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Un prêtre blogueur?
A blogger priest?

Marriage Chills?

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Stewardship / Intendance

Aide à Haïti Relief

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Liturgy of the Hours
Liturgie des Heures

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Carême / Lent

Year Année St Paul

Adventus Fr Tom Dowd
The Crib & the Cross
Christophers News Notes
For life - pour la vie
Mercator Net
Pope Benedict XVI
Tommy's Window PPT's
To the Source
Word on Fire  

Part 1 Dawn Eden & St Maximilian Kolbe  
Part 2   Part 3    

 

© 2006, 2012 All rights reserved by Fr. Gilles Surprenant, Roman Catholic priest, Pastor, St. Luke Parish, Dollard des Ormeaux,  Québec, Canada
© 2006, 2012 Tous droits réservés à L'Abbé Gilles Surprenant, Curé, Paroisse S. Luc, Dollard-des-Ormeaux, Québec, Canada


Niagara Vendalite Candle stands vs Shrine Design from Florida


Christmas Message from your Pastor - Message de Noël de votre Curé
Feast of the Holy Family - Fête de la Sainte Famille

Catholics Come Home      Salt + Light interview with Bishop Tom Dowd

111205 2011 St Nicholas Volunteer Appreciation Evening - Presentations - Soirée St Nicolas pour l'Appréciation de nos Bénévoles 2011 - See some photos of the presentations.

The meaning of Blessed Pope John Paul II's beatification by Fr Thomas Rosica, CEO, Salt + Light

"This land is holy." Words of Pope John Paul II in Canada in September, 1984
 
Vancouver 12-13 year olds
challenge the adults of Planet Earth at 1992 Rio UNCED - Conference on Environment & Development : spend on peace and environment, not war :
YouTube online - Severn Cullis-Suzuki bio  STOP destroying our ecosystem - we must see ourselves as one species and stop what we are doing if we are to survive.  

WORLD CLOCK   My BLOG - mon BLOGUE / Catholic Q's & A's / Cardinal Turcotte / Ride the Wave 

It's not too late -
edit the movie of your life - have the happy ending you desire with Jesus' help.

Fr. Gilles' Homilies St. Luke Parish  
Homélies de l'abbé Gilles Paroisse S. Luc


Are you or a loved one experiencing homosexual attractions and looking for answers?  
Understanding our sexuality and God's plan for our happiness 


In Canadian politics, public life, and the media... Why is it okay to pick on Christians?

See Power & Politics with Evan Solomon on YouTube

Public figures' bigotry & hatred for Catholic Church - what do citizens think? 

Power & Politics interview with Senator Pat Martin & Fr Fred Dolan


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 D & Peace for Haiti   Prayer for Haiti       Prière pour Haïti   D et Paix pour Haïti

Betting on the Afterlife - article by Msgr Fred Dolan in the National Post


Pope Benedict XVI deserves better credit 

Le Pape Benoît XVI

   



  Our Archbishop Jean-Claude Cardinal Turcotte notre Archevêque

Operation Renewal - Our future as Church of Montreal - Notre avenir comme Église de Montréal - Opération Relance

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These past 27 years as a priest in Montreal... and in particular the 12 years before I came to St. Luke, showed me that life is a series of waves....   God's grace in Jesus lifts us up, and teaches us ... Click for Becket Website. Our Lady of Lourdes statue at St. Thomas a Becket Parish, Pierrefonds, Quebec, Canada to cling to the surf board and...  trust in his love....

Ces derniers 27 ans comme prêtre à Montréal... et en particulier les 12 ans avant mon arrivée à S. Luc, m'ont montré que la vie est une séries de vagues.... La grâce de Dieu en Jésus nous soutient et nous enseigne... qu'il faut naviguer en tenant ferme la planche de surf... et faire confiance en son amour...
   One of four St Luke Sunday Worship assemblies / Une des quatre assemblées du culte dominical à S Luc
J'ai servi / I served St David, St Brendan, St Dominic, St Aloysius,  
     St Philip Neri, St. Thomas à Becket & l'Hôpital Général du 
                       Lakeshore General Hospital

Maintenant, me voici à / Now I am at St. Luc / St. Luke 
"Ride the Wave" is a copyrighted graphic conceived by Maria Purisima and designed by Marica Purisima August 2006. All rights reserved.
 
