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The Triduum

4/23/2019

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The Triduum (from the Latin meaning Three Days) is often referred to as TheThree Great Days–Maundy Thursday–Good Friday-Easter Vigil. According to
this tradition there is a difference in the way we enter into the spirituality of Triduum and that of Easter Day. As we observe the Triduum we enter into the
Paschal Mystery in which the passion-death-resurrection of Jesus Christ saves and redeems us. Easter Day is a celebration of utter joy and introduces the 50 days of Easter celebration.The Triduum is therefore a single, unitary celebration of the whole Paschal Mystery. It is not merely an historical rehearsal of a sequence of three events over three succeeding days but is a solemn entering into the saving mystery of the passion-death-resurrection-event in the life of Jesus. This is one event –we do not enter into Good Friday as those who do not know how this will end, and we do not enter in the resurrection as those who do not know where itbegan and how we got here. That is why there is this essential unity to The Three Days which is expressed in the fact that there is only one beginning and one ending to the liturgy of The Triduum.The unity of this single celebration is clearly shown in the structure of the
services. There is a Greeting at the start of the Maundy Thursday Eucharist,but no dismissal; no formal beginning or dismissal at the Good Friday devotions, and no greeting at the Service of Light that starts the Great Vigil of Easter. It is only at the end of the Vigil Service that the congregation join in the joyful dismissal that sends people out to love and serve the Lord with a great cry6 of "Alleluia! Alleluia!"In this single service we gather together to celebrate the complete drama of salvation into which we are invited. It is a gathering that celebrates the new commandment to love and serve one another, revealed by a Lord who washes the feet of the disciples, including Judas who betrayed him, and Peter who denied him, all played out in the context of the joyful celebration of the liberation of the people of God from the oppression of slavery in Egypt; a gathering of the people of God at the Cross as those who know the truth of the victory of our Lord over darkness, sin and rejection; a gathering of the people who join together to celebrate the resurrection of the Lord as those who have kept watch through his passion and greet him with joy on Easter morning.

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April 07th, 2019

4/7/2019

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I cannot do anything on my own; I judge as I hear, and my judgement is just, because I do not seek my own will but the will of the one who sent me."

Throughout the Gospels, one of the marks of Jesus’ leadership style is to deflect allcredit from himself. He comes proclaiming not himself but God and God’s reign. Heteaches in the manner of a Jewish rabbi, drawing upon the religious tradition andgiving his interpretation of it. And like any truly great teacher, Jesus does not expect
of his disciples blind obedience but rather a critical appropriation and even extensionof his teaching in their lives.
We might say that Jesus empowers his followers. This empowerment, however, hasnothing to do with self-empowerment, but its aim is that they – and we – empowerothers in turn. Knowledge, insight, wealth, political influence, all forms of empowerment in fact, are useless unless they are passed on to other. Not doing this is
not only selfish and a waste, but a sin. It is a sin against love, against the very point of empowerment, and it is also dangerous.
It is dangerous and sinful because it not only makes one too powerful and filled with the unhealthy spirit of pride and self-importance, but is disempowering of others,creating in them a sense of dependence and a culture of patronage in society. It createsa ‘Master-Servant’ mentality. In a society where great gaps exist between rich and poor, it breeds corruption at every level. A common feature of many countries that have low levels of corruption is an absence of such a mentality. If we consider states like Denmark, Sweden or New Zealand, they have a narrow gap between rich and poor and an absence of a culture of patronage. Beyond more equal opportunities, there is a culture of respect that transcends the gaps between leaders and led. Politicians generally do not treat citizens as ‘vote fodder’ but see themselves as public servants, genuinely interested in their constituents and ready to listen to them. (Those who don’t, find they have very short careers in politics). One of the many things we can say about the leadership style of Nelson Mandela is that, though he could be abrupt and even fairly authoritarian at times, he seemed
genuinely interested in ordinary people and truly desired their empowerment. Many recall how, when he spoke with them, it was as if they were the very centre of his attention, no matter their political affiliations, age, race, gender or social position. The story is told how in a telephone conversation he addressed Britain’s Queen as 'Elizabeth’ not out of a deliberate attempt to violate protocol, but ‘because’ he replied, ‘she calls me Nelson’. In his public speeches he frequently deflected his considerable achievements to others, emphasizing always that governance was a collective effort. He initiated a much greater transparency in policy making, inviting ordinary citizens to comment on proposed new laws, a practice that continues (even if most citizens don’s avail themselves of the opportunity). He was, in short, a generous leader.How many of us, I wonder, continue to trap ourselves in a patronage culture? How many of us will consider whether candidates are empowering or disempowering us when we go out to vote this year?
Reflection prepared by Anthony Egan SJ & Matthew Charlesworth SJ @mcharlesworth)

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April 07th, 2019

4/7/2019

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There can be no future without forgiveness
- Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu -

At the core of me, and I suspect of you too, there is a battle raging.  It is a battle between the desire for revenge and the gospel call to mercy, the longing to see wrongdoers punished and the uneasy sense that Desmond Tutu’s warning is true: there is no future – for me, for you, for South Africa – without forgiveness.
 
