The Catholic Weekly 29 March 2020

18 29, March, 2020 C omment catholicweekly.com.au centuries after he was born, the name of Archbishop John Bede Polding is still known to Catholics. But perhaps his life’s work and its significance in the de- velopment of the Church in Australia is not as well-known as it might be. To mark the centenary of his death, a great deal of re- search was carried out and published in 1977 to make his work and contributions to the building of the Church in Australia known again. Annual Polding Walk honours great leader O n a bright March day in 1877, a huge gathering of the people of Syd- ney and neighbouring towns of NSW took place in and around Hyde Park. It was, in fact, the largest number of people that had been gathered together in Australia since the colony had been founded almost a centu- ry before. These tens of thousands of people had gathered to pay their respects to a much-loved Australian pioneer. He was the first Catholic bishop in Australia, John Bede Polding. He had arrived in Sydney in 1835 from a Benedictine mon- astery in England and spent the next 40 years preach- ing and teaching the Catho- lic faith. He travelled widely by horseback, steamboat, rail- way – to every settled area of Australia - helping the poor, the convicts, settlers, Austra- lia’s indigenous peoples, ed- ucating children, providing means of support for women and orphans whose lives had fallen to pieces in the unruly times of Australian colonial life. This was a man of faith whose zealous ministry in Australia was not forgotten at the time of his death in March 1877. Thousands watched the procession of his hearse from St Mary’s Pro-cathedral down Parramatta Road to Lewish- am, where he was buried in a simple grave amidst the graves of hundreds of oth- ers to whom he was a father and a bishop. More than two seeking to make known his inspiring life and work in this new generation. They have a blog (see be- low) in which they publish brief articles about Archbish- op Polding and the story of the Church in Australia in the 19th Century. Selections from the Lenten Pastoral Letters of Archbish- op Polding are being pub- lished on that blog; their sim- ple messages of turning back to the Lord through prayer, fasting and almsgiving ring as true now as they did in the 1840s. To commemorate the oc- casion of his death and burial, this group makes a pilgrim- age each year from the site of his burial at Lewisham to the place where, in the 1940s he was re-interred with other Catholic priests and bishops in the crypt of Saint Mary’s Cathedral. The Polding Walk com- From Coronavirus’s epicentre I have no intention of dwelling on Coronavi- rus’s seemingly extraor- dinary ability to keep it- self free from all attempts at interdiction. It’s a well-known fact: a hard-working scientific com- munity remains rattled and confused about the mysteri- ous moves and mutations of the virus and, notwithstand- ing countless lab tests in so many laboratories around the world, it remains stubborn- ly reluctant to attempts to tame it. Researchers and virolo- gists have been scientifically observing and trying – unsuc- cessfully, so far – to unravel its mysterious composition and inner soul. Notwithstanding the hoped-for results and some progress in understanding it, we are still in the dark. Some small gains and advances have been reported in the me- dia, day and night, and briefly discussed. And some progress has beenmade. But, as of today (18 March) no definite remedy or cure is available. Personally, my thoughts and telephone calls run con- stantly to my birthplace in the province of Bergamo, which has been hit by Coronavirus in a massive way, forcing its health facilities to its knees. My thoughts (using only the internet) turn frequent- A mural depicts a nurse embracing the shape of Italy posted on the hospital of Pope John XXIII in solidarity with the health workers in Bergamo. PHOTO: CNS/SERGIO AGAZZI, IPA/ABACAPRESS.COMVIA REUTERS With one assault, this pandemic has shattered all assumptions about our technological supremacy ly to the so-called underde- veloped areas of our globe, where health facilities are ei- ther lacking or not sufficient- ly equipped to face a gruelling test such as the one presented by the virus. Italian people, rather in- clined to openly criticise the initiatives of the central or regional governments, have been restrained in censuring the effective synchronisation of government responses. Many commentators tend- ed to take a lenient view: it was first thought to be and remain a “Chinese or Asian phenomenon”. The spread of the virus in Italy, starting in Lombardy, was a jolt to both the media and public officials. For a few days, their rec- ommendations were repet- itive along the lines of: ‘stay calm’; ‘don’t exaggerate your reactions – avoid emotional statements, particularly in the presence of children … and so on. Now the music has cer- tainly changed: central and regional authorities repeat- edly insist: ‘observe the rule in force and quarantine yourselves – even if it means bringing to a halt the indus- trial sector and the tourism industry’ (with the exception of food and drink production, the healthcare sector and its facilities). There have been problems in the Italian jail system – inmates attempting escape and going on the run. Some have been successful but most were recaptured by the carabinieri . This latest episode height- ened the level of anxiety and fear experienced particularly by elderly people living alone, isolated and sequestered in their residences. Notwithstanding the flur- ry of news – interspersed with accusations of various kinds running back and forth – temporary measures once thought to be authoritative and aimed at containing the spread of Coronavirus have failed to prevent this infection from becoming the Number One Italian, European and in- ternational challenge. Born and bred in one of the mighty economic powers in the world, it quickly spread. I think of the popular cruise ship Diamond Princess , which was kept in forced iso- lation in Yokohama, Japan. It is regarded as a jewel of mod- ern technology, created for the delightful experience of numerous international tour- ists. The Coronavirus has launched what is almost a full frontal attack against these specimens of our industri- alised civilisation, suddenly revealing the limited strength of our hitherto laudable achievements. They are much more vulnerable and fragile than we had at first thought them to be. A force that annihilates our assumptions Our vulnerability has been exposed and put centre-stage in the international public arena. Until a fewweeks ago, this particular feeling (one jour- nalist prefers to call it vulnera- bleness ) had been spoken of as a marginal thing or a distant threat, discussed by academ- ics in a cold and indifferent fashion and feared by young- er generations, as climate and the arms race had been gath- ering renewed vigour. Yet Coronavirus has frac- tured and annihilated any idea of self-omnipotence and Fr Anthony Paganoni Columnist Many Catholic scholars were involved and the bishops of Australia issued a pastoral let- ter to commemorate that cen- tenary. But that generation has now gone and again the life and work of the Archbishop is clouded by the mists of time. A group of younger Catho- lics (and some young of heart) has decided to help promote the life of Archbishop Polding. They believe that the Church should declare the Archbishop a saint and are Ronan Reilly Columnist our almost absolute self-reli- ance and safety. Contemporary technolo- gy, the world of science and its admirable developments, with their ill-conceived promise of near immortality, have turned their back on the many efforts to build impenetrable walls around us. I amnot referring to some unwanted human flows of mi- grants that can be curtailed or even sent home (to where?). But they cannot save us from a small, invisible virus which is only too lethal. Coronavirus has declared war on any form of self-exalta- tion by humans. We are all – all of us – living on this earth, utterly naked as we have been for countless millennia. It show us that wherev- er human bodies andminds have existed and colonised the surrounding environment and flourished in countless civilisations, in the many yes- terdays and in the still-to- come tomorrows, we remain a needy and incomplete genre. Coronavirus resembles a pervasive, silent revolution, doing away mercilessly with all the old-fashioned illusions and – I hope – re-opening the vista of a humanity, hopeful- ly united in the same concert- ed effort at promoting life and dignity for all. Fr Paganoni cs is currently living and working in the province of Bergamo, north- ern Italy, part of the Lom- bardy region which became the epicentre of Coronavirus in that country. mences with the singing of an hour of the Divine Office at the church of Saint Thomas of Canterbury, Lewisham. From there, pilgrims walk to Saint John’s College at the University of Sydney, where another hour of the Divine Office is sung, lunch is tak- en and an occasional talk is given. This year the group heard from Father Colin Fowler OP, who discussed his recent- ly-published book At Sea with Archbishop John Bede Polding . The pilgrimage concludes at his tomb in the Cathedral, where this year Vespers was sung, celebrated by Bishop Richard Umbers. Assisted by Father Pius Noonan OSB, and Father Terence May Naugh- tin OFMConv. it was a fitting conclusion. The Polding blog can be found at https://inthose- dayes.blogspot.com The PoldingWalk commences with the singing of an hour of the Divine Office at the church of Saint Thomas of Canter- bury, Lewisham. From there, the pilgrims walk to Saint John’s College at the Uni- versity of Sydney, where another hour of the Divine Office is sung, lunch is partak- en and an occasional talk is given.”