Jesus speaks, and our hearts burn within us...!  Jésus parle, et voilà que nos coeurs brûlent au-dedans de nous...!   St Luc / St Luke

Notre-Dame-de-Lourdes à Becket

In this Third Millennium of Evangelization, we have much to learn and much to do; as we follow Jesus our Saviour. "Lord of the Harvest, fill us with the Holy Spirit, and grant us to glorify your holy Name by dwelling in You and doing with You, in all things, the Father's Will! Amen!"                 En ce Troisième Millénaire d'Évangélization, nous avons beaucoup à apprendre et à faire en suivant Jésus notre Sauveur.  "Seigneur de la Moisson, remplis-nous de l'Esprit-Saint pour glorifier ton saint Nom en demeurant, avec Toi, dans la volonté du Père!  Amen!"

Check out our Catholic Christian Tool Kit and our 4-week homily series on Discipleship & Stewardship   

Fr. Gilles' 25th - Prayer to Jesus - Prayer of Zechariah - Prayer for Vocations with Pope JP II 
25e de l'Abbé Gilles - Prière à Jésus - Prière de Zacharie - Prière pour vocations avec le Pape JP II


L'Abbé / Father Gilles   1983 - 25th 2008  Associate Priest of
Madonna House Apostolate  Visit

 Did you know Mary Hyjek?
10-4 Teddy Bear Wheelchair Foundation - In memory of Mary Hyjek

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About me....  Homilies at St. Luke - Homélies à St. Luc   Je me présente....
                                  
Check out my English Blog  Venez voir mon blogue français   

  Year of St. Paul - Montreal     Daily Mass   l'Année de St. Paul - Montréal  
                          
 Fasting & More Holy Week - le Carême ressources
Benedict XVI Lent 2009 - Benoît XVI le Carême

Paroisse St Luc St Luke Parish   Cardinal Turcotte    Get a Bible   Find a Bible Commentary   
 Scriptural Way of the Cross     Email - Courriel   
  Achetez une Bible    Trouvez un commentaire biblique 
 
Chemin de Croix Scripturaire  
Année de / Year of St. Paul    
  
                                                                                                                   
A Letter from Pope John Paul II - courtesy of Barbara Dartois

 If you want to improve the Way of the Cross contact me - Si vous désirez améliorer ce Chemin de Croix contactez-moi  

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Disciples of Jesus and Stewards of Creation - Disciples de Jésus et Intendants de la Création

Christian Stewardship Reflection Questions pour Réfléchir sur L'Intendance Chrétienne

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Week 4
Covenant – DISCIPLES AND STEWARDS – Covenant Questions – 2010

Disciples of Jesus and Stewards of Creation – Week 4 and Wrap-Up

After Adam and Eve lost their intimate friendship with God and with each other and lost their harmony with Creation, the divine love that had filled their lives was replaced with fear. Jesus has delivered us from fear of God, and we are becoming more willing to believe in God’s love for us. Still, in light of Jesus’ extraordinary life and gift of himself, and in light of God’s unconditional love, it is to be expected that we Catholics and Christians feel at some point insecure before God, or if we succumb to the temptation to compare ourselves to others, and in the face of indifference, opposition, ridicule, or persecution from other people.

Week 4 –God forever grants his favour through a lasting mutual Covenant

Noah – rainbow – mercy and peace offered to humanity

Abraham – circumcision – his descendants set apart from humanity

Moses – 10 commandments – Israel called to commit themselves to follow God’s ways

Jesus – the gift of his life – humanity called to receive God’s favour and each person called to respond with gratitude through our whole life

How can we possibly participate actively in this huge undertaking of God, this Covenant which the Blessed Trinity have taken thousands of years to develop and which Jesus offers each generation?

