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PAGE 2—The Georgia Bulletin, September 7,1978
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MONTEVIDEO, URUGUAY - Efforts to help Latin
America’s poor through land reform programs and foreign and
domestic aid are failing, accoriding to United Nations experts.
Farm workers still live in misery despite increased progress in
agricultural techniques and production, said Uruguayan
economist Enrique Iglesias, executive secretary of the Economic
Commission for Latin America, a U.N. agency.
*****
WASHINGTON - Rep. Robert K. Domam (R-Calif.) has
asked Congress to approve a resolution condemning the regime
in Equatorial Guinea, where a massive campaign of terror,
torture and murder directed against the predominantly Catholic
people is reportedly taking place.
SALISBURY, RHODESIA — “Certain central features” of
the internal agreement signed in March by Rhodesian Prime
Minister Ian Smith and moderate black leaders “make peace
very difficult if not impossible to achieve,” according to an
analysis by the Rhodesian Catholic Justice and Peace
Commission.
*****
WASHINGTON - The United States now has “an
opportunity to do through peaceful means what we sought to
do so long through war: to protect U.S. national interests in
Southeast Asia by assuring Vietnam’s independence from the
domination of any outside power,” according to a U.S. study
mission which recently ended a week-long trip to Vietnam.
Archbishop Philip M. Hannan of New Orleans and other
members of the study team reported on their trip before the
U.S. Senate judiciary subcommittee on refugees.
VATICAN CITY -- The Vatican pharmacist, Brother Gerard
Cole, 47, of Australia, a member of the Hospitaller Order of St.
John of God, was one of two nurses cleared for admission to the
conclave for the election of Pope John Paul . The other nurse,
Brother Augusto Campioli, an Italian, is a member of the same
order.
NEW YORK - Father John J. McVeigh, one of the last
Americans to be evacuated from Saigon at the end of the
Vietnam War, has resigned from Catholic Relief Services to
accept a pastorate in his home diocese of Reno-Las Vegas, Nev.
*****
NOTRE DAME, IND. - l.ie church needs the vitality of the
charismatics, Bishop William McManus of Fort Wayne-South
Bend, Ind., told participants in the National Conference on the
Charismatic Renewal in the Catholic Church. But, the bishop
added, the charismatic movement needs the certitude of the
teachings, the sacraments and the pastoral direction of the
church.
‘Roamin’ Romans’ On The Move
‘THE ROAMIN’ ROMANS’ youth
group of St. Thomas More Parish
stopped at Boston Harbor to tour
‘old Ironsides’ during the recent trip
that took them from Decatur to
Montreal and Toronto, Canada.
The annual “pilgrimage” of St. Thomas
More’s youth group, “The Roamin’
Romans,” was international in flavor and
historical in outlook this summer. After
viewing the wonders of Niagara Falls, the
group ventured into Canada where they
enjoyed Toronto cuisine, and visited many
of the old churches of Montreal. They were
particularly impressed by the breathtaking
magnificence of Notre Dame Church and
Brother Andre’s Oratory of St. Joseph, the
site of many miracles of healing.
After a Six Flags-type ride through the
mountains of Vermont, they sampled the
local fare through the hospitality of Gene
and Mary Jane Brisbane. To be welcomed
by nomatic Decaturites so far from home
was a special treat.
Lost in the surburbs of Ipswich, Mass.,
they finally discovered the beacon lights of
the La Salette Renewal Center deep in the
woods. After nearly a week of sleeping on
floors, the three nights on beds were
greatly appreciated. The chilly beaches of
Gloucester beckoned to the younger set,
while the rest were intrigued by the unique
shops of Bear’s Neck in Rockport.
A side trip to the museums of Salem led
to a chance meeting with the Reverend Mr.
Ray Cadran, M.S., a former St. Thomas
More staff member, who will be ordained
to the priesthood in September. It IS a
small world after all!
On the way to New York City, the
“Roamin’ Romans” stopped at Boston
Harbor to tour the U.S.S. Constitution
(“Old Ironsides”).
An exciting bus ride through New
York’s mid-town traffic climaxed in a ferry
boat ride to the Statue of Liberty. More
history awaited the group in Washington,
D. C., where a generous La Salette
seminarian, in love with the city, eagerly
dedicated two days as a tour guide. The
Smithsonian by day, the monuments by
night, and an insider’s view of Monsignor
O’Connor’s National Shrine of the
Immaculate Conception highlighted the
tour.
A relaxing two days of sun and surf at
Virginia Beach culminated the trip, which
gave the youth a deeper insight into the
universality of the Church. Unity with
diversity in liturgy and architectural styles,
and the warm hospitality of so many
Catholic communities enriched their
perception of the meaning of catholicity.
This has been an objective of St. Thomas
More youth program since a trip to the
Eucharistic Congress in 1976.
Horizons have been broadened by visits
to historic St. Augustine and by celebrating
the Liturgy in a little mission church on
Bimini Island in the Bahamas, and youth
missions of the last three years have
focused on the theme of Catholic identity.
Future trips are also being planned with
this goal in mind.
The Church In Kenya — Part One
BY FATHER
RICHARD A. KIERAN
Reflecting upon my three
week visit to Kenya, I find it
difficult to make
generalizatons about the
Church there. The situation
of the Church differs very
much from one area to
another, as does the life and
economic development of the
people.
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The sociological factor
which most profoundly
influences the life of the
country is the degree of
tribalism which is still
evident. There are four main
ethnic groups native to
Kenya, which divide down
into some 50 different tribes.
