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incorporating c at holiceduc at i o n connec ions project compassion be inspired 2012 feature feature feature 250 years of service celebrating christ s presence richard ross s lazarus experience 4 -6 complimentary 8 10 14 vol 8:4 august 2012

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inside this issue archbishop doyle writes news in brief features two hundred and fifty years of service celebrating the presence of christ a lazarus experience general news winter camp tales eyes wide open in timor-leste pastoral life year of grace edgeways fair or foul connections from the director walking running and riding for others 15 16 32-33 28-29 23 26 4­6 8 10 14 1 2­3 catholic church directory www.hobart.catholic.org.au catholic diocesan centre 35 tower road new town 7008 gpo box 62 hobart 7001 phone 03 6208 6222 fax 03 6208 6292 the office of the archbishop phone 03 6208 6222 fax 03 6208 6293 business manager ­ peter cusick cpa phone 03 6208 6227 fax 03 6208 6292 catholic development fund phone 03 6208 6260 fax 03 6208 6290 liturgy office phone 03 6208 6233 fax 03 6208 6292 marriage tribunal phone 03 6208 6250 fax 03 6208 6297 the office of church life and mission phone 03 6208 6232 fax 03 6208 6292 vicar general fr mark freeman vg 44 margaret street launceston 7250 phone 03 6331 4377 fax 03 6334 1906 chancellor fr terry rush vf pp po box 42 richmond 7025 phone/fax 03 6260 2189 catholic education office 5 emmett place new town 7008 phone 03 6210 8888 vocations ministry 99 barrack street hobart phone 03 6234 4463 tasmanian catholic justice and peace commission phone 03 6208 6271 fax 03 6208 6299 catholic youth ministry phone 03 6208 6274 towards healing help line phone 1800 356 613 museum and archives phone 03 6231 4740 heritage office phone/fax 03 6224 5920 centacare welfare services hobart 35 tower road new town 7008 phone 03 6278 1660 launceston 201 york street launceston 7250 phone 03 6332 0600 burnie 108 mount street burnie 7320 phone 03 6431 8555 devonport 85 best street devonport 7310 phone 03 6423 6100 willson training 35 tower road new town 7008 phone 03 6208 6000 diocesan ecumenical commission phone 03 6324 9708 a/h 03 6324 9826 the tasmanian youth choirs a quality choral experience 17 christmas card design competition northern snapshots st james stephanie alexander kitchen garden social concern helping the vulnerable stay the course 2012 vinnies ceo sleepout the fly flying on the airwaves ultra106.5 fm lifestyle book and dvd reviews rites of passage obituaries ken lowrie terry smee 39 40 36 ­ 37 38 30 24 25 34 17 18 19 and is published by the archdiocese of hobart and catholic education tasmania and is distributed to catholic schools hospitals retirement villages and parishes statewide we welcome contributions but no guarantee of publication can be given because of demands on available space hard copy versions of items for publication cannot be returned so please keep a copy photographs submitted will only be returned if accompanied by an addressed stamped envelope contributions advertising or other enquiries may be sent to the tasmanian catholic and connections gpo box 62 hobart tasmania 7001 cover photo sacred heart college teacher matt conolan with three friends in timorleste to read more please turn to page 27 cover photo connections students from st therese s catholic school in moonah enjoying the company of accomplished author and illustrator alison lester begins page 15 all material in this publication is copyright and must not be reproduced without the written permission of the archbishop of hobart or his authorised delegate deadline next edition sep 11 2012 the tasmanian catholic editor pip atkinson 03 6208 6230 0409 337 143 tascath@aohtas.org.au production and design cherie o meara 03 6208 6278 connections editor mary-anne johnson 03 6208 6234 0419 529 963 connections@cet.tas.edu.au printing foot and playsted launceston 03 6332 1400 fax 03 6332 1444

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1 archbishop doyle writes t is quite understandable that at this particular time a constant question asked of me is what are you going to do in retirement it is asked out of genuine interest and concern as there is anticipation that there will be some years of reasonable activity ahead also there are not many examples of retired bishops from which to draw the answers to the question can revolve about a new place to live some interests to pursue some assistance to provide and maybe visits to make but i sometimes wonder if that is all there is in recent weeks i have been reading a book by american spiritual writer richard rohr called falling upward the spirituality for the two halves of life the author makes the suggestion that life is divided into two parts with the first part being longer in duration but in fact serving as the preparation for the second part of life in the first half of life we are naturally preoccupied with establishing our identity of climbing achieving and performing these concerns will serve us well in the second half of our lives one that involves challenges mistakes loss of control and also suffering which will take us out of the earlier comfort zone the author says that when someone reaches the second half of life your concern is not so much to have what you love anymore but to love what you have on the feast of st john the baptist celebrated recently i had occasion to reflect on the famous words of the saint when he said of jesus he must increase and i must decrease as we grow older the real task of life is to continually hand over without bitterness regret or envy all the things that once were in our power i said on the occasion that this is a i your concern is not so much to have what you love anymore but to love what you have challenge which i face in the coming months when i will be handing over the responsibility of leadership of the archdiocese to another person it has been said that the hardest part of this process is forgiveness to exit graciously we have to forgive others god and ourselves for the fact that our lives did not turn out they way they might have and that we did not achieve all that was within our capacity or reflective of the opportunities that came to us in the gospels there are also two parts in the early part we find a description of the activities of jesus and how he gave his life for us by what he did for us in the second part the gospels describe the passivity of jesus and how he gave his death for us by what he passively absorbed for us we tend to define life on the basis of health productivity usefulness and what we can actively contribute to others or bring to the table as they say so what about those who have nothing more to contribute nothing more to bring to the table maybe the situation for the older person is like the stone at the bottom of the riverbed it does nothing but stays still and holds its ground but the river has to take account of the presence of the stone and alter course accordingly older people have to be considered and patterns need to be adjusted simply because they are there very often the question revolves around what one can still do to make a contribution perhaps the question should be how can i now live so that when i die my death will be an optimal blessing to my family the church and the world the second half of life should not be seen with trepidation but as an opportunity to build on the experiences of earlier life the first half of life is spent writing the text the second half is an opportunity to write the commentary on the text i pray that all those in the second half of life myself included will have the time to write the commentary and that it will be most valuable to the writer but also to those close enough to read it may god be close and guide us at all times yours sincerely in christ adrian l doyle am archbishop of hobart www.hobart.catholic.org.au