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    1.
      In week 1 we reflected on Jesus’ call to each of us to follow Him as his disciples. The only way I will want to follow Jesus is if I come to see Him as admirable, and come to feel that He really cares about me personally.

What practical steps can I take to make more room for Jesus to reveal Himself personally to me in my real day to day life and busyness?

2.     In week 2 we reflected on how it is that God is the donor of everything we have: all my time, all my gifts and talents, all of nature – everything is God’s extravagantly abundant and continuous gift to each of us and to all of humanity.

What practical steps can I take to let awareness of God as the True Giver

(1)     become personal and continuous gratitude to God

(2)     and my strongest motivation in living

(3)     to give time back to God for Sunday worship and

(4)     for personal, couple, and family prayer, and

(5)     be my primary motivator to put my gifts and talents at the service of others?

3.     In week 3 we reflected on the truth that all our money and material possessions come to us from God, and even our health and opportunity to work and earn a living are his gifts. God calls us to increasingly put our trust in Him for all things, and to practice trusting Him by giving generously to his work in his Church and to those in need.

One practical step would be to tally up all my giving to the Church, to charities, and to people in need that I meet and to see whether it comes close to 10% of my / our total family revenues. If not, then we can decide together to take incremental steps to come closer to the 10% figure which is an ideal biblical expression of trust in divine providence and gratitude to God.

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    4.     Today we begin week 4 and once again we have the opportunity to see Jesus as admirable and worthy of our trust, gratitude, and love. It’s a bit shocking to hear Jesus tell his neighbours the blunt truth. They speak well of him but they won’t let themselves be touched by what He says. Jesus wants us to allow Him to touch our hearts, our minds, and our lives.

(1)     Like Jeremiah I can feel inadequate to follow Jesus but I can ask Him to bring me closer to Him so I can know Him better, love Him more, and follow Him more deliberately.

(2)     God is always present, but I am often unaware. I can begin to pray more personally by simply visiting in my mind and heart with the Father, the Son Jesus, and the Holy Spirit.

(3)     All my personal activity is good, but God wants to inspire all my activity with the divine love of the Trinity. I can ask for a greater desire to be filled with divine love in all I do.

(4)     Today and all this week and even for the rest of my life, I can take to heart the words Mary spoke to the attendants at the wedding feast in Cana in referring them to Jesus: “Do whatever He tells you.”

    5.     The good stewardship of our Parish faith community here at St Luke requires that we orchestrate the resources of our membership at the service of all. As one way to respond to some of these questions and take practical steps to follow Jesus, we offer you this year’s Annual Lent Mission. It will be preached and led by Fr. Gerald Westphal, a high school chaplain for many years, on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evenings February 25-26-27.

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Semaine 4
Alliance DISCIPLES ET INTENDANTS – L’Alliance – Questions 2010  

Disciples de Jésus et Intendants de la Création – Semaine 4 et Conclusion

Quand Adam et Ève ont perdu leur intime amitié avec Dieu et entre eux et  n’étaient plus en harmonie avec la Création, l’amour divin qui les avait rempli fut remplacé par la crainte.

Jésus nous a délivré de craindre Dieu et nous croyons volontiers que Dieu nous aime. Mais, face à la vie extraordinaire de Jésus et du don de sa vie, et face à l’amour inconditionnel de Dieu, on peut s’attendre à se sentir insécure devant Dieu, surtout si on succombe à la tentation de se comparer aux autres, et faisant face à l’indifférence, l’opposition, le ridicule, ou la persécution par les autres.