The two largest tribes, the
Kikuyu and Luo, are
completely distinct in their
language, customs and life
styles. Unfortunately there
exists a good deal of
animosity between these and
other tribes. The motto of
the administration of the late
President Jomo Kenyatta was
“harambee” (unity). Much
has been done to unite the
people of Kenya but there is
still evidence of a great deal
of in-fighting. Some tribes
resist strongly efforts to have
them abandon their primitive
customs and become part of a
modern capitalist society, for
example, the proud Masai and
Samburu, who continue their
nomadic life as they follow
their herds across semi-desert
dressed in traditional robes
and carrying their spears.
More “harambee” is needed
to enable progress within the
country and within the
Church. It is unfortunate that
some of the beautiful
traditions and customs of the
people are being lost in the
process. The price of progress
seems to be very great in
Kenya.
“Africanization” is the
“in”word. For the
“musungus” (whites) this
means the gradual take-over
of lands and of the control of
business by Africans since
independence in 1963. For
the Africans it means
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repossessing what was
rightfully theirs. For the
leaders of the Catholic
Church, africanization means
the gradual handing over of
leadership to Africans. This
process is in full swing but far
from complete. In recent
years the Vatican has been
appointing native Bishops, so
that ten of the fourteen
ordinaries are Kenyans. The
vocation picture is
encouraging, although many
more native priests are
needed to serve the rapidly
growing Church in Kenya. In
1977, 16 percent of the
priests were Kenyans.
The Church is still
importing too much of
western culture. The
Cathedral in Nairobi is a sad
example. The older
missionaries tend to be
satisfied with taking care of
the basics of evangelization,
catechesis and conferring the
sacraments. However, the
younger clergy are developing
African liturgy and
accommodating methods of
evangelization and catechesis
to the culture. One of the
most exciting liturgies we
experienced was in a tiny
church (cinder-block and
sheet-iron roof) on the shores
of Lake Victoria. The
congregation was mainly
school children. There was a
scattering of older people
with no education. It was the
most participated liturgy I
have ever witnessed. Led by
their catechists, the people
participated actively in every
part of the liturgy, not only
singing songs, but chanting
the responses in their native
language. There was a
tremendous sense of joy and
community. Some of the old
“mamas” even provided an
informal liturgical dance to
the beat of the drums.
Program Features
Biblical Teacher
Bible teacher Kay Arthur
will be the guest speaker at
the North Atlanta Christian
Women’s Club luncheon
Wednesday, September 13, at
the Dunwoody Country Club
at 12:30 p.m.
Mrs. Arthur is in great
demand as a conference
speaker and has spoken
throughout the USA and in
Europe. She also has a weekly
radio program and will soon
have a weekly television
program.
Guest soloist will be Pam
Little. A free nursery will be
provided at the Kingswood
United Methodist Church in
Dunwoody.
Re servations and
cancellations are required by
Monday, September 11. For
more information or
reservations, call 394-6685 or
934-0508.
The Christian Women’s
Club is part of an
international organization
with headquarters in Kansas
City, Mo. It is an
inter-church, and
non-sectarian organization
having some 1,400 groups
across the USA, Canada and
around the world. There are
no membership dues and club
membership is not necessary
to attend meetings.
Part of the difficulty
confronting the Church in
Kenya is the lack of mature
African lay leaders. At times I
felt that the white
missionaries were content to
continue to deal with the
people in a rather
paternalistic way. In contrast,
however, I attended a most
refreshing meeting of one of
the deaneries in the Diocese
of Kisumu. The newly
appointed Luo Bishop,
Zachaeus Okoth, was
challenging his priests to
make the development of lay
leaders a top priority. It was
encouraging to learn that
each parish had an active
parish council, even though it
might be a half-day’s walk for
some members to attend the
occasional meetings. The
Bishop was anxious that the
parish councils have a real
voice in setting direction for
the Church in the future.
One of the challenges
facing the Church is the
tendency of the Africans to
form separatist groups within
it. This may be due partly to
the failure to develop mature
leadership. It may also be due
to the breakdown of the
traditional lifestyle in the
small village communities. A
separatist group within the
Church can provide a needed
sense of identification with a
group. The clergy were
concerned to give better
guidance to various apostolic
groups within the Church so
as to counteract this
separatist tendency. Some
years ago in the Luo area a
group broke away from the
Church and established an
independent church called
Legio Mariae - the leaders had
originally been involved in
the Legion of Mary. This
group now has its own pope,
bishops and a considerable
following.
The tendency to form
separatist groups is not only a
problem for the Catholic
Church but for all of the
mainline churches in Kenya.
This is well documented in a
publication of the Christian
Council of Kenya which
traces the development of
Christianity in Kenya from
the arrival of Vasco da Gama
in 1498 to the present day.
Many different independent
churches have come onto the
scene in the last twenty-five
years. This splintering has
been promoted by the new
influx of missionaries since
independence, particularly
the more fundamentalist
groups. There are many
different pentecostal groups,
some very much in evidence
because of their distinctive
white garb.
The African church leaders
with whom I talked were
hopeful people. They were
intent upon finding ways to
relate the Gospel better to
the culture of their people.
The Conference of African
Catholic Bishops was meeting
in Nairobi during my stay.
The topic for their meeting
was the family. They were
searching for ways to relate
the gospel values in regard to
marriage and family to a
culture where polygamy is
practically an economic
necessity.
(Continued next week)
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