MIRROR DOING GOD’S WORK TEACHING OUR CHILDREN WELL MIRROR GIVE JOY, GIVE HOPE CONTENTS PAGE Teaching Our Children Well ....................................Dr. Michael Kinsella ................... 1 Teaching the Truth about God and Man ...................Fr. Martin Bartha ....................... 2 Learning to Live as Christians..................................The Holy Land .......................... 4 Ignorance of Scripture is Ignorance of Christ ............Fr. Dwight Longenecker .............. 6 Giving Children What They Need .......................................................................... 8 Learning the Truth that Saves .................................Egypt .................................... 9 The ‘Plot’ of Sacred Scripture is Essential ................Msgr. Charles Pope .................. 10 The Wisdom I Learned From My Father ....................Michael Cretaro ...................... 14 The Gambler’s Wisdom ..........................................Kenny Rodgers ....................... 18 The Wisdom I Received from My Grandmother .........Louis Tan .............................. 20 The Saving Truth about Marriage and the Family................................................. 22 Teach Your Children Well ........................................Graham Nash ........................ 24 Life is Changed, Not Ended .....................................Fr. Joseph Gill ......................... 25 Investing in the Future, Investing in the Faith ...................................................... 26 Always a Joy to Share Our Faith ..............................Thomas Heine-Geldern ............ 29 ‘God, grant me… Serenity to accept the things I cannot change, Courage to change the things I can, And Wisdom to know the difference.’ REINHOLD NIEBUHR (1892-1971) Editor: Jürgen Liminski. Publisher: ACN International, Postfach 1209, 61452 Königstein, Germany. De licentia competentis auctoritatis ecclesiasticae. Printed in Ireland - ISSN 0252-2535. www.acn-intl.org TEACHING OUR CHILDREN WELL TEACHING OUR CHILDREN WELL Dear Friends, Such indeed is the extent of ‘widespread folly’ and the generalised shortage of ‘wise heads’ in round the time when man first landed on positions of authority that it is not unreason- Athe Moon, the Vietnam war was still ongo- able to doubt whether Children over the past ing and the first rock ‘supergroup’ Crosby, two or so decades have been ‘taught well’: Stills, Nash and Young called upon parents to ‘teach your children well’. The world has radi- Today not only is generalised oppression and cally changed since then. hatred as rampant and as widespread as ever but the ridiculing of, the oppression of and the Indeed, many would suggest that we have hatred demonstrated towards Christians entered a ‘New Age’ of Man and that we now throughout the World has intensified and live in a ‘Brave New World’: a very volatile, continues to intensify with no credible end very threatening and very unpredictable time. in sight. The world has not been liberated from Fear, Oppression and Hate. More than it realises, and certainly more than ever before, the World needs Christian Mankind is at war with itself. It is largely a ‘Cul- witnesses to teach current and future genera- tural War’, a war of values, ideals and ideas tions what it means to be human: to teach but there are and there have been casualties: the Art of Living. lives, livelihoods and reputations have been destroyed. Indeed, catholicism is under a So let us teach our Children well and let cultural persecution in Ireland, as it is across them know that not only do we love them but the world. that God especially loves them and loved them so much that He sent His only Son to Surveying the World of today some sen- live and die to redeem all of us, all of His Chil- sible people fear that Tomorrow’s World will dren from Sin, our sinfulness and to free us become something of a ‘Butcher’s Block’ for fully and finally from all Fear, Oppression Humanity. In all seriousness they believe that and Hatred. the World has gone mad. Are they correct? Has the World really gone mad? Is the World In Christ, going mad? There is abundant evidence of widespread folly, ‘wise heads’ appear to be in increas- ingly short supply. This state of affairs is, and Dr. Michael Kinsella should remain, an invitation to prayer and sac- DIRECTOR, ACN IRELAND rifice – as Our Lady of Fatima warned us. 1 DOING GOD’S WORK TEACHING THE TRUTH ABOUT GOD AND MAN Dear Friends, to the transmis- sion of the Faith. hat great saint Don Bosco once said: First place, needless T to say, belongs to ‘So many souls have been saved by the Book of Books, good books; so many shielded from the Holy Scriptures, error and encouraged to do good! which springs from Whoever gives someone a good book, the very source of even if it does no more than awaken divine revelation and the thought of God in them, has through which God Himself speaks to us. performed an incomparable service in the sight of God. And in reality how That is why ACN, as a pastoral charity, also much more it usually achieves!’ places particular emphasis on the world- wide dissemination of Sacred Scripture Yes, along with the proclamation of the Gospel and catechetical and religious books. And and the living witness of the Church, good spir- even if no book can replace the personal proc- itual books represent a major contribution lamation of Jesus, the living Word of God, nonetheless a good book can greatly help us to find our way to God and grow in knowl- edge and understanding of the Faith. How many people have had their lives changed, or even begun a completely new life, as a result of reading a religious book or the biography of a saint. We need only think of Saint Ignatius of Loyola who, lying wounded in hospital as a soldier, read the lives of the saints and said to himself: ‘If they can do it, then so can I!’ The Bible and the Catechism, the writings of the saints, spiritual literature generally and indeed every good book, can be a sign- International volunteers of the post through life for us. They can inspire us YOUCAT Foundation with the DOCAT. in our prayers and actions and teach us the 2 TEACHING OUR CHILDREN WELL Truth about God and Man. A good spiritual with its own publishing house. The founda- book can strengthen the soul and make you tion produces, publishes and disseminates ready to give an answer to every man who asks catechetical publications that are attractive you the reason for the Hope that is in you (cf. 1 and accessible to young people and that help Pt 3:15). them to discover the Catholic Christian Faith as the foundation of their lives. Since its foundation, ACN has disseminated over 51 million copies of its Child’s Bible Through publications such as these, we are throughout the world. And we continue to helping millions of people to come to know support numerous projects for the translation Jesus Christ and discover True Life in Him. and printing of Bibles and other theological, So help us, dear friends, to save more souls catechetical and spiritual writings. All these through good books! publications serve the pastoral mission of the Church, and many of them are also essential to My grateful blessing on you all the formation of priests and religious. Another special priority of ACN is the religious formation and catechesis of chil- dren and young people. To this end, ACN Father Martin M. Barta has established the YOUCAT Foundation, ACN ECCLESIASTICAL ASSISTANT SYRIA: God Speaks to His Children. 3 DOING GOD’S WORK LEARNING TO LIVE AS CHRISTIANS THE HOLY LAND nd he took a little child, and set him in the The 2-4 week courses in Israel, Jordan and Amidst of them: and taking him in his arms, The Autonomous Palestinian Territories are he said unto them ‘Whoever receives one such run by Priests, youth leaders and catechists. child in my name receives me, and whoever The programme includes sport, theatre, receives me, receives not me but him who sent painting and art, community service, religion me’ (Mk 9:36-7). Children are central to our lessons and of course, time to pray together Christian Faith, for they are the future of the and celebrate Holy Mass. And there are also Church. excursions to the places where Jesus taught and prayed in the Holy Land. Likewise, central to the work of the Latin Patri- archate of Jerusalem and its 180,000 Catholic Many of the families however, above all in the faithful are the summer camps it organises each Palestinian territories, simply cannot afford to year for their children. This year around 6,000 pay for the two or more weeks stay for their children and young people will be taking part children, and so there are subsidies available from 36 of the 55 parishes in the patriarchate. to help them. The truth is, the experience these THE HOLY LAND: Together we make progress: another lesson learnt on the holiday camp. 4 TEACHING OUR CHILDREN WELL young people enjoy in the summer camps is that patience and perseverance are needed in beyond price. order to succeed, and that while playing basket- ball and football, we need to apologise after a The 150 children aged between 4 and 14 from foul or a push and generally be ready to bear the Gaza Strip will learn, for example, that with one another, to pardon and forgive. there are other children like them throughout the region and that in Israel there are also This way, the children learn, through play, to Christian families striving to live in peace and see one another through the eyes of Christ, friendship with everyone around them. who embraces every child in love. Learning this is the BASIS for PEACE. They will learn that happiness and security are not just something to yearn for in the future, The patriarchate is investing a great deal in but that peace of heart is something that is these crucially important summer camps – truly possible, here and now. and we are supporting them with €30,000.