News from around the Catholic world for the week ending 1 November.
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• Thousands of families gather for World Family Day in Rome
• Pope Francis meets with Myanmar’s Aung San Suu Kyi
• NSW parliament debates same-sex marriage
• Survey shows Australians are against redefinition of marriage
• Another Melbourne doctor is investigated for conscientious objection to abortion
• Young Catholics prepare for iWitness 2013.
TRANSCRIPT
BOBBIE: Thousands of families gathered in St Peter’s Square last weekend to mark World Family Day at the close of the 21st Plenary Assembly of the Pontifical Council for the Family.
At an address on Saturday evening the Holy Father acknowledged the various difficulties facing families, but stressed that with trust in God’s faithfulness any trials can be faced without fear.
“Christian spouses are not naïve; they know life’s problems and temptations,” Pope Francis said.
“But they are not afraid to be responsible before God and before society. They do not run away, they do not hide, they do not shirk the mission of forming a family and bringing children into the world.”
The gathering concluded with Mass on Sunday morning where Pope Francis preached on how faith can be lived within family life, Vatican Radio reports:
VATICAN RADIO: Over 100,000 people were in St Peter’s square on Sunday morning under a late October sky that was at first overcast and threatening before giving way during the course of the Mass to brilliant sunshine.
In his homily Pope Francis challenged families to pray together.
“It is,” he said, “a matter of humility – of realising that we need God.”
The Holy Father went on to call families to lives of Christian witness, asking them to model their lives on the model of St Paul who kept the faith by sharing it.
“Christian families are missionary families” said Pope Francis, “in their everyday life, in their doing everyday things, as they bring to everything the salt and the leaven of faith”.
Pope Francis concluded his homily with a reflection on the joy of living as a Christian family. He said the family which experiences the joy of faith communicates it naturally.
He went on to say that “family is the salt of the earth and the light of the world; it is the leaven of society”.
More details on that story at news.va
BOBBIE: Pope Francis has met with Myanmar Opposition Leader and Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi in Rome this week. Suu Kyi has been an outspoken democracy advocate during Myanmar’s former military rule, which resulted in her imprisonment under house arrest for 15 years until 2011.
In the meeting, Pope Francis and Suu Kyi discussed the importance of peace, healthy democracy and inter-religious dialogue in Myanmar amidst growing sectarian violence between elements of the country’s large Buddhist and Muslim populations.
Following the meeting, Suu Kyi said “The Holy Father told me that emotions such as hatred and fear diminish life and the value of the person”.
Pope Francis pledged his prayerful support for Myanmar and the minority Catholic Church present there, stating that the Church would be at the service of all without discrimination.
More details on that story at news.va
A bill to allow same-sex couples to marry in NSW has this week been introduced in the state’s Upper House. The proposed legislation follows the recent success of a similar law in the ACT, which is currently faces a challenge by the Federal Government in the High Court.
Labor MP Penny Sharpe introduced the bill supported by members of the Labor, Liberal, National and Green parties. In what came as a surprise to many, Premier Barry O’Farrell opposed the bill stating that although personally he supports same-sex marriage, he believes it is a Federal issue and opposes it on those grounds.
Christian Democrat MP Reverend Fred Nile called for a prayer rally for marriage outside of Parliament between 10am and 2:30pm while the bill was being debated.
In Parliament Reverend Nile said “I have many oppositions to the bill and one that is very fundamental, I do believe in a creator, in an almighty God, I believe God as a creator made us male and female.
“Traditional marriage between male and female is God’s creative purpose for earth,” he said.
The bill will be debated on a conscience vote when parliament resumes later this month.
Earlier this week Tasmania’s Upper House voted to leave the same-sex marriage debate for the Federal Government. It was the state’s second failed attempt to introduce a same-sex marriage bill in two years.
Meanwhile, a survey of MPs in Australia has shown Australians still widely support of marriage as being between a man and a woman.
A motion from Greens MP Adam Bandt passed in November 2012 required all local members to gauge support in their electorates. The results were tabled in parliament on Thursday revealing only 6 of 30 electorates held by Labor or Coalition MPs were in favour of a redefinition of marriage.
It was noted that the survey response rate was considerably low across the board.
A Melbourne GP is being investigated for comments he made on Facebook declaring that he would not refer women for abortions.
The doctor, who does not want to be identified, told Australian Doctor that after making the comments on his private profile he was hauled before the medical board and put under “intense and intrusive questioning”.
“I admitted that I do not refer patients who are seeking abortion,” he said.
“On the basis of this admission, the board said my conduct was ‘unprofessional’, even though they could not point to any specific patient who was harmed by me, and even though they acknowledged that my practice is compliant with their very own code of conduct.
“I am dismayed that I could be treated like this on account of remarks made in private online conversations, and when no patient has ever complained to AHPRA about the way I have treated them,” he said.
Another Melbourne GP, Dr Hobart, is also undergoing investigation for his refusal to refer for a sex-selective abortion.
Under Victorian abortion law doctors are refused the right to conscientiously object, but must either perform the abortion or refer to a doctor who will. The Tasmanian Parliament is currently considering similar laws.
In other news, young Sydney Catholics are gearing up for the 6th Annual iWitness Conference in December this year.
The 4-day event is held in Stanwell Tops and last year attracted close to 300 young people. This year’s conference will focus on the theme of ‘Benedict and Beyond’, looking at the contribution and legacy of Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI and the transition to Pope Francis.
iWitness is the initiative of a group of young people who after World Youth Day in Sydney decided there needed to be more happening for young Catholic adults. We spoke to one of the organisers Dr Jovina James about how it all got started.
JOVINA: It was really, really hard the first year. We struggled to get registrations, we struggled to – we didn’t know what we were doing, we were a bunch of kids, you know? It was just a bunch of young people running it for our friends, basically-and for us – we wanted to learn more and to have this kind of experience… look that first year was for me a more overpowering of the Holy Spirit outpouring grace than WYD itself, and that’s a huge statement cause I love WYD. But just to see the effects of what just 10 clueless young people – like we really didn’t do that, there was so much that was not done and not done properly, and yet even though we hadn’t done it, it just worked and people loved it and people grew to love the Lord more and there were massive conversions. To be honest 5 days before the start of the conference, I think we only had 50 registrations and we needed like 120 to break even and we though ‘this is going to be an absolute disaster’ but when the time came, you know, we had 140 people come and it blew us all away and for me that was such a powerful experience of grace.
BOBBIE: iWitness is open to 18-35 year olds and will run from 12-15 December. To find out more or to register visit lifetothefull.com.au
You can also hear the full interview with Jovina and last year’s iWitness talks on the Cradio website.
Music Credit: Waking Up Instrumental – Dexter Britain