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2 volume 8 issue 4 2012 news in brief news in brief news in brief news in brief news in brief news in brief news in brief news in brief news in brief tunnack book launch calvary cook off a t recent farewell afternoon tea for archbishop doyle took on a different perspective ­ that of judging the best cake a friendly competition between calvary ceo kathryn berry and director of mission belinda clarke saw them both present a cake at the function held at the home of sisters of the little company of mary in lenah valley staff from calvary campuses in the north and south joined the sisters in thanking archbishop for his support over the past twelve years with sr bernadette fitzgerald congregational leader of the little company of mary also travelling from sydney as for the cake judging the archbishop diplomatically declared each submission to be as good as the other wo years ago at the blessing after-party of the newly restored st brigid s church at tunnack a group of friends reminiscing about their school days decided it would be a great idea to write a book about their town tunnack a small pioneering town tucked away in the southern midlands has produced more than its fair share of leaders over the decades including a melbourne lord mayor thomas nettlefold 1942-45 a senior police officer clarence byrne a supreme court judge robert nettlefold a queen s counsellor brian nettlefold and a muchloved priest fr tom bresnehan the friends of tunnack now wish to invite all to the launch of a collection of memories tunnack tasmania at victoria hall sunday october 14 2012 at 1.00pm written and first school teacher researched by kath miss burke beven and the friends of tunnack heritage committee the book costs $40.00 please bring cash as there are no credit/eftpos card facilities at the hall some food will be available beforehand from 11.30am contact maria rodgers on 03 6272 5952 for more information all proceeds will go towards the restoration of graves at tunnack cemetery fr tom bresnehan sr leonie and sr augustine maguire architects provide professional personalised architectural services across tasmania we value your ideas and work with you to create inspiring and functional living and working environments we strive to create timeless architecture with embodied spirit responsible to budget and the environment new leader for l arche international e ileen glass am of canberra has become the first australian to be appointed to lead l arche international ms glass was elected international viceleader at the l arche international general assembly in atlanta in june 2012 she will serve with international leader patrick fontaine of france for the next five years l arche is an international federation of communities of people with and without an intellectual disability founded by frenchcanadian jean vanier in 1964 ms glass as one of the founders of l arche in australia has been a member of the community for 38 years since she first came across l arche as a young woman in france in the 1970s deeply moved at seeing gospel values so authentically lived the former school teacher spent two years as a volunteer with l arche w innip e g in canada she then helped establish the first l arche community named genesaret at bungendore nsw in 1978 which relocated to canberra in 1981 on january 26 1996 ms glass was awarded the member of the order of australia am for her support of people with intellectual disabilities and their families she is currently a member of the international reflecting council and chair of the international working group on the l arche covenant www.hobart.catholic.org.au new homes alterations and additions multi-residential projects heritage projects commercial projects archicad 3d visualisation no obligation initial consultation city mill 11 morrison st hobart maguirearchitects.com.au mail@maguirearchitects.com.au 0438 312 558

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wallis lecture in october f ambassador to the holy see a rchbishop doyle recently met with australia s next ambassador to the holy see mr john mccarthy qc mr mccarthy will replace the hon tim fischer ac who served until january 2012 the office of the ambassador has allowed closer dialogue with the vatican on a broad range of issues including food security interfaith dialogue religious freedom international humanitarian relief and the promotion of peaceful and sustainable development mr mccarthy is a senior lawyer who has been involved in public and church affairs for many years he has had extensive engagement in university education and governance sports and arts administration legal aid and professional committees and international charitable and disaster relief activities mr mccarthy was senior counsel for the dunghutti people appearing in their successful native title case in the federal court in 1997 r max vodola will be presenting the john wallis memorial lecture in tasmania this october the topic is in the vanguard ahead of their times john xxiii john wallis guilford young and vatican ii sponsored by the john wallis foundation missionary sisters of service and guilford young college the wallis lecture will be presented in both hobart and launceston fr max lectures at the catholic theological college on the history of the church in australia 19th/20th century catholicism and vatican ii he has a bachelor of theology and master of theological studies from the melbourne college of divinity a master of arts from monash university and a doctorate in church history from monash university his doctoral thesis was on john xxiii vatican ii and the genesis of aggiornamento in 2006 mr mccarthy was appointed knight commander of the order of st gregory the great kcsg by the holy see for services to the catholic church in australia and to the wider australian community in 2012 he was appointed an honorary fellow of the university of sydney mr mccarthy was born in 1947 in parkes nsw and educated at the university of sydney bachelor of arts and bachelor of laws and university of virginia master of laws he is married with six children launceston lecture monday october 22 2012 venue emmanuel centre 123 abbott st launceston time 7.00pm ­ 9.30pm rvsp for catering purposes janny scally emmanuel centre 03 6334 1082 or office@emmanuelcentre.org congratulations billings correction f i r gerald quinn cp has been conferred a life membership with spiritual care australia to recognise the years of service he has given to chaplaincy services at both state and national levels archbishop doyle said it is a an appropriate recognition of the 23 years that fr quinn has been involved but more importantly of his tireless and dedicated service as a chaplain at the rhh and other hobart facilities i continue to be grateful for fr quinn s contribution on behalf of the catholic church to both hospital staff and patients hobart lecture tuesday october 23 2012 venue the undercroft guilford young college barrack street hobart time 7.00pm ­ 9.30pm cost $10 or a donation to the john wallis foundation rsvp for catering purposes gaye richardson gyc 03 6238 4357 or principal@gyc.tas.edu.au n our previous edition june 2012 vol 8:3 the natural family planning story on pages 8-9 contained an error the website for billings life quoted at the end of the article should have been www.thebillingsovulationmethod.org billings life also offers telephone counselling on their toll free number 1800 335 860 we apologize for any confusion to our readers www.calvarycare.org.au www.hobart.catholic.org.au news in brief news in brief news in brief news in brief news in brief news in brief news in brief news in brief news in brief news in brief 3

