Catholic Church branded out of touch
14/7/07
A poll by social networking giant MySpace brands the Catholic Church “out of touch” with young people, just ahead of its World Youth Day event in Sydney. The online poll, which targeted Australians aged 14 to 24, found 77 per cent of respondents felt the church was out of touch with them. Of “non Catholic and non-Christian” respondents, 65 per cent said World Youth Day held no relevance to them at all. More than half (53 per cent) also said they would not participate in World Youth Day events, to be staged across Sydney over six days from Tuesday, because of the church’s stance on sexuality”. But that was not the most emphatic result, as 89 per cent overall rejected the Catholic Church’s teaching that they should remain virgins until they married.
See; http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24015418-26103,00.html
Out of touch, out of time
Paul Collins;14/6/08
Last Thursday was bitterly cold in Canberra when I took the car in for service. I knew my mechanic was a practising Catholic, although he gripes a lot to me about the church and hierarchy. And he’s always been a strong supporter of East Timor. Nevertheless I was surprised to see four young Timorese men hanging around the garage trying to keep warm. “They’re here for World Youth Day,” he volunteered. He said his family was only too happy to put them up and that they had been sponsored by a Canberra parish. It was clear the young men were enjoying themselves thoroughly, despite the bitter cold.
See: http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/out-of-touch-out-of-time-20080713-3eh3.html
Rejoice in a Christian festival of world importance
according to the Juventutem movement, many young Catholics seek a return to the Latin mass (”Young Catholics yearn for tradition”, 12-13/7). Assuming the majority of these worshippers are non-Latin readers or speakers, this is all very perplexing for a baby boomer such as myself. As a child I had to endure many hours of this strange, non-English, medieval-like ritual. One thing was for sure, I never understood a word of it, and quickly lost any desire to do so. It’s therefore all very weird, to me at least, that a generation addicted to their mobile phones, iPods and email would want to listen to a Latin church service. These are the same young people who busy themselves dumbing-down the English language with their text messages. How on earth (or in heaven for that matter) will they comprehend Latin? In an age when church congregations are dwindling, numbers of priests conversant in any language are dwindling, and when young people are (apparently) thirsting for knowledge, why conduct the mass in a foreign and virtually obsolete language? Juventutem Australia secretary Alice Woolven explains that a Latin mass is “a glimpse into the past of the Catholic church”. This in itself is a bit odd, considering how both Pope Benedict XVI and Cardinal Pell appear somewhat reluctant to “glimpse” into certain aspects of this church’s past. ;Crispin Walters; Chapel Hill, Queensland
See: http://blogs.theaustralian.news.com.au/letters/index.php/ theaustralian/comments/rejoice_in_a_christian_festival_of_world_importance/
Young Catholics yearn for tradition; Milanda Rout; 12/7/08; http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24007208-5006785,00.html
Tags: Australia, Christianity, Poll, WYD