The Catholic Weekly 10 October 2021

catholicweekly.com.au 4 10, October, 2021 THE POPE has asked for St Michael’s protection of France as Notre Dame reconstruc- tion begins. On the feast of the holy archangels Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, Pope Francis asked Saint Michael to take special care of France. He offered this petition during the general audience on 29 September, while being presented with an oak cutting, representing the reconstruc- tion of Notre Dame cathedral. “I ask Saint Michael, protector of France, to watch over your country, to keep it faithful to its roots, and to lead your people on the paths of ever greater unity and solidarity,” declared the Argentine pontiff. The Pope greeted a delegation of six French senators from the France-Holy See group who were among the general audience. The president of the group, Senator Dominique de Legge, gave the pontiff a piece of an oak cut for the reconstruction of the framework of No- tre-Dame de Paris. “I told him that it was a sym- bol of the Christian roots of France and also of renewal for our country,” the senator told I.Media. “He was smiling, and seemed moved by this initi- ative.” Senator de Legge also took the opportunity to invite Pope Francis to the re-opening of the Paris cathedral, sched- uled for 2024, which went unanswered. AUSTRALIA ACU signs on for global action AUSTRALIAN CATHOLIC University has committed to be part of a global plan led by Pope Francis and inspired by Laudato Si’. The Laudato Si’ Action Plat- form opened last week on the Feast of St Francis of Assisi with a period for prayer and pledges until 14 November, World Day of the Poor. ACU Vice-Chancellor and President Prof Zlatko Skrbis said: “Our commitment as a university is to create a seven-year Laudato Si’ plan that will be integrated through research, learning and teaching, and forms of engagement with respect to the seven Laudato Si’ Goals. This signals our intention to grow in our earthly mission as a Catholic university together with the diverse cultures and unique bioregions in Oceania, with the universal Church and all people of goodwill to face the complex crisis that is both social, ecological.” A MARRIED couple killed at the start of the 1994 Rwandan genocide is moving one step closer to canonisation. The diocesan inquiry into the lives of Cyprien and Da- phrose Rugumba concluded last week. If canonised, the couple will become the first Rwandans declared to be saints. The couple is known for their humanitarian efforts and their work with the Em- manuel Community, which is promoting their story. Cyprien studied at a Catho- lic seminary as a young man. However, he was scandalised by the behaviour of some seminarians there and dis- couraged by encountering an- ti-Catholic philosophers. He left the seminary and fell away from the Catholic faith, going on to establish a successful career working for the Rwandan government to preserve traditional art. He ¾ Michelle La Rosa Worshippers pray with Daphrose and Cyprian Rugumba. The couple, together with six of their 10 chil- dren, were murdered during the Rwandan genocide in 1994. The diocesan inquiry into their cause for canonisation has just concluded. PHOTO: EMMANUEL COMMUNITY ARCHIVES became well-known for his own artistic works, as a re- nowned poet and composer. When Cyprien’s fiancée was killed in 1963, he asked to marry her cousin, Daphrose Mukansanga, to honour his engagement to her family. For nearly 20 years, Cyp- rien and Daphrose had a dif- ficult marriage. Daphrose was a devout Catholic with a deep devotion to prayer and chari- table works. She raised their 10 children in the Catholic faith and prayed regularly for Cyprien’s conversion, even as he mocked her faith and was repeatedly unfaithful to her. In 1982, Cyprien became gravely ill with a sickness that doctors were unable to diag- nose. Believing he was on the verge of death, Cyprien un- derwent a radical conversion, which he attributed to Da- phrose’s prayers for him. He recovered from his illness, and committed him- self to a renewed life in Christ, becoming a devoted husband and man of service. In 1989, the couple en- countered the Emmanuel Community, an international Catholic organisation root- ed in adoration, charity, and evangelisation. They founded a chapter of the Community in Rwanda in 1990, which is today the second largest chapter of the organisation worldwide. As ethnic tensions between the majority Hutus and mi- nority Tutsis grew in Rwanda in the early 1990s, Cyprien spoke out against the growing calls