MAY 2019 Vocation Engagement Spirituality AN INTERNATIONAL MARIST JOURNAL OF CHARISM IN EDUCATION volume 21 | number 01 | 2019 Inside: • Helder Camara Lecture • Irish Marist Brothers in Oceania Champagnat: An International Marist Journal of Charism in Education aims to assist its readers to integrate charism into education in a way that gives great life and hope. Marists provide one example of this mission. Editor Champagnat: An International Marist Journal of Tony Paterson FMS Charism in Education, ISSN 1448-9821, is [email protected] published three times a year by Marist Publishing Mobile: 0409 538 433 Peer-Review: Peer-Reviewers The papers published in this journal are peer- reviewed by the Management Committee or their Kelvin Canavan delegates. Matthew Clarke Brendan Geary Correspondence: John McMahon Br Tony Paterson, FMS Michael McManus Marist Centre, Tony Paterson PO Box 1247, Ned Prendergast MASCOT, NSW, 1460 Australia Email: [email protected] Views expressed in the articles are those of the respective authors and not necessarily those of the editors, editorial board members or the publisher. Unsolicited manuscripts may be submitted and if not accepted will be returned only if accompanied by a self-addressed envelope. Requests for permission to reprint material from the journal should be sent by email to – The Editor: [email protected] 2 | ChAMPAGNAT MAy 2019 Champagnat An International Marist Journal of Charism in Education Volume 21 Number 01 May 2019 1. Viewpoint and Contributors 4 Tony Paterson 2. Easter Reflection 5 Frank Freeman 3. Irish Marist Brothers in Oceania 6 Ned Prendergast 4. From the Archives: featuring Br Urban Corrigan 19 Tony Paterson 5. Address to St Joseph’s College Academic Awards 21 David de Carvalho 6. helder Camara Lecture: ‘Close and Concrete 24 – Pope Francis Evangelising a World in Flux’ Austen Ivereigh MAy 2019 ChAMPAGNAT | 3 VIEWPOINT AND CONTRIBUTORS he good thing about this publication is that Marist Brothers in Ireland. Ned’s contribution there is no mention of Brexit! The days of focuses on the contribution of the Irish Marists Tthe British Empire and the “Mother who became missionaries to Oceania. Some of Country” are surely now part of our Australian these men came to Oceania as Brothers; others history books. Why we need to be flooded with came to Oceania and joined the Institute here. It Brexit, Theresa May, and whatever happens is interesting research, and something that has been between writing this piece and the publication and neglected on our part in recent years. Such research circulation of this journal is in the hands of the always evokes discussion, and this is important for gods, and surely we do not need to be constantly us as our Marist story continues to evolve. reminded of Brexit in this country! Austen Ivereigh is a London-based Catholic More to the point, this is an international Marist journalist, author and commentator. Austen journal, and the one thing that binds us together is published The Great Reformer: Francis and the our Marist Charism, our call to follow in the Making of a Radical Pope . Austen was in Melbourne footsteps of St Marcellin Champagnat to make recently for the 2019 helder Camara Lecture Jesus known and loved by all. Such a statement is where he spoke on Pope Francis evangelizing the a good one to start each day with: it is crystal clear, world as it is today. The lecture is printed with positive and full of hope. permission. Our gratitude to Brother Mark This certainly has a preference to us as opposed O’Connor who facilitated this. What Ivereigh has to some of the agenda that comes our way when one to say is well researched and it has much to tell us turns the television on first thing in the morning! particularly at this time when we approach the As an international journal, we have four Australian Plenary Council 2020. This Plenary contributors for this edition: Council will hopefully not only have an influence Frank Freeman is an Australian Salesian priest, in developing a pathway for the future of the Church former high school principal, and currently the in Australia, but also for the world-wide Church. editor of the Salesian Bulletin . he is also the archivist David de Carvalho has recently been appointed for the Australian Catholic Press Association. Any Chief Executive Officer for the Australian of the Marists who have been associated with the Curriculum and Reporting Authority. David’s Diocese of Sale would know him as he spent many address to St Joseph’s College students and the years in Bairnsdale. Frank provides us with a school community who received Academic Awards beautiful reflection on the Resurrection – the joy took place in February 2019. of Easter. God comes to us through the Risen Jesus. Thank you to these contributors. We