Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople and representatives of other Orthodox and Anglican churches accompanied Pope Benedict in lighting a candle to launch the Year of St Paul.
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Feature - Walking away from what they do not know
"People who leave the Church are not leaving because they are rejecting the teachings of John Paul II or Pope Benedict. Most do so because they go to Catholic schools and they think that the kind of warm secular humanism with Christian gloss that they get in Catholic schools is in fact the Catholic faith and it hasn't captured their imagination, their love or their intellect so they are walking away from something that they do not know." - The Catholic Herald
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Featured Website - First Things
First Things is a monthly ecumenical journal concerned with the creation of a "religiously informed public philosophy for the ordering of society." It is published by The Institute on Religion and Public Life in the United States of America.
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Film Review - Kung Fu Panda
Kung Fu Panda is essentially a martial arts comedy and is a total action movie. It has striking effects and action sequences and a particularly impressive concluding fantasy sequence which brings DreamWorks to a new level of technological sophistication. There is a strong cultural feel about the movie and it heavily draws on Chinese culture to bring authenticity to its fantasy. - Peter Sheehan, Australian Catholic Office for Film and Broadcasting
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Opinion - God is without circumference
His challenge was to see the beauty in every face, even when the owner of that face had long given up on it. Surely, that is to love others as Jesus did—Jesus the One who never gives up on us. If we are to love as Jesus loved, we need to be forgiving people. Forgiving people are bridge-builders and reconcilers. - Fr Chris Gleeson, Madonna
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OPINION
Beyond knowledge to wisdomI believe this is one of the crisis points for contemporary Christianity. Put bluntly, its representatives do not seem wise. Yes, those representatives can give you any amount of information, some of them can even speak knowledgeably of Christian teachings. Wisdom is another thing altogether. - Fr Michael Whelan [More] - Aquinas Academy
FEATURE
Connected across bordersIt is time for leaders of nations to see their national interests as connected with the interests of people on the other side of the globe. We have reached the point where human existence is at stake and our destiny is inextricably linked. If we are to overcome this crisis of climate change we need to think beyond the confines of national states. - Just Comment [More] - Edmund Rice Centre
FEATURED CATHOLIC WEBSITE
Catholic Education Diocese of ParramattaReturning to our education theme, we shine the spotlight on arguably the most innovative Catholic education website in the country. In addition to all the standard features of any CEO site, Parramatta's includes some interactive opinion polls and a competition for students to attempt to ''Become the Executive Director for the day''. The site is also well regarded for its RE and curriculum resources.
- www.parra.catholic.edu.au
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Pope tells priests to live what they pray
Pope John Paul II's annual Holy Thursday letter to priests advises them to live the words they proclaim when celebrating the Eucharist.
The Holy Father's letter, signed on 13 March and published on Friday, stresses that the priest's "passion for Christ" is the secret that allows him to "radiate youthfulness, spreading it almost 'contagiously' among those he meets along the way".
To achieve this objective, he said "the words of [the Eucharistic] institution must be more than a formula of consecration: they must be a 'formula of life.'"
He refers specifically to the words: "Take and eat all of you; this is my Body, which will be given up for you"; "Take and drink of it all of you, for this is the cup of my blood."
The Pope sais that, in the context of the new evangelisation, "the people have a right to turn to priests in the hope of 'seeing' Christ in them".
"The young feel the need for this especially," he said. "Christ continues to call them, to make them his friends and to challenge some to give themselves completely for the sake of the Kingdom."
SOURCE
Pope Advises Priests to Live What They Pray (Zenit 18/3/05)
LINKS (not necessarily endorsed by Church Resources)
Letter to Priests for Holy Thursday 2005 (Zenit 18/3/05)
MORE STORIES
Priests must give their lives entirely to God's people (Vatican Information Service 18/3/05)
Pope demonstrates ‘unfathomable dignity’ of priesthood, says Cardinal Castrillon (Catholic News Agency 18/3/05)
Pope Appeals to Priests to Respect Liturgy (Zenit 18/3/05)
21 Mar 2005
