| CIAO, AUSTRALIA! |
| CHAPTER 14 “Signore, fa’ di me uno strumento della tua pace.” - San Francesco d’Assisi - _________________________________ Lord, make me an instrument of your peace. - St. Francis of Assisi - March, 2003. La pace del Signore sia sempre con voi! May the peace of the Lord be always with you! This is very much my heartfelt prayer. I have chosen not to recount in this chapter details of my recent extravaganzas. The sufferings of war are upon us, as are the many fears that it brings. I would like to simply send you a few photos interspersed with the words of the Holy Father, Pope John Paul II. "I belong to that generation that lived through World War II and, thanks be to God, survived it. I have the duty to say to all young people, to those who are younger than me, who have not had this experience: 'No more war!'" (16th March, 2003) |
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| by Fr. Paul Newton POSTAL ADDRESS: Convitto Internazionale, San Tommaso D'Aquino Via degli Ibernesi 20 - 00184 ROMA, Italy Tel: 0011 39 06 6979 1666 (Private) 0011 39 06 6979 1601 (Secretary) |
| "Truth will build peace if every individual sincerely acknowledges not only his rights, but also his own duties towards others. Justice will build peace if in practice everyone respects the rights of others and actually fulfils his duties towards them. Love will build peace if people feel the needs of others as their own and share what they have with others, especially the values of mind and spirit which they possess. Freedom will build peace and make it thrive if, in the choice of the means to that end, people act according to reason and assume responsibility for their own actions.” (Message for the World Day of Peace, 1st January, 2003) |
| "We must do everything possible! We know well that peace is not possible at any cost. But we all know how great this responsibility is - therefore, prayer and penance!" (16th March, 2003) |
| "Gestures of peace spring from the lives of people who foster peace first of all in their own hearts. They are the work of the heart and of reason in those who are peacemakers (cf. Mt 5:9). Gestures of peace are possible when people appreciate fully the community dimension of their lives, so that they grasp the meaning and consequences of events in their own communities and in the world. Gestures of peace create a tradition and a culture of peace." (Message for the World Day of Peace, 1st January, 2003) |
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| I would like to leave you with this beautiful prayer from the Confessions of St. Augustine (X, xxvii): “You called and cried out loud and shattered my deafness. You were radiant and resplendent, you put to flight my blindness. You were fragrant, and I drew in my breath and now pant after you. I tasted you, and I feel but hunger and thirst for you. You touched me, and I am set on fire to attain the peace which is yours.” In Gesù per Maria, Padre Paolo. |
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| "May St. Joseph, universal patron of the Church, watch over the entire ecclesial community and, as the man of peace that he was, obtain for the whole of humanity, especially for the peoples menaced in this time of war, the precious gift of harmony and peace." (19th March, 2003) |
| What a privilege to spend a few days in San Giovanni Rotondo, the home of Saint Padre Pio. As you can see, February in Italy is not beach weather. |
| Fr. Bernard Gordon (Wollongong) and I feeling considerably underdressed in the company of a couple of Russian priests on pilgrimage. |
| "We Christians are convinced that real and lasting peace is not only the fruit, though necessary, of political agreements and understanding between individuals and peoples, but a gift of God to all those who submit themselves to him and accept with humility and gratitude the light of his love." (16th March, 2003) |
| Madonna dei Raccomandati by Lippo Memmi. Our Blessed Lady, protectress of those who entrust themselves to her. I was delight to have prayed before this imagine in the Cathedral of Orvieto. |
| Fr. Adrian Ckuj and I (left) with the glorious view of the beach at Sperlonga in the background. I would be amazed if anyone could tell me who is the mystery figure in the photo on the right. |
| The glorious medieval abbey at Fossanova. It was at this Cistercian monastery that St. Thomas Aquinas died in 1274. What a grace to pray in his room! |
| An Aussie invasion in the Piazza of St. Peter's. From left to right: Xavier Wills, Francesca Wills, Fr. Bernard Gordon, Emma Wills, Padre, Rebecca Fleming & Louise Eltham. |
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