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250 years of service five priests from the archdiocese of hobart mark fifty years since their ordination in july 2012 l ess than three months after the ordination of our jubilarians in july 1962 the catholic church witnessed the opening of the first session of the second vatican council by pope john xxiii it was an occasion when he called upon the church to open up the windows to the world and to respond to the signs of the times in a world which was witnessing a great deal of change in the aftermath of the conclusion of the second world war less than 20 years earlier our archbishop of the time archbishop guilford young the ordaining celebrant for three of our jubilarians was a very enthusiastic participant in the council which as we know lasted much longer than originally anticipated our five jubilarians are priests of the transition they prepared for the priesthood very much in accordance with the approach which had been prominent through the period from the previous two councils vatican i and the council of trent each of them could explain if so requested just how the experience has been for them to begin to move down a new path almost from the day they were ordained it is a matter to be acknowledged that they have done it so well in times which have been very challenging and where some issues to be faced could never have been imagined at their beginning of their priestly lives now 50 years ago when we reflect on the direction of the lives of each jubilarian as a priest it can be truly said that the spirit of the lord has been given to them little would each of them have envisaged fifty years ago how their individual lives as priests would unfold it is quite remarkable just how diverse and special their individual paths have been archbishop adrian l doyle am fr graeme howard ordained july 19 1962 s i reflect upon my fifty years of priesthood i am just so grateful for the vocation the call that has been given to me to serve god as a priest in tasmania for more than fifty years it has been a tremendous experience to be a part of the lives of so many wonderful people there have been so many amazing expressions of god s grace working in the hearts of people leading them into even deeper communion with god there have been the difficult times which have always been times to deepen my awareness of god being present in situations through several surgeries i have been given the opportunity to hopefully understand a little more that it is god s world and god s work and that as a priest i am called to love god and all people not to be too concerned about achievement or success over those fifty years there have been so many changes in the church and in society i was ordained by archbishop guilford young in st mary s cathedral in a totally latin ceremony a my first mass in latin in zeehan on friday evening was followed by a dinner where permission had to be given to eat meat halfway through the meal the lights went out so out came the candles latin has gone we now as priests face the people and women are actually allowed onto the sanctuary women can read and be special ministers of communion and behind closed doors whispers are heard of women priests congregations have fallen away and priests numbers have dropped dramatically and the role of the laity has become thankfully more prominent and more fulfilling in my early years due to diocesan responsibilities i was able to travel the archdiocese and spend time with so many wonderful priests many of them of course being irish i can reflect now on how welcoming they were and how hospitable they were to a young priest many hours spent yarning into the night gave me an insight into the spirituality their joys and their struggles for me it was a great opportunity to learn more about the priesthood and to hopefully become less judgmental when faced with challenging circumstances i believe that over the fifty years there has been a growing desire for people to come to know god even though numbers at mass have fallen dramatically as a priest i have found that discussions on prayer and personal encounters with god have become far more common than in years gone by and i believe there are real signs of a deeper searcher for spiritual reality even in our younger people the power of the material world is so strong ­ our young people are challenged by it all i was ordained just after television became a lounge room necessity i said i would never have a colour tv ­ just too indulgent after a few months i had a colour tv a mobile phone ­ no way now i have one in my pocket all the time yet this is all small fry to facebook etc i stand and wonder at the good at all of it all yet struggle with the negative influence that it can be and how we can use it for god s kingdom when i had my f irst permanent appointment i met my fifty-five year old parish priest and wondered how such an old man could cope i found he could cope quite well and he taught me much now after my own fifty years of priesthood it is not so much a matter of coping more a matter of simply being and being grateful for all that god has given to me.

