italian. It is a word I have never heard before. I am not surprised at there being a major political agenda behind all the hoorah of “WYD” & Mr Ratzinger’s visit. Only keep our hard earned tax money out of it!!
George Pell and Anthony Fisher: The truly great exponents of “Love” ‘Catholic style’ Rape the kids; afterwards kick ‘em in the crutch.
Marshall - it is true that most articles about the neo cats are in Italian and Spanish as that is the real spread of their influence.
A relatively mild entry exists on Wikipedia going some way to explain the background;
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neocatechumenal_Way
Marshall, I also encourage you to go to this site for more information on the Neo Cats.
http://www.cathud.com/LINKS/pages_MR/neocatechumenate.htm
And Stephen Crittenden from the Religion Report has quite a revealing interview from Wednesday that shows the very real influence of these people.
http://www.abc.net.au/rn/religionreport/stories/2008/2311672.htm
The nuns beat into me that there were 10 Commandments - with number 9 being “Thou shall not lie”.
Has George Pell forgotten about this one?
The coca cola company developed Fanta in order to be able to continue making soft drink during WW2. It is still il pappa Ratzi’ favourite drink(as recently reported in our press). Some things never change. Surely we must be in for a tourch light parade or two, to really bond the tribe & dull the critical faculties
Pell’s language is a divisive.
This was the man that in his homily at Barrangaroo welcomed those from “the United States our ally”. Why would you do that? Why bring politics of a grand-standing into the homily? Have you forgotten that we are listening for God’s word through you? Did God suddenly direct you to embrace an aggressor that wanted to secure it’s oil supplies at the cost of a nation’s children? Shame.
Then Pell’s ‘gentle reminder to the young people’…If you wanted to encourage the young people into quiet prayer and reflection, create an environment where this is possible and invite them in. In 2000 years of history, I’m sure there are precedents. Lazy.
I get that our Lord on the one hand preached love and on the other hand was quite firm about what was and wasn’t acceptable to God - everything from the money-lenders in the Temple whom he banished to the prostitute whom he embraced and forgave - when she sought forgiveness and a new life away from her profession. I get that the Lord challenges us and gave his life so that we might live. He was confrontational - but he spoke of communion. Of unity, of living God’s will. Of caring for the weak, the poor, the sick and those estranged. Where is this language in Pell’s speeches? Where is the beauty and kindness in God’s message? Why is it all stick and no carrot? Lazy.
Why can’t our gay brothers and sisters be embraced by the church if they are living the word of God? Being gay’s not a crime. Hell, God created each and everyone one of us. It’s no surprise to him that some of his children are gay. God also created all the women. Why then the exclusion of women from the hierarchy of the church. Why no women priests? Why the exclusion of married couples? Do we have to lose all our priests and a crisis unfolds before they are embraced as was done in the Melkite church in the US (married priests)? Lack of foresight, planning and commitment. Lazy.
And a final note for Pell and Fisher…your refusal to confront the sexual abuse issue well before the WYD08 is coming home to roost…and when you’ve lost a child to abuse, you’re not just cranky mate. You’re ropeable. It was the church that the priest belonged to, that shielded him. Before a child of mine goes anywhere near your priests alone – and we’re weekly church going, practising Catholics…you’re going to have to prove to me that they can be trusted. You know what? Behaving so poorly towards the minorities in the Church - and stumbling often in the face of cries for change - you’ve failed. Again. Lazy.
To be a leader mate…you need followers. It’s going to might lonely with you as pope. Perhaps a gentle reminder to reflect quietly on that Eminence.