Semaine 4 – Dieu à jamais donne sa faveur dans une Alliance mutuelle durable

Noé – l’arc-en-ciel – miséricorde et paix offertes à l’humanité 

Abraham – circoncision – ses descendants mis à part de l’humanité

Moïse – 10 commandements – Israël appelé à s’engager à suivre les voies du Seigneur  

Jésus – le don de sa vie – l’humanité est appelée à recevoir la faveur de Dieu et chaque personne est appelée à répondre avec gratitude par sa vie toute entière  

Comment pouvons-nous participer activement à cette œuvre gigantesque de Dieu, cette Alliance que la Sainte Trinité a développée pendant des millénaires et que Jésus offre à toute génération?

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    1.
      La semaine 1 nous a porté à réfléchir sur l’appel que Jésus nous fait tous de le suivre comme ses disciples. Je ne peux suivre Jésus que si je le trouve admirable et ressens qu’Il m’aime vraiment.  

Comment puis-je faire plus de place pour que Jésus se révèle à moi personnellement dans ma vie et mes occupations de tous les jours?

   2.     La semaine 2 nous a porté à réfléchir au fait que Dieu est le donateur de tout ce dont nous disposons: tout mon temps, tous mes dons et mes talents, toute la nature – tout constitue un don surabondant et continuel de Dieu à chacun et chacune et à toute l’humanité.

Que puis-je faire pour que ma conscience de Dieu comme le Vrai Donateur

(1)     devienne en moi une gratitude personnelle et continue envers Dieu

(2)     devienne ma plus vive motivation à vivre pleinement

(3)     pour remettre à Dieu le temps de le louer le dimanche

(4)     pour prier seul, dans notre couple, et en famille et  

(5)     devienne ma principale motivation à mettre mes dons et talents au service des autres?

3.     La semaine 3 nous a porté à réaliser que tout notre argent et tous nos biens matériels viennent de Dieu, et qu’Il nous donne même notre santé et l’opportunité de travailler et gagner notre pain. Dieu nous appelle à lui faire davantage confiance en tout, et de pratiquer la confiance en lui en donnant généreusement à ses œuvres dans son Église et aux gens dans le besoin.

Un pas concret serait de faire le compte de tout ce que nous donnons à l’Église, aux diverses charités, et aux gens dans le besoin que nous rencontrons pour voir si le total se rapproche de 10% de nos revenus annuels ou en famille. Sinon, nous pouvons décider ensemble d’augmenter par étapes pour nous rapprocher du 10%, un idéal biblique de confiance en la divine providence et de gratitude envers Dieu.

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4.
     Aujourd’hui nous commençons la semaine 4 et nous pouvons reconnaître en Jésus une personne admirable et digne de notre confiance, notre gratitude, et notre amour. C’est un peu choquant d’entendre Jésus dire la vérité crue à ses voisins. Ils parlent en bien de lui, mais ils refusent de se laisser toucher par ce qu’il dit. Jésus veut que nous lui permettions de toucher nos cœurs, notre pensée, et nos vies.

(1)     Comme Jérémie je peux me sentir inadéquat pour suivre Jésus mais je peux lui demander de m’approcher de lui pour que je puisse mieux le connaître et l’aimer, et le suivre de façon plus délibérée.

(2)     Dieu est toujours présent, mais j’oublie souvent. Je peux prier plus intimement tout simplement en visitant par ma pensée ou mon cœur le Père, le Fils Jésus, et l’Esprit Saint.

(3)     Toute mon activité personnelle est bonne, mais Dieu veut inspirer toute mon activité par l’amour divin de la Trinité. Je peux demander un plus grand désir d’être rempli d’amour divin en tout ce que je fais.

(4)     Aujourd’hui, toute cette semaine, et même pour le reste de ma vie je peux prendre à cœur les paroles que Marie a dites aux servants à la noce de Cana en les référant à Jésus : « Faites tout ce qu’Il vous dira. »

5.     Notre communauté de foi ici à la Paroisse St Luc exerce une bonne intendance en gérant toutes les ressources de nos membres au service de tous. Une façon de répondre à ces questions et de prendre quelques pas à la suite de Jésus sera de vous offrir notre Retraite annuelle du Carême. Elle sera offerte par Christiane Cloutier-Dupuis jeudi, vendredi, et samedi 25-26-27 mars.