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fr pat mcanany ordained july 20 1962 r patrick mcanany has been a much loved pastor in every place where he worked as a priest he was born into a large catholic family in ipswich queensland with six siblings peter lerlin claire margaret and james and irene who have since passed away fr pat studied for the priesthood firstly at banyo seminary and then corpus christi in melbourne before being ordained in brisbane on july 20 1962 fr pat served in a number of tasmanian parishes including new town cathedral cathedral franklin brighton oatlands queenstown smithton and a short stint at deloraine when their priest was in hospital he says he particularly enjoyed the country life in franklin and at the west coast during the late 1960s fr pat convened a number of youth groups in east devonport which was the `big thing then for both primary f and secondary students they were very successful as were the early ecumenical youth groups held on friday nights in conjunction with the methodist youth in 1981 on the wings of a youthful spirit fr pat travelled to south america where he bussed down the andes through columbia and then across the amazon outside manaus brazil the great feature of the priestly life of fr pat was that he was a tireless home visitor in every parish to which he was assigned his has been the widest geographical coverage of the archdiocese from circular head down to the west coast from franklin up through the midlands of brighton and oatlands as well he has shown a continuing concern for the poor and the underdog as well as an acceptance of limitations which ill-health has brought about part of fr pat s ministry also included being chaplain at both risdon prison and calvary hospital as well as spiritual director for st vincent de paul s ozanam house fr pat lived in retirement for four years at the church of the apostles before moving to mt esk aged care st leonards launceston seven years ago in fragile health these days fr pat still enjoys the precious company of others including fr terry southerwood in addition to attending regular poetry classes in a message sent from fr pat he says thanks to everyone for your support over the years keep up the prayers and please pray for the five jubilarians fr gerald quinn cp ordained july 21 1962 fter fr gerald s ordination to the priesthood 50 years ago he served at st brigid s marrickville from 1963 to the end of 1979 there were six passionist priests in a parish of 15,000 catholics there were thirteen sunday masses with a regular attendance of 5000 people each sunday fr gerald and his brother priests would spend an average of four hours in the confessional every saturday during the week he looked after the religious education of 2500 catholic children in the nine different state schools nearby frequently driving a 38 seater bus to ferry his charges to the church on weekdays and sundays for catechetical classes he also ran three housies bingo every week to raise money for the schools and for the passionist mission in new guinea during the 1960s and 1970s there was an epidemic of runaway children and he was a frequent visitor to the children s court and metropolitan girls shelter and offered support a to families whose children had run away from home in that period of 17 years he looked after the catechists ran concerts talent quests and sports carnivals and prepared more than 2500 state school children for first confession first communion and confirmation from 1980 to 1988 he was stationed at the passionist monastery in hamilton nz looking after the retreat house and conducting many one day and weekend retreats he was also engaged in relieving as hospital chaplain at waikato hospital and was a part time chaplain at waikato university he also boosted the new zealand economy running annual fairs and monthly garage sales to make ends meet ­ a prelude to his cake selling activities outside the south hobart post office and harris scarfe in moonah alarmed however at the ferocity of fr gerald s haka which was terrifying many of his retreatants his superiors transported him to van diemen s land for the term of his natural life fr gerald came here on feb 28 1989 and has been actively involved in the sacramental ministry of st joseph s church and subsequently st francis xavier s a very important and dear to him part of his priestly ministry has been his involvement with the sick and dying he has been catholic chaplain at the rhh hobart private and the whittle ward throughout his time here he has been a member of the state committee of the chaplains association for 23 years and a member of the national committee of that organization for 13 years he has been very involved in the human life protection society recently celebrated the 15th anniversary of the monthly prayer for true love waits and will soon celebrate the 20th birthday of the weekly prayer for mothers and unborn babies he is chaplain to the st vincent de paul conference of st camillus whose members visit the catholic patients of the rhh he has been a scripture teacher at the albuera st school for 20 years and celebrates one latin mass in the tridentine rite each month at st canice s church sandy bay we thank fr gerald quinn for his service to us truly here is a great priest who throughout his life has pleased god may he be spared for many more years to continue his work among us [written by former governor of tasmania mr william bill cox celebrating 50 years of service to the church