are very The reflection is printed with permission and it grateful. For more than twenty years the Champagnat provides each of us with a great sense of hope for Journal has been seeking to make a small but all that tomorrow brings for us. effective contribution to our Marist heritage and Ned Prendergast taught for a quarter of a to our ministries of evangelization. All suggestions century at Marian College Ballsbridge, in Dublin, and contributions to this publication always receive Ireland. he later joined the Marino Institute of every consideration. Our gratitude also goes to Education where he was best known for a project those who have helped to establish the journal over entitled Reimagining the Catholic School . From 2007 many years: Brother John McMahon, Des until his retirement he was Director of faith Connolly, and many, many other people. Development with CEIST, a trust body for Catholic Voluntary secondary schools. In his retirement he Br Tony Paterson has been working on the history and archives of the Editor THANK YOU Our gratitude to those who have contributed papers to this edition, and to the proof-readers and to those who have assisted with the peer-review process. The Management Committee. 4 | ChAMPAGNAT MAy 2019 FRANK FREEMAN Easter Reflection ”He has risen............” t is a very difficult task to change people’s criminal under Roman law, was in fact God attitudes or mind-sets, as anyone engaged in Incarnate. That was just as absurd to the Romans Ieducation will readily tell you. To change whole as the idea of a supreme Deity is to today’s personalities, to turn around life's patterns, needs a professed atheists, or the idea of chastity to today’s miracle. sexually permissive society. Twelve men, unlettered in the main, yet skilled how sincere were these twelve transformed in the practical aspects of the fishermen trade, once men? The proof of their sincerity lay in their spilled followed Christ for diverse reasons. Some dreamt blood. Nor did it all end with Roman swords of an earthly kingdom in which they would have blunted by Christian bodies, or wild beasts satiated power and prestige. Others imagined they would with Christian blood. The cycles of the years have be endowed with great supernatural powers. All spun away into history, yet each cycle has produced however bathed in the reflected popularity of the millions of transformed hearts, minds and voices new teacher from Nazareth. The shame of their to echo the cry... “he has risen”. leader’s public execution, however, shattered all In our own times, great eternal truths have been such dreams. In fear, they huddled together in the dissolved away by the acids of disbelief, selfishness upper room, behind locked doors and then retired to and ignorance. We need now more than ever, brave their old working haunts, the shores of Lake Galilee. followers of Christ, to witness to the fact that, In these two places they were totally despite the hopelessness which seems to have transformed by a power which, measured by its all- settled over us, despite our inability to solve the pervading effects, must have been supernatural. major world problems, a radical transformation is And what a transformation it was! They went out still possible. It is the “Light of Christ”, that same fearlessly to proclaim to the whole known world, power which long ago transformed simple that “he has Risen”, and this despite encountering fishermen into giants of apostles, which can still opposition and ridicule on all sides. radically change our materialistic, pleasure-loving, Now no longer petty factions, bickering among selfish society into a “kingdom of justice, a kingdom themselves as to “who was the greatest”; no longer of love, peace and understanding.” weak and indecisive; no longer beating a coward’s This Eastertide, let us, encouraged by our Lenten retreat in the face of opposition, but strong and prayer, self-denial and almsgiving, be bold enough courageous, united to seed the world with his not only to hope and pray for such a words and his ways. I often think that such a transformation but also with uplifted voices, transformation is the greatest proof of the confidently proclaim “he is risen.... he is risen Resurrection. indeed”. yes, even in mighty Rome, then the centre of The concept of resurrection lies at the very heart political power, wealth, munificence and of Christianity. materialism, they had the courage to preach the ridiculous idea that a person, crucified as a common Frank Freeman SDB MAy 2019 ChAMPAGNAT | 5 NED PRENDERGAST Irish Marist Brothers in Oceania very Irish Marist Brother was in a sense a head down, about how Dumfries missed some cute missionary. If you were born in Co. Mayo foxes across the Irish sea and how it might have Eand served as a Brother in Co.