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Week 3 Treasure – Questions 2010
 
Diacre Brian Cordeiro Homéliste

Semaine de Prière pour l'Unité Chrétienne - 23-24 janvier au 30-31 janvier, 2010

Questions for the Homily:


1.      
First, “Why do I have to share my treasure?”
 
After all, I work very hard to earn it and to use it wisely.


2.      
Second, “If I wish to be a steward, what do I need to do?”
 

According to Nehemiah it is about realizing that it all belongs to the Lord, including my treasure.
Therefore I am called upon to be a joyful giver and to share with those in need.

Paul to the Corinthians clarifies that we are co-responsible for each other
since we are members of the same Body of Christ.

The Gospel tells us that Jesus walked so strongly with the Holy Spirit
that people were rushing to come and meet Him.

So how can we use the anointing of the Holy Spirit in our own lives
to draw people to Christ? Obedience is the key.


Questions for the week:


1.
      How can I use my treasure in obedience to the Spirit?

2.
     How can I be a joyful giver?

3.
     How can I reach out and help the victims of the earthquake in Haiti?
 
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Semaine 3
Le Trésor – Questions 2010

1.      
Premièrement, « pourquoi je dois partager mon trésor ? »
                              
Après tout, je travaille très fort pour le gagner et pour l'employer sagement.


2.      
Deuxièmement « si je souhaite être un intendant, qu’est-ce que je dois faire ? »


Selon Néhémie c'est à moi de réaliser que tout appartient au Seigneur, y compris mon trésor.
Alors je suis invité à être un donateur joyeux et partager avec ceux qui sont dans le besoin.

Paul clarifie que nous sommes coresponsables les uns pour les autres parce que
nous sommes les membres du même corps du Christ.

L'évangile nous indique que Jésus a marché si fortement avec le Saint-Esprit
que les gens se précipitaient pour venir le rencontrer.

Comment pouvons-nous employer l’onction du Saint-Esprit en nos propres vies
pour attirer les gens au Christ? L'obéissance est la clé.


Questions pour la semaine :


1.
      Comment est-ce que je peux utiliser mon trésor?

2.
     Comment est-ce que je peux être un donateur joyeux ?

3.  Comment est-ce que je peux aider les victimes en Haïti ?  
  
 
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Week 2
 Time & Talent - - - Semaine 2 Le Temps, le Talent, et la Nature – Questions 2010

L’Abbé Franck Fambo Homéliste – La Noce à Cana

1.      Est-ce que je suis conscient de mes dons? Comment je les développe pour mon bien personnel et pour le bien de la communauté ?

2.
     On entend dire que le temps c’est l’argent. Est-ce que je prends conscience que le temps c’est aussi ma famille, ma communauté chrétienne, et que le temps c’est aussi l’éternité ?

  3.     Est-ce que je prends conscience que la nature est un don de Dieu comme ce fut le cas pour Adam et Ève ?
Quelle est    ma relation avec la nature ? Lieu d’émerveillement où je découvre Dieu ?
Lieu d’exploitation pour mon bien et celui de ma famille et de la communauté ?
Lieu à préserver pour la postérité ?


Fr Franck Fambo Homilist  – The Wedding Feast at Cana

1.      Am I aware of my gifts? How do I develop them for my own good and for the good of the community?

2.
     We hear it said that time is money. Am I aware that time is also my family, my community, and that time is eternity?

3.     Am I aware that nature is God’s gift as it was for Adam and Eve? What is my relationship to nature? A place of wonder and awe where I discover God? A place of exploitation for my good, the good of my family, and the good of the community? A reality to be preserved for posterity?