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fr terry southerwood ordained july 20 1962 was born in l aunce s ton in 1938 the eldest of four siblings from an early age i was an altar server at the church of the apostles and felt attracted to the priesthood during my first year of secondary studies at st patrick s christian brothers college a redemptorist priest suggested some of his hearers might have a vocation to serve god s people in priestly ministry i began to think seriously that god might be calling me after matriculating in 1954 at the age of 16 i planned to work until the age of 21 and then apply to archbishop young to go to corpus christi seminary in victoria however he wanted me to go immediately although i survived the eight-year course there were times when i felt like giving it away there were moments of doubt and questioning was i really suited to the life of a diocesan priest would i be able to cope with celibacy or a lonely life in isolated districts for 50 years now through good times and i not so good i have tried to serve the lord and his faith filled disciples in the parishes of lower sandy bay-taroona glenorchy kingston george town sandy bay bellerive and launceston i also spent two years as full-time editor of the standard and ten years editing the monthly new standard while also working as pastor to an extensive parish the constant prayer love and unfailing support of catholic parishioners and many non catholics i have experienced an enriching involvement in the ecumenical movement have been life-giving and indispensable for my growth both in nature and grace although i have always found the call to work as a priest very fulfilling and happy inevitably there have been times of frustration stress and disappointment readers are referred to my 508-page autobiography the child won t live a highlight was representing the catholic church at the inaugural forum of the national council of churches in australia i have worked in the marriage tribunal and was appointed diocesan archivist and historian i have also published 22 books and more than 100 articles in professional journals parish involvement has ever been my first love the prayer encouragement and affirmation of god s people has been wonderful as i have rejoiced with them at the birth and baptism of little ones offered other sacraments of reconciliation eucharist confirmation marriage and the healing anointing of the sick ­ as well as sharing grief and sorrow at the death of loved ones as a `father i have been an instrument of christ in bringing a share in his risen life and in preparing people for eternal life dedicated ministry to the aged and sick has been a special joy in more recent years why do i stay a priest i suppose a basic answer is because my people continue to love me despite times of disappointment and disillusionment coupled with a humbling sense of my personal weakness and sinful failure it is my privilege to break open the divine living word to a hungry faith-family and bring the mass and sacraments to fellow members of the body of christ i continue to need renewal of spiritual strength and commitment to priestly vocation the pilgrim people of god are christ for me and to me so i need always to thank them for generous ongoing support and acceptance fr john williams am ordained july 20 1962 orn and raised i n i nve r m ay schooled at st finn barr s and then st patrick s college launceston fr john williams says that he gradually began to develop the desire to become a priest during his secondary school years john had been an altar server from the age of ten and he said his family knew many priests personally which `enhanced the possibility of his becoming a priest fr john says he entered the seminary with the expectation that following ordination he would serve in parishes during his priestly life his first appointment was as assistant priest at the cathedral parish for about two months from there he was sent to stanley now part of circular head parish and then to devonport in 1967 fr john was asked to assume the role of acting director of catholic family welfare bureau the now known as centacare while the director fr clem kilby went to the u.s to study following three years at the b catholic family welfare bureau fr john was appointed acting director of the catholic education office ceo at that time the ceo consisted of the priest director and a secretary fr john s first role was to organize a catholic education conference the conference proved to be a seminal moment for catholic education in tasmania as it brought together representatives of religious orders clergy teachers and parents it marked the beginning of the systemisation of catholic schools in tasmania following the success of the `may 1970 conference archbishop guilford young appointed fr john to a permanent position in the ceo ­ where he remained for 24 years fr williams was a founding member of the national catholic education commission in the 1990s a major reorganisation of catholic secondary schooling took place with the most significant change being the creation of guilford young college fr john describes this time as one of the most challenging of his career however he says i believe the decision to amalgamate was correct and continues to provide the best arrangement for senior secondary education in hobart one of fr john williams legacies is the movement towards funding justice for students in catholic schools not just in tasmania but also across the country an example being the establishment of schools in the lower socioeconomic areas of bridgewater and clarendon vale fr john describes the fruitful time under guilford young s leadership as one being of mutual trust and respect saying our friendship was such that we were always able to talk through our differences you may be surprised to learn that guilford s opinion was not always the course of action that we decided to follow he sees the toughest challenge in catholic education today is in maintaining the catholic identity of our schools within a growing secularised society fr john was made a member of the order of australia in 1998 for his services to catholic education following his 24 years of service at the catholic education office fr john has served in the parishes of lenah valley new town and lindisfarne retiring in may this year c lcelebrating years of of service the ch h celebrating 50 50 years service t th the church b ti f i to to church h h

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catholic super is delighted to have been selected for money magazine s best of the best award for best pension fund manager 2012 superratings has awarded us pension of the year 2012 continuing excellence in providing investors with australia s leading pension product superior investment performance no minimum initial investment competitive fees our dedicated pension service team can step you through your options and provide a comparison with your existing pension fund flexible investment options choice of payment frequency financial planning advice and it is open to everyone see how we compare 1300 730 327 monday­friday 9 am­5 pm melbourne time www.csf.com.au authorised by csf pty limited abn 30 006 169 286 afsl 246664 the trustee of the catholic superannuation fund abn 50 237 896 957 this information is about the fund and is general information only it has been prepared without taking into account your personal investment objectives financial situation or needs it is not intended to be and should not be construed in any way as investment legal or financial advice.

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8 volume 8 issue 4 2012 features celebrating the presence of christ fr graeme howard responds to the increasingly common event in tasmanian parishes of sunday celebrations without a priest e are well aware that at this time we are faced with a shortage of priests this is not just in australia but in so many countries in the western world this shortage has many consequences one of which is the difficulty that our present priests have in celebrating mass in areas of their parishes which would have had mass in past years so how do we handle this situation it is true that there can be no substitute for the mass so how do we strengthen and feed the people of god the church in areas that do not have regular sunday mass in long past years there have been many country parishes where there have been areas that have not had mass every sunday but on a regular rhythm i.e every fortnight month or fifth sunday the cause of this rotation was often the difficulty of travel now travel conditions have changed and people have become used to regular sunday mass even 50 years ago people did not receive communion regularly so the early sunday mass was often the communion mass so we come back to the question how do we keep and feed the people of god the church who have become used to regular sunday mass and the reception of communion the vatican council in its introduction to the roman missal and the catechism of the catholic church speaks of the four ways in which christ is present in the mass the assembly gathered in his name the word proclaimed ministry and the eucharist as i have said there can be no substitute for the mass and so people move out of their community and travel large distances to get to mass one can understand this thinking although we have to question it even faith is relational it is communal though it does have its individualistic element we are called to be a part of the community in which we live to build up the church ­ the body of christ in our community i believe that we have to become more aware of the presence of christ in the assembly the word and ministry so that w photo courtesy of gabrielle morgan i believe that we have to become more aware of the presence of christ in the assembly the word and ministry we can appreciate more the celebration of sunday gatherings without a priest therefore without the mass if we focus on these areas and develop our appreciation of christ in them we will feed and strengthen the body of christ the church in our local area or faced with not having the mass we could decide not to gather at all we could say our own prayers reflect upon the word of god and stay at home this would be fatal to the life of the church ­ the presence of the church would fade away in that area if this gathering disappears the primary sign of the presence of christ in that place disappears this gathering is not only a sign of christ s presence to the wider community it is also the support basis for the individual members of the community it is within the gathering that individuals offer support and encouragement to one another and truly make christ s presence real the church teaches as we know that christ is present in the celebration of the word within the gathered community the proclamation of god s word is not in the first instance a matter of catechesis biblical history or information it is about the celebration of the presence of christ among us through www.hobart.catholic.org.au his word it is therefore not just a matter of reading the word it is rather reading the word and truly reflecting upon it it is meant to be an encounter with christ through his word which encounter can make our hearts burn within us as he talks to us on the road lk 24:39 we have to allow the word to penetrate into our being so that we become truly one with christ and wanting ever more to follow him in many other dioceses sunday celebrations without a priest focuses totally on the celebration of the word and do not include the communion service however in our archdiocese we have become accustomed to the celebration of the word with communion such celebrations can have the effect of lessening the emphasis of the power of the word and communion becoming the total focus this is not really the thinking of the church we have to be more focussed on the word and become ever enriched by the presence of christ in the word whatever celebration we have of a sunday without the eucharist we are called to enter into such celebrations with open hearts mindful of the presence in these celebrations thus the more we give to these celebrations the more the eucharist will mean to us when we can actually celebrate the eucharist by truly participating in the celebrations we will feed and strengthen the body of christ the church in our communities.

