Letters

Adelaide protest (letter)

Pauline Pascoe

Contents - Sep 2001 - Buy a copy now Editorial: A letter from the Publisher - Peter Westmore Archbishop Hart's reception at St Patrick's Cathedral, Melbourne - Homily - Archbishop Denis Hart News: The Church Around the World The John Paul II Cultural Centre opens in Washington DC - Alex Sidhu Successful Thomas More Centre Winter School in Brisbane - Sidney Rofe Ballarat Thomas More Centre Winter School report Feminism's broad agenda within the Catholic Church - Donna Steichen Commission for Australian Catholic Women: Executive members' feminist views - Richard Egan Why today's secular culture is anti-Catholic - James Hitchcock Kenneth Bruce Dowding, Australian Catholic hero: his brother's tribute - Rev Keith Dowding Letters: Celibacy (letter) - Mrs A.M. Tilburg Letters: More on Marins (letter) - Peter Finlayson Letters: BECs (letter) - Marie Kennedy Letters: Charter (letter) - Rev A.T. Fitzpatrick Letters: Adelaide protest (letter) - Pauline Pascoe Letters: Feminists (letter) - Margaret Jones Letters: Formidable mind (letter) - Mrs V. Mulligan Letters: Aquinas (letter) - Michael Casanova Letters: Fatima Family Apostolate (letter) - Margaret Grace Letters: Church teachings (letter) - Gerry Keane Letters: Mind of the Church (letter) - Mrs Carol V. Phillips Letters: God's word (letter) - Vic Hall Books: 'The Book of Marriage', edited by Dana Mack and David Blankenhorn - Bill Muehlenberg (reviewer) Books: 'The Holocaust, Never To Be Forgotten', Avery Dulles SJ, Rabbi Leon Klenicki - Anthony Cappello (reviewer) Books: 'Padre Pio: In My Own Words', ed. Anthony F. Chiffolo - Mary-Jane Donnellan (reviewer) Books: 'Teens and Relationships', 'Teen Life and Christ', by Jerry Shepherd - Mary-Jane Donnellan (reviewer) Books: 'Lamentations Of The Father', by Ian Frazier - Mary-Jane Donnellan (reviewer) Reflection: Saint Catherine of Siena: how to receive the Eucharist more worthily - Sr Mary Jeremiah OP

The report on a pro-women priests demonstration outside Adelaide's Catholic Cathedral (June AD2000) distressed me and has prompted this letter in defence of my Faith and earlier Dominican nuns who, along with my parents, educated me at Rosary School, Prospect, South Australia. These Dominican nuns, in their dedication to their vocation, were true instruments of the Holy Spirit.

On the other hand, religious women, who feel God is calling them to the priesthood and who protest against the Church's teaching authority, are, in effect, imposters. They should not call themselves Dominicans or devout Catholics, since by their actions they have expressed public disobedience to our Holy Father, the Pope.

Women in the Church have a beautiful role model in Our Blessed Mother whose obedience and love of God is without equal. She never took it upon herself to consecrate the bread and wine into her Son's Body and Blood. Our Lord asked us to honour His Mother; what better way than to imitate her virtues.

The Dominican nuns are my sisters in Christ and it is with serious concern that I address them through this article.

May Our Lady Help of Christians, Patroness of Australia, pray for us all.

PAULINE PASCOE
Table Top, NSW

Reprinted from AD2000 Vol 14 No 8 (September 2001), p. 13