Austrian Hospice News nr. 6 · Oct. 2010 e DItOrIAL believers and the cooperation bet- Dear friends and guests ween the monks. A Jewish choir that sings Bach can- of the Austrian Hospice tatas in Muslim surroundings: even if, or maybe especially because such of the Holy Family cooperation is highly unusual, it is important to encourage such efforts. You can buy CD‘s of the concert in the ow could I ever forget you, places. It was here that God assumed Hospice. H Jerusalem?” The question that human form in order to save us. These are all building blocks towards appears in an Old Testament psalm The film “In my Father‘s House a fulfilled life. Let us build the temp- is an invitation to embark on a pil- there are many Mansions” comes le of God on earth and work towards grimage to the holy city. Anyone for- out on DVD in the fall. Even if you building a New Jerusalem! tunate enough to experience the Holy have visited the Church of the Holy Land personally is glad to return to Sepulchre you are in for some surpri- those very places where biblical nar- ses. The film sensitively and insight- ratives were shaped. We feel a spe- fully sheds light on the many facets of cial closeness to the heavens in these the church, the religious quest of the Rektor Markus St. Bugnyar The Government as Guest t is a special honor when the heads I of the Austrian government pay a visit to the Hospice. We were delighted to host Chancellor Werner Faymann and Vice-chancellor Dr. Josef Pröll. We consider the visit as a validation of our current activity in Jerusalem which involves greeting and hosting thousands of Austrian pilgrims every year. Situa- ted as we are in the very heart of Jerusalem‘s Old City, our location is anything but safe. Unlike the presence of other countries in the Holy Land, Austria has long enjoyed a tradition of Chancellor Werner Faymann being in the political and religious “eye and author Robert Menasse of the storm”. this factor alone means with Rector Bugnyar on the roof that we are perceived in a different light of the Hospice to other hostels. We are happy that our agenda here is in harmony with Volunteers and those doing their Austria‘s interests and we look forward civil service duty welcome the Vice to the next governmental visit. Chancellor, Prayer in the Holy Sepulchre News Intern Pentecost with the Cardinal erusalem is a special place when Like many fellow priests, Miloslav J it comes to Pentecost: it was in was denied public office in his chosen this very city that the disciples of Je- field: the Church was split between sus received the gift of the Holy Spi- fidelity tor ome and to state. the fu- rit. Cardinal Miloslav Vlk, Archbi- ture Archbishop of Prague took on a shop emeritus of Prague, was here to job as window cleaner in a variety of celebrate this festival with us. shops. “Some of the sales assistants the Cardinal‘s biography mirrors obviously knew what I really was. the history of the Catholic Church in they often made contact with people the time of Communism: after gra- whom they knew wanted to speak to Cardinal Vlk in duating in 1958 it was initially im- a priest, telling them in which street the Hospice chapel possible for him to enter a seminary and in which shop I was working at to train for the priesthood; ten years a particular time. At first I stood on earlier all such seminaries, with a the streets and didn‘t look too con- single exception in Prague, had been spicuous. Later even that became a After the fall of the Iron Curtain, closed. Miloslav‘s first salaried po- problem. I wondered where I could Cardinal Vlk became Bishop of Bud- sition was as a car mechanic. After go, if there were places where such weis; in 1991 he succeeded Frantisek concluding his military service he encounters wouldn‘t look suspicious tomasek as Archbishop of Prague; studied archival science at the vene- or obvious. My search took me to the in 1994 he was proclaimed Cardinal rable Charles University in Prague district court. the corridors there Priest of the titulus Santa Croce in (founded in 1348). In 1960 he was were always full of people sitting and Jerusalem in rome. His stay in Jeru- finally able to study theology and was waiting. My work didn‘t look suspi- salem completes the history. ordained a priest in 1968. cious at all there”, the Cardinal told In his sermon Cardinal Vlk talked the rector of the Hospice. about the significance of the Holy effecting reconciliation between Spirit in the history of grace. “Christ both sides of the Church (the secret works through the Holy Spirit. When- side, faithful to rome, and the side ever two or three people are gathered that