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defence force chaplains go where you re needed

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10 volume 8 issue 4 2012 features a lazarus experience by richard ross the raising of lazarus john 11:1-44 there was a man named lazarus of bethany the village of mary and her sister martha and he was ill it was the same mary the sister of the sick man lazarus who anointed the lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair the sisters sent this message to jesus lord the man you love is ill on receiving this message jesus said this sickness will not end in death but it is for god s glory so that through it the son of god may be glorified jesus loved martha and her sister and lazarus yet when he heard that he was ill he stayed where he was for two more days before saying to the disciples let us go back to judea our friend lazarus is at rest i am going to wake him the disciples said to him lord if he is at rest he will be alright jesus was speaking of the death of lazarus but they thought that by `rest he meant `sleep so jesus put it plainly lazarus is dead and for your sake i am glad i was not there because now you will believe let us go to him i n recent years i have written in this magazine of the wonderful and challenging experiences i had relished on the camino and the kokoda track i was still basking in these achievements and integrating their lessons into my life when the news of another this time unwelcome journey was thrust upon me with the indelible words delivered by a doctor i had never met it is cancer what follows here are some of my reflections on this journey i write them for my own sake and i offer them here in response to the many who have urged me to do so i hope they prove insightful and stimulate reflection on your part and at very least i hope they don t sound selfindulgent in any way i frame them in response to a story from john s gospel ­ the raising of lazarus ­ which has been a source of comfort and strength through the uncertain moments and i dedicate them to my family my doctors my friends and my faith community who have carried me through the journey so far he fixed his gaze on me and stated emphatically `it is cancer lord the man you love is ill john 11:3 it was fortunate that my parents both retired general practitioners were staying with me that saturday morning when i awoke feeling acutely ill i had invited them to come to launceston to join me at the theatre to see my favourite musical les miserables being performed by a local amateur group which included several parishioners and which had provided the final stimulus to my decision to enter the seminary i wanted to reconnect with that experience some twenty years down the track and perhaps to share something of it with my mum and dad oh how little did i realise that i was about to take my parents with me on a much more demanding and revealing journey so i awoke feeling crook that saturday morning march 13 2010 and but for my parents insistence would have taken two paracetamol and gone back to bed instead i was off to the doctor and met for the first time the gp who was on duty that saturday morning he poked and prodded me with a concerned look on his face prescribed some powerful antibiotics in case the problem was infection based and ordered immediate blood tests and a ct scan for monday morning his phone call that monday afternoon seemed to take an eternity to come but is now frozen in time richard it doesn t look good there is a mass in the colon and spots in the liver i have ordered an urgent colonoscopy ring immediately for an appointment it didn t look good we knew too much to not www.hobart.catholic.org.au comprehend what this meant bowel cancer with established liver secondaries it didn t look good at all the world started turning much slower every sense was heightened the day seemed clearer the sky bluer the flowers brighter the traffic slower the conversation dried up as we were each processing our own thoughts as we drove from gravelly beach to launceston to confirm the appointment and get the goo which would prepare my bowel for the colonoscopy i remember thinking how much i loved and appreciated the beauty of this world in which i lived as i drove that day with the colonoscopy scheduled as an emergency for wednesday morning the business of preparing the bowel gave us a focus as we waited and the possibility that all this could be the result of some exotic tropical infection i picked up on the kokoda track which had festered away before presenting these symptoms brought hope of a concerning but nonetheless more hopeful diagnosis when i awoke from the anaesthetic following the colonoscopy i was put in a wheelchair and taken straight across for an ultrasound of my liver then returned to a private room to await the doctor s feedback i should have

