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September 2009

September 18

Reasons behind the fast

September 18, 2009

What’s a fast for? As Muslims make their way through the month of Ramadan and Jews get ready for Yom Kippur, that simple question can prompt many answers — depending on your point of view. “People do stuff like not eat in a very scrupulous way in order to avoid having to go to the trouble of being good people,” said Dan Merkur, psychoanalyst and University of Toronto lecturer in comparative religious studies.

September 21

Care for our dying

September 21, 2009

It is a sad reflection on society when Parliament is ready to consider euthanizing the terminally ill or chronically suffering rather than working to find ways to care for them. But that’s exactly what is happening in Ottawa as Bill C-384, a private-member’s bill that would legalize euthanasia and assisted suicide, makes its way on to the Parliamentary docket. This is the third time Bloc Quebecois MP Francine Lalonde has introduced legislation that would amend the Canadian Criminal Code on this subject and, even if a fall election thwarts this attempt, there will almost certainly be a fourth try when Parliament eventually reconvenes.

Be attentive to the world around you

September 21, 2009

The shiniest star in the constellations of contemporary Catholic theology is arguably Karl Rahner (1904-1984). There are few Catholic theology departments where you can escape from Rahner’s influence, even though he is as fun to read as the Freiburg telephone directory. But I went to Regis College, one of the only theology schools in the world where the German Jesuit Rahner has been dethroned by the Canadian Jesuit Bernard Lonergan (also 1904-1984). And one of the first things that happens to you when you begin a M.Div. at Regis College is a big red book called Method in Theology. It begins with Lonergan’s warning, “This book has long been in the making” and, lo, it is a long time in the reading.

Righteousness, peace the reward of opening up to God

September 21, 2009

25th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B) Sept. 20 (Wisdom 2:12, 17-20; Psalm 54; James 3:16-4:3; Mark 9:30-37) What did the righteous and upright man do to deserve persecution, torture and death? Precisely that — he was upright and righteous. Those who lie in wait for him secretly desire what he has: inner peace, integrity and a close relationship with God. His goodness makes them squirm and feel uncomfortable. They feel the sting of what they could and should be and the reality of what they are. They could have all of those things if they would walk the same path that he does, but then they would have to let go of their own selfish ways.

We can all belong to Christ

September 21, 2009

26th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B) Sept. 27 (Numbers 11:25-29; Psalm 19; James 5:1-6; Mark 9:38-43, 45, 47-48) Spiritual power is not to be hoarded but shared. Unfortunately, possessiveness and the desire to have power over others neutralize so much of the work that God desires to do on our behalf.

Aiming high so students reach spiritual potential

September 21, 2009

TORONTO - In countries such as Canada, the Catholic Church may not be facing a crisis, but neither is it reaching its potential, says Richard Rymarz, a professor of theology at St. Joseph’s College at the University of Alberta. Kim Gottfried, director of chaplaincy at Toronto’s Ryerson University, wants to change that.

A vessel of love

September 21, 2009

I joined my youth group for Street Patrol, feeding the poor on the streets of Toronto, in the hopes of helping someone’s troubled life. I thought if I could affect or enlighten at least one life, I would be eternally grateful. But I feel like I got something even better. At first, I was terrified of being shunned or being emotionally or physically harmed as some homeless people are known to be unpredictable.

Ellen Gable Hrkach's success proves romance novels need not be smutty

September 21, 2009

In the beginning, she just wanted to tell her story. But now, writing has become something of a vocation for Ellen Gable Hrkach — secondary to her marriage and motherhood of course — as she weaves fictional romance with church teachings on sexuality. “Fiction is a wonderful way to evangelize and I don’t think it’s used enough,” Hrkach said. The Ottawa Valley mother of five boys first set out with the mindset that if she touched one person’s life, that would be enough. But more than one person has been moved by Emily’s Hope, published in 2006, and have gone on to devour her second novel, In Name Only, released this year. The self-published author has sold 1,700 copies of her first book and continues to get a passionate response from readers.

Teachers' federation head pledges support for Catholic schools

September 21, 2009

TORONTO - Newly elected Ontario Teachers’ Federation president Reno Melatti says he remembers the days when Catholics had to fight for publicly funded education. Preserving public Catholic schools today and in the future, he said, is a matter of equality and part of Ontario’s history. Melatti, who became the 66th president of the Ontario Teachers’ Federation on Sept. 2, is a graduate of and former teacher at Ontario Catholic schools. From his own experience, he said he learned about the positive impact and value of Catholic education.

Loretto Sisters going green

September 21, 2009

TORONTO - Eight years and $5.2 million later, the Sisters of the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary look on the big blue bank of solar panels gracing the roof of Loretto College and know that it is more than worth the trouble. “It’s God’s planet and we need to take care of it,” explained mother superior Sr. Evanne Hunter.