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Week 1 Discipleship - - - Semaine 1 Disciples – Questions 2010

1. Like the One who sent the prophet Isaiah, Jesus comforts                1. Tout comme Celui qui envoya le prophète Isaïe, Jésus réconforte
    his people. Think of some people who are comforted by you                    son peuple. Pensez aux personnes qui sont réconfortées par vous    
    and how it happens that you are a comfort to them....                                et comment il arrive que vous êtes ce réconfort....

2. If you could suggest a news headline telling people about a              2. Si vous pourriez suggérer une manchette pour les nouvelles qui
    wonderful thing God is doing for people or in the world,                        montrerait aux gens une chose merveilleuse que Dieu fait pour
    what would the headline say?                                                                       les gens ou pour le monde, que serait cette manchette?

3. Jesus lived a disciplined life so He could do some good.                    3. Jésus vécut une vie disciplinée afin de pouvoir faire le bien.
    What are some disciplines you give yourself in order                           Quelles disciplines pratiquez-vous afin de pouvoir faire du bien?
    to be able to do good?                 

4. Jesus let Himself be led by the Holy Spirit to tell people                  4. Jésus se laissait mener par l'Esprit Saint pour raconter aux gens
    about his Father's love. Think of when you were prompted                   l'amour de son Père. Pensez aux moments où vous étiez inclinés
    by the Holy Spirit to talk about God and went ahead and                        par l'Esprit Saint à parler de Dieu et vous l'avez fait, et à d'autres
    did it, and another time when you didn't do it,                                          moments où vous ne l'avez pas fait, pour quelque raison que ce soit.
    for whatever reason.                                                                                    

5. Jesus deliberately tried to do his Father's will and at his                 5. Jésus essayait de façon délibérée à faire la volonté de son Père et 
    baptism by John heard the  Father say, "You are my Son,                     à son baptême aux mains de Jean Il entendit son Père Lui dire:
    the Beloved; with you I am well pleased."  Think of                                "C'est toi mon Fils; moi, aujourd'hui, je t'ai engendré."
    yourself as a disciple of Jesus and hear those words of                         Imaginez-vous un disciple de Jésus et que ces paroles du Père
    the Father addressed to you - how do you feel? Think of                        vous sont adressées. Comment vous sentez-vous? Comment
    some ways you could more deliberately try to do God's                          pourriez-vous essayer de façon plus délibérée à faire la volonté
    will and to live your days as a disciple of Jesus and                                de Dieu et de vivre tous les jours comme disciple de Jésus et
    follow Him.                                                                                                      Le suivre?
 

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 Part 2 
 Home page top / Haut de la page     Cardinal Turcotte       About Fr. Gilles   

 Part 3   Home page top / Haut de la page     Cardinal Turcotte       About Fr. Gilles   
 
top - Haut

 

Pope deserves better credit  

                            BY DAVID WARREN, THE OTTAWA CITIZEN                                  
MARCH 28, 2010 9:57 AM
 

Columnist Randall Denley
Photograph by: The Ottawa Citizen, The Ottawa Citizen
Check out the Ottawa Citizen

Palm Sunday is as good a day as any to be defending the Catholic Church against the latest onslaught of media smears, and the tireless efforts to tarnish Pope Benedict personally. I desisted from writing this column for St. Patrick's Day, when the issue was whether in 1979, Joseph Ratzinger, then Archbishop of Munich and Freising, had knowingly transferred a pedophile priest to another assignment where he could abuse more children.

The truth was that he had removed the offending priest from his station promptly, and sent him into therapy; and that without Ratzinger's knowledge, that priest's parochial vicar, no doubt falsely believing he was "cured," later put him back in a parochial setting. To suggest that Ratzinger had knowingly put other children at risk was a calumny. But I notice the journalists are still combing old cc'd memos to find mud that will stick.