Intellectually I can understand that the endgame of Apartheid produced no clear winners.  The Struggle played to a stalemate that led to a negotiated transition and, as a result, no Nuremberg Trials for the old regime’s death squads, torturers and generals.  The Truth & Reconciliation Commission that followed was the best alternative given the situation.  Yet it rankled to see the murderers of Steve Biko, Vuyusile Mini, Dulcie September, Rick Turner and Ruth First walk away scot-free.
 
I fully understand the revulsion that a century of hangings of mostly black prisoners in Pretoria Central can have on a society like ours.  Intellectually, I do believe that people can change, that the term Correctional Services is a genuine desire of our democracy and not Orwellian newspeak.  Yet I am enraged to see how so many brutal crimes go unpunished, and that ordinary citizens live in fear.
 
Yes, I understand mercy.  I understand forgiveness.  We have many examples of great sinners who became, like Augustine, saints.  I am drawn again and again to the figure of the reformed convict Valjean, in Victor Hugo’swonderful Christian parable of forgiveness Les Miserables, pursued by his chilling adversary the relentless, unforgiving policeman Javert.  I see the need to move from a society of institutional brutality to one that is forgiving.  And I know that 25 years of historical time is but a pinprick in eternity, and that a human rights-based democracy does not – cannot and should not – have the kind of draconian powers to stamp out violence.
 
But it’s difficult to maintain these beliefs when one sees that, 25 years on, it is still the little guy, the unimportant person, women and the poor, who suffer the most.  It’s difficult to believe in mercy and justice when our police services are under-resourced, often corrupt or just plain incompetent.  And it is double difficult when some of the oppressors were from the ranks of our liberators.  Are we surprised, then, when communities take matters into their own hands and revert to the dreadful tools of the past to reassert a semblance of control in their lives?  Or when, in a unequal society, there are those that horde and heap their wealth beyond excess as soon as they are given any opportunity – regardless of the compounding disorder that results in the process.
 
We must now draw together again so as to combat corruption and promote the common good over self-interest.  It is time to remind ourselves of the hope we all desire for our common future.
 
 
Reflection prepared by Anthony Egan SJ & Matthew Charlesworth SJ

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There can be no future without forgiveness - Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu -

4/4/2019

0 Comments

 
At the core of me, and I suspect of you too, there is a battle raging.  It is a battle between the desire for revenge and the gospel call to mercy, the longing to see wrongdoers punished and the uneasy sense that Desmond Tutu’s warning is true: there is no future – for me, for you, for South Africa – without forgiveness.
 
Intellectually I can understand that the endgame of Apartheid produced no clear winners.  The Struggle played to a stalemate that led to a negotiated transition and, as a result, no Nuremberg Trials for the old regime’s death squads, torturers and generals.  The Truth & Reconciliation Commission that followed was the best alternative given the situation.  Yet it rankled to see the murderers of Steve Biko, Vuyusile Mini, Dulcie September, Rick Turner and Ruth First walk away scot-free.
 
I fully understand the revulsion that a century of hangings of mostly black prisoners in Pretoria Central can have on a society like ours.  Intellectually, I do believe that people can change, that the term Correctional Services is a genuine desire of our democracy and not Orwellian newspeak.  Yet I am enraged to see how so many brutal crimes go unpunished, and that ordinary citizens live in fear.
 
Yes, I understand mercy.  I understand forgiveness.  We have many examples of great sinners who became, like Augustine, saints.  I am drawn again and again to the figure of the reformed convict Valjean, in Victor Hugo’swonderful Christian parable of forgiveness Les Miserables, pursued by his chilling adversary the relentless, unforgiving policeman Javert.  I see the need to move from a society of institutional brutality to one that is forgiving.  And I know that 25 years of historical time is but a pinprick in eternity, and that a human rights-based democracy does not – cannot and should not – have the kind of draconian powers to stamp out violence.
 
But it’s difficult to maintain these beliefs when one sees that, 25 years on, it is still the little guy, the unimportant person, women and the poor, who suffer the most.  It’s difficult to believe in mercy and justice when our police services are under-resourced, often corrupt or just plain incompetent.  And it is double difficult when some of the oppressors were from the ranks of our liberators.  Are we surprised, then, when communities take matters into their own hands and revert to the dreadful tools of the past to reassert a semblance of control in their lives?  Or when, in a unequal society, there are those that horde and heap their wealth beyond excess as soon as they are given any opportunity – regardless of the compounding disorder that results in the process.
 
We must now draw together again so as to combat corruption and promote the common good over self-interest.  It is time to remind ourselves of the hope we all desire for our common future.
 
 
Reflection prepared by Anthony Egan SJ & Matthew Charlesworth SJ

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    Christ is Lord! 
    Christ is King!

     My name is Emilio Kasaba, rector of St Barnabas-Bluff. I enjoy a good debate and I love to see people grow in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ

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  • Home
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    • Annual Plans
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    • Service outline for Sunday
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    • Contact Us
  • Funeral Regulations
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    • Up Coming Events
    • Food for Thought
  • Sermons
  • Parish News
    • Articles
    • Parish Photo Gallery
  • History
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  • Weekly Pew Leaflet
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  • Call to Prayer 2024
    • Fundraising
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