St. Joseph's Morrow Park gets three-year reprieve

September 21, 2009

TORONTO - St. Joseph’s Morrow Park High School students can breathe a sigh of relief — at least for the next three years. The Toronto Catholic District School Board is finalizing a deal with Tyndale College, which has been leasing the property to the board since 2006, that would allow students to remain at the school temporarily. Tyndale bought the 20-hectare property from the Sisters of St. Joseph three years ago.

Community is St. Gregory's strength for 50 years

September 21, 2009

TORONTO - The first Mass in St. Gregory’s history was a far cry from the lavish affair that marked the central Etobicoke parish’s 50th anniversary Sept. 13. For two years before their church at the corner of Kipling Avenue and Rathburn Road was finished in 1959, parishioners trudged to the local public school and sat cramped in hard-backed chairs while Fr. Henry Clarkson stood in front of a makeshift altar on the auditorium stage.

September 22

Toronto archdiocese cautious about swine flu

September 22, 2009

TORONTO - Toronto's archbishop is cautioning parishes to remain vigilant about swine flu. In a Sept. 16 letter to parishes, Archbishop Thomas Collins said the archdiocese is continuing to monitor the spread of the H1N1 virus which causes swine flu. “Good hand hygiene is the best way to prevent the spread of all flu viruses,” according to the letter.

Faiths unite in support of organ donation

September 22, 2009

TORONTO - In an age when medicine and religion seem to frequently collide, the three Abrahamic faiths and medical science have found common ground on organ donations. On Sept. 20, the archdiocese of Toronto will distribute 200,000 brochures to parishes explaining the theology, science and morality of organ donation. But they won't be alone.

September 24

Canadian fertility rates up, but not high enough

September 24, 2009

More women are having more babies, but still not enough to sustain Canada's population, reports Statistics Canada. The latest numbers are from 2007 and show a 3.7-per-cent increase in births over 2006. It's the fastest increase in the birth rate since 1989. The question for some observers is whether the uptick in births has anything to do with public, government policy.

September 25

No need for Canadian election this year

September 25, 2009

There are times when it is proper for a minority government to fall and for the country to go to the polls to settle a matter of public urgency. Absent some pressing issue, however, the electorate has a right to expect politicians in a minority Parliament to set aside partisan differences and work collaboratively to provide good and productive government. A willingness to co-operate should be even more profound during tough times.

Catholic Ireland is still standing

September 25, 2009

It is a strange business trying to make sense of Irish Catholicism. In recent years pundits of various colour and hue have sounded the death knell of the Irish Catholic Church. Books have been written about the agonizing last days of a once proud church; editorialists and commentators have announced with triumphalistic emphasis the demise of, well, Irish Catholic triumphalism; cartoonists and satirists have had a heyday with errant priests and libidinous bishops; documentary makers have worked the very entrails of Catholic history and its dark infamy. And yet the Irish Catholic Church is still very much around. Cowed admittedly, humbled undeniably, but still in working order.

Pro-Life movement hurt by its militant supporters

September 25, 2009

The current war by bloggers and voicemailers against Salt + Light Television and its CEO Fr. Thomas Rosica is a symptom that something has gone seriously wrong in the heart of the pro-life movement in Canada and the United States. The ultra-militants among the right-to-lifers, of course, have many reasons to feel frustrated. They failed to persuade Boston archbishop Cardinal Sean O’Malley to deny U.S. Sen. Edward Kennedy a Catholic funeral in full sight of the world. They failed to get Fr. Rosica to hoist himself above the bishops and canon lawyers who gave the green light for the televised funeral service and throw himself into the campaign to denounce them. And their raving and ranting throughout this affair have almost certainly failed to cause a single person to join the struggle for the protection of the unborn.

In suffering, struggle, Jesus was perfected

September 25, 2009

27th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B) Oct. 4 (Genesis 2:7, 8, 18-24; Psalm 128; Hebrews 2:9-11; Mark 10:2-16) There are two different versions of creation in Genesis. This description of creation — the second — is expressed in a far more human and homey manner than the first. God appears more as an artisan in His workshop than the cosmic force in the first chapter who creates with the power of His word.

God books are back

September 25, 2009

In bookstores across the country, award-winning author David Adams Richards’ new book God Is: A Search For Faith In A Secular World stands out on the shelves. It is a sharply argued and closely observed testament to a civilization that thinks it is cool to diss God and believers of any stripe. But more than that, the book is part of the evidence that a tide has turned. In Ecclesiastes, the wisdom is “To everything there is a season.” It is an insight the publishing industry knows very well. If the trend of the last few years has favoured the militant atheist, the polemical humanist and the over-reaching scientist, the current publishing catalogues say the backlash is on and, as one title aptly puts it, “God Is Back.”