As I write, the latest -- originating in the New York Times, amplified by the BBC, and thus carried in some uncritical form on most wire services -- is that as Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, in the 1990s, Ratzinger had failed to reply to a letter about a child-molesting priest in Wisconsin. The story is self-refuting: the Vatican did not intervene because U.S. civil authorities had themselves dropped the case.

The BBC website headline reads: "Pope Benedict faces child-abuse cover-up queries." I have written before about the deceitful journalistic practice of waving such insinuations about in headlines and leads. Only those who read carefully to the end of the piece discover how empty, and how unsubstantiated, are the implied charges. But the great majority of readers, who merely scan with half-attention, are left with the impression of accumulating grievous wrongs.

Here in Canada, the National Post gave prominent play to a characteristically smug, malicious and factually reckless attack on the Pope by Christopher Hitchens, which originally appeared in the Slate web magazine. Readers who believed a word of it should be referred via Internet to a carefully referenced point-by-point refutation by the Canadian Catholic layman Sean Murphy.

As Mark Twain (himself notoriously fast and loose as a journalist) is purported to have said, "A lie can travel half-way round the world before the truth has put its boots on." Or words to that effect. I am inclined to stone my reader with innumerable other quotes about the salience of half-truths -- how, like half-bricks, they are easier to hurl than whole ones, etc. But in the end the world is the world.

These half-brick thrusts are mounted from the top of a much bigger groundswell. A number of past cases of pedophile priests, and other male and female church figures, have been exposed in Ireland, and the journalistic taste for uncovering more has spread across Europe.

While the ground is littered with allegations that are hearsay, and while the scandal has been magnified by a routine failure to supply qualifications and context, it must be painfully admitted that there is also much truth mixed in with the charges.

The best way to appreciate this is by (actually) reading the Pope's excoriating letter to Irish bishops, sent on the Solemnity of St. Joseph (March 19) to emphasize its gravity. The letter was airily dismissed in the liberal media with, "Pope Offers Apology, Not Penalty, for Sex Abuse Scandal" (New York Times). This is a total misrepresentation of the contents of a document that is proposing to tear the Irish church apart in pursuit of malefactors and of the people who covered for them.

Nor is it an empty threat, given the scale on which North American dioceses, seminaries and religious congregations were scoured by "apostolic visitors" after scandals came to light here.

Pedophilia is by no means confined to the Catholic Church -- and the Boy Scouts -- though they are the exclusive institutional targets of liberal media. Nor is there evidence, beyond the selectivity of news coverage, that the plague is not worse in secular institutions. It is a problem to be confronted throughout our society, wherever children are left in trusted adult care; and it is a problem that would seem to have been vastly compounded by the collapse of traditional sexual morality over the last couple of generations.

Rome has, in fact, taken the lead in dealing with it, and has already put in place the most exacting safeguards against the depredations of sexual perverts inside the Church. Pope Benedict has, personally, done more to this end than, so far as I can see, any other living human, and is thus the least appropriate target for attacks.

Within the church, the need of renewal remains much deeper than the pedophile scandals. In the time both leading up to and since Vatican II, the faithful have experienced one of her greatest historical crises: a catastrophic retreat before, and compromise with, the "Zeitgeist" of modern worldly "libertarian" moral values and norms.

The answer isn't more retreat and compromise. The answer is to return to the splendour of the Mandate of Christ. And this necessarily involves implacable opposition to that Zeitgeist.

David Warren's column appears Sunday, Wednesday and Saturday.

© Copyright (c) The Ottawa Citizen

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/Pope+deserves+better+credit/2736176/story.html


 

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 LIFE IN THE SPIRIT BOOKS - VIE DANS L'ESPRIT BIBLIOGRAPHIE - DONS & CHARISMES

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LA VIE DANS L'ESPRIT - BIBLIOGRAPHIE


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Cantelon Willard, Le baptême dans le Saint-Esprit, Ed Vida, Deerfield, Floride, 1979, 67 p.
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 Obituary - Thérèse Hébert, my mother                Nécrologie - Thérèse Hébert, ma Maman
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