for violence. He emphasised the need for unity in Christ, saying, “We have only one party, that of Jesus.” On 7 April 1994, the volatile situation in Rwanda erupted into a three-month genocide, during which an es- timated 1 million Tutsis were killed. Cyprien’s outspoken de- nunciations of the calls for violence had placed his fam- ily on an assassination list. Cyprien and Daphne were murdered on 7 April - the first day of the genocide - in their home, along with six of their children. They had spent the previ- ous night in Eucharistic Ado- ration. The couple’s canonisa- tion cause was opened on 18 September 2015 by Archbish- op Thaddée Ntihinyurwa of Kigali. The first stage in that pro- cess, the diocesan inquiry, in- volves collecting documents and testimonies about the life and death of the person in question. Once the appropriate doc- umentation is compiled, it is sent to the Vatican’s Congre- gation for the Causes of Saints, where the canonisation cause continues. – The Pillar Diocese concludes inquiry for genocide couple THE HIGHLY acclaimed evangelist Bishop Robert Bar- ron will personally kick off a new series of talks to inspire people and parishes across Sydney and beyond in a major coup for the Sydney Centre for Evangelisation. Based in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, Bishop Barron is an author, speaker, theo- logian, and founder of Word on Fire Catholic Ministries, a non-profit global media min- istry with several millions of followers on social media. He is well-known for his acclaimed book Catholicism: A Journey to the Heart of the Faith and the award-winning TV series of the same name, his weekly podcasts and his many video commentaries and weekly podcast The Word on Fire Show . Ordained in 1986 and ap- pointed a bishop in 2015, Bish- op Barron has been described as one of the most compelling and extraordinary Catholic evangelists in the world today. For the SCE, the Bishop will give a talk on Saturday 13 No- vember via zoom titled ‘Why Make Disciples? The case for the evangelising mission of the Church.’ His talk will kick off an ex- citing new monthly talk series called ‘Reclaiming Evange- lisation: How Jesus’ Great Commission Will Renew Our Parishes,’ in support of the archdiocesanmission plan Go Make Disciples. It will feature eminent in- ¾ Marilyn Rodrigues Barron Down Under ternational Catholics who will make the case that that Catho- lic communities are renewed when we seek to live more fully the mission given to us by our Lord to call disciples, baptise them, and teach them. Each talk will be followed by Q&A with the speakers as well as the opportunity for small group discussions. Bishop Baron’s talk will be followed after the Christmas break with a talk by Dr Mary Healy, an international speak- er and a professor of Sacred Scripture at Sacred Heart Ma- jor Seminary in Detroit. SCE Parish Renewal Man- ager Elizabeth Arblaster said she was grateful that Bishop Barron had accepted the in- vitation to launch the new se- ries and said that Archbishop Fisher OP would also be pres- ent online for the opening talk. “We are praying that through this series the Lord will inspire the people and parishes of Sydney to find ways to live more fully our identity and vocation to wor- ship God, to care for His poor, and to share the Good News in the many ways Our Lord has given us to be a means of grace to others,” she said. “In Australia I think cultur- ally it can feel as if there is a certain pressure not to share your experience as a Catholic with others or invite them to encounter the Lord. “But studies have shown that a lot of people are spirit- ually curious and our Chris- tian anthropology tells us that this is because the human heart hungers for God. “In this series our speakers will delve into Scripture, tra- dition, the lives of the saints, and the experiences of con- verts to renew and inspire us to live to the full our great tra- dition of sharing with others what we have received from the Lord, both as individuals and as communities. “In the second part of the series we will look at how this can be lived more fully in our parish communities.” For updates about Reclaim- ing Evangelisation sign up for the e-newsletter at go- makedisciples.org.au Workers undertake the recon- struction of Notre Dame. PHOTO: CNS, ETABLISSEMENT PUBLIC POUR LA RESTAURATION DE NOTRE-DAME DE PARIS IRELAND Pope turns to St Michael for help Bishop Robert Barron has made evangelisation a special focus of his ministry, and will address Australians in a new talk series. PHOTO: CMC 4