was loyal to the Communist- in His name, He is amongst us. In controlled state) became one of the communal gatherings the presence Cardinal‘s main tasks in his later of the Spirit is felt again and again; career. He chose the middle road: it is the Spirit that brings Christ into behind the scenes he was involved the world and makes us His witnes- in resistance activity and took many ses. In the love we show one another risks while in the public eye he att- the Church is engendered and resi- empted to facilitate cooperation with des. (…) Women in particular have a the Communists. special facility for this life-enhancing love; in doing so they fulfill their priestly role. It is our shared duty to bring Christ into the world and to the people”. Signing the guestbook The founder‘s News monogram, Presentation with Vienna‘s Commander Intern Frieder Herrmann Minorities in Israel by Matthias Perkonigg hese trips enable those doing into the Carmel mountains. there we t civil service to gain greater in- visited the Druse village of Usafiya. sight into various aspects of the coun- the Druse are a religious community try in which they are serving which dating back to 1010, again an off- alone might prove difficult. the trip, shoot of Islam. Here we learned about “Israeli Minorities” took us to the their attitude towards reincarnation north of the country. First we visited and about their belief in there being the Ahmadis in Haifa, a break off a limited number of souls, which ma- group from Islam which was esta- kes it impossible to convert to their blished in 1889. According to their religion. A Druse can only be a person estimation, their community has 150 whose parents are Druse. After eating million adherents worldwide, though a traditional lunch we continued on this calculation seems overly optimis- to the Cherkassian village of Kfar tic! In Israel the Ahmadi community Kama. Kaiser-Kasel has around 2000 members, all in fact In the museum there we learned emerging from the same family. how the warrior Cherkassian people hanks to the generous support the trip then took us to the Baha‘i once lived: examples of clothing, mu- t of the Knights and Dames of gardens. the Baha‘i community be- sical instruments and everyday imple- the Order of the Holy Sepulchre lieves in the unity of God. the gar- ments illustrated their life from birth in Vienna, we were able in the pre- dens house their largest shrine and to death. their language consists of ceding months to restore our so-called Haifa is considered the headquarters relatively simple sounds. the traditi- Kaiser-Kasel. Franz Joseph as well of this religious group. Worldwide onal way of life, including knowledge as other Habsburgs made gifts of over 6 million people belong to this of their language, is enjoyed by a mere their vestments, which we are de- community. 4000 Cherkassians in Israel. Most lighted to have lovingly preserved for We traveled a bumpy route deep Cherkassians live in turkey today. posterity, for use during celebration of holy mass in our Hospice chapel. At the Cherkassians Impressum: rektor Markus St. Bugnyar, Österreichisches Hospiz zur Heiligen Familie (Austrian Hospice) Via Dolorosa 37 · P.O.B. 19600 91194 Jerusalem · Israel Konto: Bankhaus Schelhammer & Schattera · BLZ 19190 Konto 100150127 Für Spenden zur renovierung des Hauses bitte als „Spende“ deklarieren; für soziale und caritative Zwecke im Land bitte als „Stipendium“ bezeichnen. Vielen Dank! News Intern Middle east Conflict brought Closer View towards Gaza, Rockets in Sderot by Philipp Nigitsch Employees doing their Austrian civil service duty with us are offered study trips that enable them to gain deeper insight into the conflict in the region. On this occasion the trip gave them an opportunity constructed student village is ample evidence of this. to meet Israeli citizens living near the Gaza Strip. Finally we reach Gush Katif: an erstwhile settlement which was eva- e set off early in the morning sam rockets, each furnished with a cuated by the Sharon government. Wwestwards towards Kfar Aza number and date. this eventful day furnished us where we visited residential areas, the pioneering spirit of the Kib- with a lasting impression of the dif- kindergartens and security instal- butz movement is still alive and well ficult conditions and attitudes of Je- lations. the village lies 3kms away in Israel today: an independently- wish settlers in Israel. from the Gaza Strip, whose border is monitored by the IDF. On the edge of the settlement a single olive tree growing out of an abandoned for- mer British military vehicle is sym- bolic of a yearning for peace.