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October 2007

October 23

De Manche was with Register 41 years

October 23, 2007

TORONTO - It’s appropriate that Alfred De Manche’s family would request that friends consider a donation to the Shepherd’s Trust as a fitting way to remember the long-time journalist’s life and work.

October 25

Collection tells the legend of the Knights Templar

October 25, 2007

VATICAN CITY - The Vatican is publishing a collector’s edition of documents on the Knights Templar, the medieval crusading order that became the focus of legends and mysteries.

Imams learn about the Holocaust reality

October 25, 2007

TORONTO - There’s just one reason why half a dozen imams and other leaders in Toronto’s Muslim community joined an interfaith tour of the Holocaust Museum in the city’s north end Oct. 16, and just one reason they listened intently to Max Eisen tell how he survived the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp as a 15-year-old slave labourer.

Victory over darkness

October 25, 2007

Hindus, Sikhs and Jains in India and worldwide will celebrate Deepavali or Diwali on Nov. 9. This auspicious day known as “the festival of light” has a different significance for each faith tradition and geographical area in which it is celebrated, but the commonality that binds all Diwali celebrations is the theme of light.

The seduction of sexualized commerce

October 25, 2007

Sex sells. That seems obvious enough to anyone who owns a television. But cultural critic Paul Rutherford has looked behind this most obvious truth about advertising to figure out how and why we have been sold so much stuff using so much sex.

October 26

Bishop Henry tells youth they are ‘special’

October 26, 2007

CALGARY - The first memory I have of Bishop Frederick Henry was my Confirmation in Grade 6. He cupped each child’s face in his hands and said, “You are special.”

The power of one

October 26, 2007

BRAMPTON, Ont. - The life stories of people such as Mother Teresa and Mother Angelica provide models for pro-life supporters in how even one individual, let alone a whole movement, can profoundly change the world for the better in the face of daunting challenges.

Economics must take environment into account

October 26, 2007

TORONTO - We need to stop an attitude aiming at maximum economic growth and instead make economic choices toward responsible development, said Dr. Bob Goudzwaard.

Patchett’s Boston beautiful but wrong

October 26, 2007

Run by Ann Patchett (Harper Collins, 295 pages, $32.95). Ann Patchett’s latest novel, Run, will fly out of bookstores. And well it should, for it is a beautiful book. It is a non-Catholic novel about semi-pagan Catholics, but both the plot and the characters are engaging. The tone is as gentle and musical as the soundtrack on its promotional DVD. If you have a soft heart and an ear for good writing, you will be entranced and moved by Run.

Caregiver's role is very gratifying

October 26, 2007

One in five baby boomers and seniors provides care to an older adult, according to Statistics Canada. (In my experience, this figure is quite conservative.) The majority are in the 45 to 54 age group, giving practical help to a parent.

Part of Christian life is preparing for death

October 26, 2007

A rather superficial movie, a murder mystery, struck a deeper note with me. The movie was about a group of people on an island holiday. Every so often, one of them would disappear, never to be seen again. They didn’t know who would be taken next, or when, how, why or where the person went; but they knew they were all subject to the mysterious phenomenon. Not so different from real life, except that in the movie, the mystery got solved.

Love the spirit in all

October 26, 2007

Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time, Nov. 4 (Wisdom 11:22-12:2; Psalm 145; 2 Thessalonians 1:11-2:2; Luke 19:1-10) An encounter with other cultures, ideas and philosophical systems should never leave us unchanged. Often it is an enriching experience, as it was for the Israelites. They did not leave Egypt or Babylon empty-handed. In Egypt they borrowed some of the customs they would later practise, and later they would adopt portions of Egypt’s wisdom tradition. In Babylon they refined their views of God by adapting and transforming Babylonian creation myths. It was during this sojourn that they developed a theology of angels and of the resurrection of the dead.

Christians under pressure in Iraq

October 26, 2007

While U.S. government officials insist that security in Iraq has improved since the so-called “surge” in troop strength began earlier this year, the situation of Iraqi non-combatants remains dire. Hundreds of thousands have been killed or injured in sectarian violence and millions have been forced from their homes. Kidnapping and other acts of criminal banditry occur every day. A recent report by the United Nations states that civilians continue to be targeted by armed groups through abductions, suicide bombings and extra-judicial executions.

Being prepared for genetic advice

October 26, 2007

Sometimes an observation leads to that rude “duh” of quick retort. But sometimes on a second or third thinking you realize that knee-jerk cynicism is simply insufficient, simplistic.

Did a pope’s letter change Canada's church?

October 26, 2007

What is 1967 best remembered for in Canada? If you are of a certain age, you might recall Expo ’67 and Canada’s Centennial celebrations. Growing up in Toronto, the key event of my schoolboy’s life that year revolved around that last time the Leafs managed to win the Stanley Cup. I recall Mom constantly praying the rosary so that those “St. Mike’s Boys” (Red Kelly, Frank Mahovlich, Davie Keon, etc.) would win.

40 years marrying faith with action

October 26, 2007

The meaning of Vatican II is nowhere more evident than in the Canadian Catholic Organization for Development and Peace, this year marking its 40th anniversary.

No vision from Throne Speech

October 26, 2007

The Speech from the Throne, read with pomp and ceremony by the Governor General of Canada, is supposed to represent a vision of hope and ambition for the entire nation. In fact, this is just what Stephen Harper’s Conservative government promised in its Oct. 16 address to Parliament. Unfortunately, this vision appears myopic and stunted, a thing focused less on building a grand nation than winning the next election.

October 29

D&P mining campaign hits Parliament Hill

October 29, 2007

OTTAWA - The Canadian Catholic Organization for Development and Peace delivered 153,000 postcards to Parliament Hill Oct. 24, urging the Conservative government to ensure Canadian mining companies act responsibly when operating abroad.

October 30

Beatified Austrian refused to fight for Hitler

October 30, 2007

VATICAN CITY - A Vatican cardinal beatified Franz Jagerstatter, an Austrian farmer who was beheaded in 1943 after he refused to fight in Hitler's army.

October 31

Dalai Lama spreads message of peace

October 31, 2007

OTTAWA - The Dalai Lama brought a message of peace and reconciliation to Ottawa Oct. 28-30, urging China to grant the Tibetan people the rights to preserve their language, culture and spirituality.