Letters

New springtime (letter)

Errol P. Duke

Contents - Mar 2003 - Buy a copy now Editorial: War in Iraq? Questions to be considered - Peter Westmore Sydney Archdiocese RE test: behind one school's success story - Michael Gilchrist News: The Church Around the World - AD2000 Ten years on former Anglicans enrich Church - Fr Peter Geldard Vatican tells politicians: Don't hide your light - Michael Casanova Good priest, bad priest - my faith remains - Frank Mobbs Religious faith and modern culture: responding to a secular critic - Bill Muehlenberg Liturgy: The Mass is the same sacrifice as the Cross - Msgr. Peter J. Elliott New Age ideas: how Catholics should respond - Fr Peter Joseph The media and evangelisation - Moira Kirkwood Letters: Brisbane Synod (letter) - John F. Nolan Letters: 'Partner' or spouse? (letter) - Peter Hannigan Letters: Women's Commission (letter) - Leon Voesenek Letters: Church renovation (letter) - T.E. Geraghty Letters: Government proposals (letter) - Dr Arnold Jago Letters: Last things (letter) - Kevin McManus Letters: New springtime (letter) - Errol P. Duke Letters: Apostolate (letter) - Barry O'Brien Letters: Catholic websites (letter) - John Carroll Letters: Third rite (letter) - Norm Power Letters: Invalid (letter) - Maria Lossberg Letters: New Age? (letter) - Dr Lance Eccles Letters: Accountability (letter) - John Leach Letters: Infallible teaching (letter) - Peter Howard Poetry: From Tradition (For my mother) - Andrew Huntley Books: Life's Worth: The Case against Assisted Suicide, by Arthur Dyck - Bill Muehlenberg (reviewer) Books: Human Cloning And Human Dignity: Report of the President's Council on Bioethics - Bill Muehlenberg (reviewer) Books: The Self Evident Proof, by Richard Kouchoo - Catherine Sheehan (reviewer) Books: The Latest from AD Books Reflection: Lenten self-denial - at the very heart of our lives with Christ - Fr F.E. Burns

The sad and sorry truth of despicable child sex abuse in the Church (especially in North America) has now fully unfolded. This most serious "self-inflicted wound from within" has implicated many archbishops, bishops and priests - even infiltrating into seminary formation.

Still, our hearts correctly bleed for the many wonderful, holy, inspired, orthodox clergy who must feel devastated at being so sinfully betrayed by their apostolic compatriots.

And, no, this is not a situation of "media hype". On this occasion, thanks be to God, the media correctly exposed an issue that the Church would not - to cleanse it from some internal dreadful sins.

Many prophecies throughout the mid to later 1900s have been proven correct, e.g., the warning of "the smoke of Satan" infiltrating the highest levels of the Catholic Church.

Yet, as Pope John Paul II has often stated, "a new springtime" is about to emerge and, in the same hope and joy, let us fervently unite to "re-rail" the Church for the future in the most loving and orthodox way that Jesus Christ would wish. Already, several focussed bishops and clergy here in Australia are hard at work to lead the way for this to occur.

ERROL P. DUKE
Elizabeth East, SA

Reprinted from AD2000 Vol 16 No 2 (March 2003), p. 15