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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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Volunteers refuse WYD powers
Rural Fire Service and State Emergency Service volunteers will not seek "authorised person" status while assisting with WYD in order to avoid "negative interactions with people".
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Vietnam up, US down on WYD numbers
A record number of Vietnamese pilgrims will attend World Youth Day this year but US numbers are down - and 50 Angola pilgrims are stranded in Sydney instead of Adelaide because tour organisers thought the SA capital was only an hour way.
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Celebrate the living spirit: Bishops urge
Australia's bishops have urged Catholics to "celebrate the Living Spirit" to mark Aboriginal and Torres Islander Sunday this weekend.
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Korean priests in Mass protest against US beef
Two hundred South Korean priests have celebrated a street Mass in Seoul to protest an unpopular government decision to resume beef imports from the US.
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Bees for Benedict
Italian scooter manufacturer Piaggio has presented Pope Benedict with two new specially made three wheeled vehicles.
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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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Jesuits to elect new 'black pope' in 2008
The superior general of the Jesuits, Dutch Fr Peter-Hans Kolvenbach, has informed members of the Society that he intends to step down in 2008, the year he will turn 80.
Catholic News service reports that in a letter sent on Thursday to all members of the Society of Jesus, Fr Kolvenbach said a general congregation to elect his successor and to discuss other important matters would begin on 5 January 2008, in Rome.
Each of the 91 Jesuit provinces in the world will hold a provincial congregation by 1 March 1 2007, to prepare for the Rome gathering.
While the Jesuit superior general is elected for life, the order's constitutions allow a superior to step down.
Catholic News Service in Rome obtained a copy of Fr Kolvenbach's letter in Italian; each Jesuit provincial is charged with ensuring that every member of the Jesuits receive a copy.
Fr Kolvenbach, who was elected superior in 1983, told the Jesuits that before making his decision he obtained "the consent of His Holiness Benedict XVI" and had listened to the opinions of his assistants at the Jesuit headquarters and of all the provincials.
US Jesuit Fr Frank Case, Rome-based secretary of the Jesuits, told Catholic News Service that Fr Kolvenbach had sought Pope Benedict's opinion and consent in view of his advancing age and the challenges facing the world's almost 21,000 Jesuits.
Speaking to the National Catholic Reporter's John L. Allen, Australian Jesuit Fr Dan Madigan said that Kolvenbach "won the confidence of the Jesuits with his intelligence, wisdom and great experience," while at the same time gaining the trust of the Holy See.
Allen quoted a story told to him by Madigan, which makes the point. Kolvenbach is never seen without his black cassock, and Madigan said that one Jesuit, skeptical of clerical garb, challenged him, asking, "Why do you dress like that?"
Kolvenbach's response, as Madigan tells the story: "I dress like this so you can dress like that."
Allen says the anecdote reflects both Kolvenbach's wit, and his sense of his mission - trying to foster the creativity and diversity of the far-flung Jesuit community, while keeping them tethered to the church and its leadership.
In his letter, Fr Kolvenbach said he was convoking the general congregation under the conditions foreseen by the Jesuit constitutions to deal with "questions of lasting and serious consequences" for the entire order.
He also said the pope and the Jesuits he consulted unanimously approved of his plan to convoke the meeting "to decide on the governance of the society at the highest level."
Fr Kolvenbach closed the letter by expressing his hope that preparations for the congregation would be "guided only by the desire to serve Our Lord God" in the hope that he would make use of it.
One blogger - Alejandro Bermudez of Catholic Outsider - reports speculation that Kolvenbach's successor will be an Asian, reflecting the shift in demographics during Kolvenbach's term of office which has made India dominant within the Society in terms of numbers.
"Furthermore, given the experience with Arrupe's generalate, I would say that the delegati will be looking for someone who knows and is known by Rome, and or who would be a quick study. One of Kolvenbach's greatest achievements as General has been restoring the lines of communication between Borgo Santo Spirito (the General Curia of the Jesuits) and the (Papal) apartment."
Pictured: Fr Kolvenbach during a visit to Jesuit Social Services in Melbourne
SOURCE
Jesuit superior to step down, calls 2008 meeting to elect successor (Catholic News Service 3/2/06)
John L. Allen: Jesuits called to elect new superior (National Catholic Reporter 3/2/06)
More on the Jesuits: The future could be in South East Asia (Catholic Outsider 5/2/06)
LINKS (not necessarily endorsed by Church Resources)
Society of Jesus (International)
Australian Jesuits
Society of Jesus (Wikipedia)
ARCHIVE
Jesuits and companions begin Jubilee Year with assembly (CathNews 16/12/05)
MORE STORIES
Jesuits: yes *we will* be electing a new Superior General (Catholic Outsider 4/2/06)
Who will be the next Superior General of the Jesuits? (Catholic Outsider 4/2/06)
More on the Jesuits: The future could be in South East Asia (Catholic Outsider 5/2/06)
Jesuits general meeting on April 22 at the Vatican (Catholic News Agency 3/2/06)
Jesuit leader calls general congregation, hints at resignation (Catholic World News 3/2/06)
'Black Pope' to stand down (The Times 4/2/06)
Jesuits' Top Superior to Step Down (Zenit 2/2/06)
6 Feb 2006