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features known that this sequence of events did not augur well when the doctor leant casually on the doorpost nodded to my family and then fixed his gaze on me and stated emphatically it is cancer i felt a sense of shock despite all the expectations that it were so the reality hit hard this announcement was followed by some more detail none of which i can recall except that the surgeon would be along to talk to me in a minute a few minutes alone with my parents and sister then the surgeon introduced himself and announced that surgery was scheduled for the following wednesday it was probably part of the shock response but i had an immediate sense that i had to manage myself well through this period or the whole situation could unravel rapidly i knew that news of my illness would travel fast and decided instantly to get on the front foot and spread clear and accurate information in my experience if people did not know what was going on they would make up the bits that were missing and soon all manner of garbled stories would be circulating i found myself having teary moments as i shared the news with family and friends but also found a strength i was surprised at and grateful for it was st patrick s day and my absence from the secondary college community that is so close to the heart of my ministry on this its feast day could not escape notice dad drove me to st patrick s college that wednesday afternoon where i was able to speak with a group of some of my closest colleagues and friends that night at home at st finn barr s they along with many other friends from the parish gathered for drinks and the best diagnosis party ever this sharing of shock and outpouring of love and support was the start of something so very valuable that literally carried me through the entire experience that was to come 11 jesus stayed where he was for two more days john 11:6 my news was announced to the wider parish community through the newsletter that weekend and a similar missive carried the news around the archdiocese asking prayer support fr mark freeman my colleague and friend asked me how i wished to go about the sacrament of anointing i wanted to share the experience with close family and friends but knew also that it was a difficult and intensely personal experience to impose upon any one of the parish masses that weekend not to mention that some who attended other masses in the parish might be disappointed to not be there to show their prayer support the decision to advertise a `healing mass with prayers for father richard was inspired with 48 hours notice over five hundred people from all parts of tasmania gathered at st finn barr s church that monday night to support me in prayer and to call on the healing power of the holy spirit for the many frail and unwell members of our parish almost a hundred others were anointed that night and as i watched each of them come forward to avail themselves of the sacrament i realised that as their pastor of nearly ten years i knew something of their need and their struggle as they opened themselves in faith to the power of god s love i was not alone jesus hadn t paused for dramatic effect as in the story of lazarus he had come with a rush and was powerfully present through the sacraments prayer and love of his church one parishioner with whom i had attended school some quarter of a century ago was deeply concerned when he and his family attended that mass but as he left at the end he said to his wife with great confidence and peace he ll be alright a faith statement that summed up the entire experience surgery followed almost routinely on wednesday march 24 and was followed by a week s recuperation in hospital and a further week at the home of my childhood where my parents still live i feel it appropriate to add here a note of gratitude to the nurses at st vincent s who without exception were attentive friendly efficient and extremely competent and made that first experience of hospital surgery and recuperation so much easier to cope with further investigative tests followed trying to determine exactly what was going on in my liver blood tests were indicating my liver was healthy and the tumour www.hobart.catholic.org.au the long road ahead on the camino that night at home at st finn barr s we gathered for drinks and `the best diagnosis party ever marker tests were negative however when gallium pet and ct scans were aligned the only conclusion possible was that we were dealing with secondary cancer survival rates of 25 were quoted and the enormity of the task ahead of me was clarified the options were simple surgery if possible followed by six months of chemotherapy to mop up any remaining microscopic cancer cells or proceed directly to chemotherapy with less long term options available to us the aggressive approach was adopted and major liver surgery ensued i must acknowledge the skill and nerve of the surgeon who removed the right lobe of my liver containing nine cancerous tumours and excised a further two tumours from the left lobe in a seven hour operation that left me with an impressive forty centimetre scar across my abdomen i also express gratitude to my skilful and patient anaesthetist throughout whose presence was always reassuring nightmarish days of discomfort and uncertainty in intensive care and high dependency units passed so slowly and a return to st vincent s for the final few days of hospital care was a relief like none other i have ever experienced the whirlwind was over the dust settled and i gathered my energies for the six months of chemotherapy that lay ahead another venture into the unknown this sickness will not end in death but in god s glory john 11:4 i said at the healing mass that my biggest fear was that my faith would fail the prospect of a long slow journey through illness and possibly to death was accompanied by the terror of absolute darkness and loneliness along that path i do not mean a fear of being alone ­ that was not going to happen ­ but a lurking fear of utter loneliness one very on the kokoda trail

