Catholic Ping
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Posted on 08/06/2005 11:39:14 AM PDT by wagglebee
Mel Gibson has been asked by Australia's Archbishop George Pell to recreate the crucifixion of Jesus Christ in the streets of Sydney during Pope Benedict XVI's visit there in 2008 - should the city be selected to host World Youth Day.
According to documents obtained by the Sydney Morning Herald, the crucifixion reenactment - similar to scenes from Gibson's hugely successful film "The Passion of the Christ" - would begin with the Last Supper staged at Sydney's landmark Opera House at sunset, and would end with the crucifixion of Christ at St. Mary's Cathedral.
Gibson's participation would be an incentive to bring the World Youth Day and the Pope's visit to the city, the newspaper reported.
Archbishop Pell told the Herald that intermediaries had "started approaches" to Gibson to stage the event. Gibson's involvement with World Youth Day, he added, was on the city's "wish list," Pell said.
"He might well be attracted. I think his devotion to Christ is very real," the churchman said of the American-born actor who lived in Australia in his youth.
On August 21, the Pope will announce the choice of the 2008 host city during the World Youth Day celebration in Cologne - an event expected to attract an estimated 400,000 young Catholics from 160 countries around the world, the Associated Press reported.
The bid document obtained by the Herald does not say how much the event would cost, but it is rumored that it could reach at least $80 million - a figure that has bothered some sections of the church who believe that its contribution - thought to be about a third - could be better spent elsewhere.
The Sydney Diocese has offered to subsidize accommodation, transport and meals for young people from poor or war-torn countries. The bid document says Youth Day in Sydney would bring more young people to church and more men into the priesthood, and precipitate a new evangelism in Australia and Oceania.
On the day after the Stations of the Cross, pilgrims would walk 20 kilometres from the North Sydney shrine of Mary MacKillop across five bridges, including Sydney's Harbor Bridge, to Olympic Park where, on next day, the Pope would celebrate Sunday Mass.
Catholic Ping
Catholic Ping
Please freepmail me if you want on/off this list
It would, indeed, be great to see!
Me too, and I am not young. The pope will be past eighty then and might welcome a few other white-heads.
I notice that Cardinal Pell is highly complementary of a traditional Catholic Mel Gibson. A baby step but still a positive.
The words 'impropriety' and 'sideshow' come to mind.
http://www.catholic.org/cathcom/international_story.php?id=15790
Cardinal Pell is celebrating Vespers and Benediction for Juventutem in Cologne. This is more than a baby step, I feel. He is a good Cardinal who is in favor of a broader availability of the Tridentine Mass. So is Cardinal Arinze and, I believe, Pope Benedict XVI.
Frank
Nice honor, but I don't think Mel would do it.
Are those things accurate? If so, how does he qualify as a "traditional Catholic?"
Don't get me wrong. I love his movies :)
I had the same thought...
It may well be that Cardinal Pell views him not as a traditional Catholic but as but schismatic Catholic but he still likes his movie and is willing to overlook any ecclesiatical difference. We don't really know what the Cardinal views are about Mr Gibson and what impact if any they had on his decision to invite Mr Gibson.
As for whether or Mel Gibson is a "traditional Catholic" or not that as most on FR know is a debate that "fools rush in where angels fear to tread" so I will not go there in any substantive way. I am not the best to debate this and to have a real debate both sides need to be well represented and most on one side of the question no longer post at FR.
I do appreciate Mel Gibson for his movie and his public witness to the faith.
Cardinal Pell not to long ago published a long article on the beauty of Vatican II, the renewal, and the new mass.
Dont ever get fooled by this, he is not pro Mel Gibson, just looking to get the SSPX'ers who are big in Australia to come over and be fooled by him. The wolf in sheeps clothing as Our Lord says.
Can anyone really accept "half the truth"? The Indult? Was changing the Mass really justified? At this point 40 plus years later many within the Vatican have realized it was a mistake, and gave something away that is hard to ever get back-respect-respect which the church had with her unwavering doctrine, her mass, her art, her priests and sisters who actually LOOKED like sisters-instead they sold out to be "in with the in crowd" and it has backfired sorely.
Our Lord said when he returned there would be few among the faithful, and I cant help but believe that the Orthodox (the Other Lung who refused to compromise) and the Traditional Catholics are all that will be left.
The Novus Ordo? They are a step above Luther and step below Calvinists
Are those things accurate? If so, how does he qualify as a "traditional Catholic?" >>
Gibson built his own schismatic church without approval of the local ordinary, hired his own priest; therefore, is not in concert with the Holy See.
how can you say he built a schmatic Church ...??? He has not broken any LAw of the Traditional Roman Catholic Church..its more like all of Vatican ll turned schmatic! Took out the crucifixes,confessionals,statues kneelers,devotion to Mary,accepted Communion in the lay hands(why do you suppose a priest has his hands consecrated)- dress in lay clothes,it is unfortunate wasn't one backbone amoung Rome sad to say to stand up for the movie he made according to Faith. Except well may John Paul who said <"it is as it was" or did he..oh and now we got "suppose Catholic churches who allow the Anglicans to USE the Catholic Church for their Prostant services..NOW there is grounds for EXCUMMICATION!
My small catholic church has kneelers, a confessional, a big san Damiano crucifix, kneelers, devotion to Mary, our priests wear their blacks and roman collars, we do have extraordinary ministers of holy communion and lectors for the readings and the tabernacle is on the side. We have a few people who raise their hands during the Our Father but it's only a few.
I would rather see the tabernacle be in the middle of the sanctuary since it was Christ not the priest who died for our sins, but it's not the end of the world. I see a lot of churches in the area which are round or octagonal in shape with the choir on the same level, no statues, rather spartan, but the bottom line is the priest, building and Eucharist is licit consecrated by a priest with full Roman Catholic Church authority from his local bishop through the Pope.
Can you imagine what chaos it would be if every rich catholic decided to build their own churches and hire their own priests? It just can't be done. We have to go with the flow.
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