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12 volume 8 issue 4 2012 features as i wrote in my letter to the parish community for many years i have walked with people and families through some of life s struggles and storms i have occasionally wondered if what i say rings true that god does not sit in his heaven and arbitrarily deal out blessing or curse according to a whim but that god loves us and shares our joys and struggles intimately and personally and that god is with us especially in the darkness and fear as a source of strength and peace and hope i now know that to be true and i thank you as my family in faith for revealing it to me with such clarity i don t remember anyone actually asking me how i was feeling or offering me a reassuring word uncomfortable and unsettled night in hospital following the liver surgery was the closest i came pulse racing blood pressure soaring sleep impossible machines beeping doctors watching from the door ordering this and that intravenous medication and yet all through the night with all this activity going on around me i don t remember anyone actually asking me how i was feeling or offering a reassuring word just the comment to my parents when they arrived for a visit the next day he had a bad night i was anxious and angry yet too tired to work it out i realised at a whole new level just how vital is the pastoral care we as church offer to patients simply by listening and the truth that anxiety is the mortal enemy of faith as the weeks passed i was overwhelmed by the cards and messages that i received they were and are a source of strength and inspiration one note came from a friend in the priesthood and i quote it here because it just seemed to hit the spot dear richard firstly i want to tell you how deeply affected i felt at the news of you having cancer it might seem strange to compare it with the tied grand final but it was numbness worry fear and other indescribable emotions all in one but at the same time almost immediately actually i had a sense that great good would come from this forgive me if i don t quite find the right words here but in my eyes you are kind of a larger-than-life figure certainly full-of-life is a more accurate expression and you share this fullness-of-life with all and sundry ­ the people you know personally and intimately as well as the wider church and general community who know you from your to have a friend and colleague write such things is humbling indeed and deeply affirming but i have to admit that the sense that good would come of this experience was at the front of my mind once the parameters of the journey were somewhat known i resolved quite quickly that whatever the ultimate outcome i owed it to myself and especially to the young people who looked to me as a model of faith to hold firm to hope and witness authentically to my faith regrets fear and anger at the injustice of it all these were to have no place where have you put him john 11:34 chemotherapy was no fun i was on a fortnightly regimen going in to the holman clinic for several hours on the monday to have chemotherapy drugs infused intravenously through my infusaport then carrying a slow release bottle around with me for two days this bottle was disconnected on the wednesday afternoon and i waited ten days for the next dose i was advised that during these fortnights i would feel pretty rotten after the dose but would bounce back as the days passed just not as quickly and not as far with each additional dose i endured this routine for twelve rounds or six months and as i look back now i think of it as a journey through a dark tunnel i felt cut off from the world in a strange sort of way ­ outside the usual routines of life and just groping along as best i could the darkness was scary and uncertain at the beginning but the ground soon became familiar and the side effects manageable i was forced into retreat to focus on myself for a while and to undo the habit regrets fear and anger at the injustice of it all these were to have no place lord if you had been here john 11 21 32 well of course regrets fear and anger have all been part of the story despite my pious wishes and i have been reminded once again that god s agenda is at work not mine the lesson of the camino was to trust in the providence of god and how powerfully i was reminded of this as the journey unfolded when tragedy strikes so many people ask why does god let this happen it is indeed a real and valid question but it is not a christian question the christian question is where is god in this the first question leads to a philosophical resignation or despair the second question leads to hope preaching and public presence so here you are this full-of-life person suddenly confronted with a life threatening illness staring the meaning of life in the face personally you have reflected beautifully and profoundly in the past on your experiences with the dying and the grieving but now you have been confronted with these mysteries of life and death in a whole new way i think that my sense that good would come of this is because i knew instinctively that because of you and through you richard many people would come to a deeper experience and appreciation of life love and faith to hear of the anointing mass and to receive a text message on the day of your operation from the young people s prayer network confirmed for me that these things were starting to happen almost immediately i owed it to myself and especially to the young people who looked to me as a model of faith to hold firm to hope and witness authentically to my faith www.hobart.catholic.org.au

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features of many years and not push myself i had to listen to my body for to fight my body was to lose i had to give myself permission to achieve nothing i had no choice as i reread my journal i am reminded what a tumultuous journey it was through that tunnel the struggles of being a patient and of being patient i felt weak and vulnerable and fearful every turn every blood test or scan 13 i had to listen to my body i had to give myself permission to achieve nothing i had no choice was a reality check this was a life and death battle and i was never certain i was winning physically i was losing weight i was eating but never hungry drinking but never thirsty i lacked energy and was literally sick of being sick mentally i was tired it had been a big couple of months with some big mountains to climb and still a lot of rough unknown territory ahead the analogy with kokoda held true but the reserves were running low oddly enough it was a daily meeting with hawkeye and the team from mash on tv which provided inspiration of sorts a group of people in a situation they did not choose over which they had no control and which was not going to end any time soon yet they endured the hardships with humour resilience and friendship spiritually i felt stripped bare nothing i had relied on in the past seemed to work this was a totally new place for me and i had to learn a whole new language and way of being what a gift it turned out to be take the stone away john 11 39 in the story of lazarus i am uplifted by the idea that jesus command to take the stone away from the entrance to the tomb was not done for the purely functional reason of letting lazarus out but in order to let the power of jesus word in the command of jesus carried light and life into the cold darkness of that tomb i have prayed with that passage many times in the past inviting the light of the lord into the places of darkness and death within me i have found healing and hope in those experiences this time it was different this time i was utterly passive and inert but the lord came to me reached out to me and showed his face to me this happened in spite of me it was pure gift pure grace and it came through you i heard from school mates i had had no contact with for 25 years i received notes of thanks for my part in long forgotten experiences and conversations that had impacted on people s lives i received teddy bears carrying warm affectionate hugs more precious than their cards were the smiles and waves i received from the students at st finn barr s and st patrick s i was visited by several priest friends from the mainland who were able to stay a night or two or even just fly in for lunch i experienced again the fidelity and love of my parents who were never far from my bedside in hospital and missed only one of my chemo sessions and that because mum was in hospital herself they were a constant presence through what was a very trying ordeal for them too making sure i ate well and kept warm and dragging me out of the house to allow those chance meetings in streets and shops to interact with parishioners i was accompanied in prayer and in acts of love and concern and thoughtfulness 2012 h a rv e s t pi lg r i m ag e s now includes all taxes levies $6790 from where to travel to in 2013 now includes all taxes levies $6590 from now includes all taxes levies $5390 from visitations of mary with fr don kettle pp a 16 day pilgrimage departing 9 oct 2012 philippines discovery with fr thomas casanova ccs a 14 day pilgrimage depar exodus journey with fr donal mcilraith ssc a 21 day pilgrimage pick from a wide range of pilgrimage options in the new harvest 2013 brochure featuring to reserve a free copy of our 2013 catalogue call 1800 819 156 www.harvestpilgrims.com for more information or to request a free brochure call 1800 819 156 or www.harvestpilgrims.com www.hobart.catholic.org.au

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