First Sunday of Lent
St Mary's Cathedral
Gen 9:8-15; 1 Peter 3:18-22; Mk 1:12-15
+ Cardinal George Pell, Archbishop of Sydney
9 Mar 2003
Lent has commenced. We could adopt Our Lord's message at the start of his public life after John the Baptist's arrest. "The time has come. Repent and believe the good news." That certainly, as we know, is what Lent is about, repenting of our sins, purifying our heart and deepening our faith.
In the two early readings today we have a couple of references to Noah and his ark; that fabulous story which continues to inspire expeditions to find the remains of the ark, where only 8 people and various pairs of animals survived the punishment of the great flood.
More importantly for our purposes today we read of God establishing a special covenant or treaty or agreement with Noah and his people. The rainbow will always be a reminder and sign of the agreement God made with his special followers. Just as we are children of Abraham, so we have inherited the covenant of Noah. As followers of Christ we have a special relationship as a group with the one true God through his only Son, Jesus Christ. And any agreement or covenant, especially important ones like a marriage or membership of the Catholic Church, brings with it obligations. We could say that Lent in particular is the time each year when we examine whether we are living up to our obligations.
One danger for the Catholic Church today is that we have too many free riders i.e. people who contribute little or nothing to Church life but want to share in the benefits. Free riders tip the balance in any group, especially a Church, when too few collective goods are contributed because too few contribute their prayers, their time and their efforts, and their financial support to maintain the life of the Church and the Church's charitable works here at home and overseas. A Church cannot survive and contribute on empty pews and fresh air.
Enthusiasm for Christ and his Church and solidarity i.e. group loyalty, a strong awareness of Catholic identity are more important than material resources but the two are connected.
Many years ago I did a bit of rowing at school and later some coaching. There was a category of person known as a "comfort worker" those who would not train hard or push themselves in training, so that when they were racing they couldn't pull their own weight for the whole of the course, but had to rely on their crewmates to compensate for them. Lent is a reminder that we should not be comfort workers and should strive to pull our own weight (metaphorically speaking at least).
There is no following of Christ possible without some personal cost and sacrifice. But when each Christian pays more in prayer, time, energy and possessions the dynamism and service offered to the wider community increase wonderfully. It often brings personal peace; a sense of purpose and meaning as well as a clear conscience. Active Christianity, active membership of the Church is never cost free but it is usually a good bargain.
A wonderful example of Church sponsored communal activity is Project Compassion, Caritas Australia's major fundraising initiative, and one of the most tangible expressions of the Catholic commitment throughout the world to the cause of peace, justice and development.
Caritas Australia is the Catholic agency for overseas aid and development. It provides aid and disaster relief to more than 60 developing countries all over the world.
This year's Project Compassion theme is 'Freedom from Slavery'.
It is inspired by the passage from Scripture: "He has sent me to proclaim release to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free." (Luke 4:18)
This is one of several times when slavery is referred to in the Scriptures.
In a resurgence of this evil practice, tens of millions of people live in some form of slavery today, a greater number than during the 400 year African slave trade. Many of these are women and children who are trafficked for sexual purposes.
Today's slaves are cheap and disposable. They include the poor, uneducated, women, children, indigenous and marginalised people who have become trapped by poverty and powerlessness and are forced into slavery.
Thelma Rosario, of Caritas Bangladesh who is visiting Australia this month to discuss this problem has told us: "The trafficking of women and children for commercial sexual exploitation has become a global multi-million-dollar industry. And it is now the fastest growing business of organised crime.
"Traffickers exploit the poverty of their victims. Project Compassion offers us the opportunity to work towards preventing people trafficking," she said.
In addition to these slaves, throughout the world there are tens of millions of child labourers, who are denied the opportunity of even a basic education.
Development work makes a long-term contribution to peace. Pope John Paul ll has said there are two pillars upon which peace rests: readiness to forgive - and a commitment to justice.
"It can never be forgotten that situations of oppression and exclusion are often the source of violence and terrorism," Pope John Paul said.
The money that is raised during this Lent will help free men, women and children all around the world from the chains of slavery that bind them.
Your donation to Project Compassion will help to continue the education of communities about the changes of people trafficking, especially young people. Your donation will give many the opportunity to receive an education and provide them with skills to improve their lives. Your donation will help rural communities to escape the poverty cycle and become self-reliant.
And it will make a very real and lasting contribution to the effort to secure peace, in the way that Pope John Paul has called on us to do.
Last year, through the generosity of people from parishes all around Australia, including yours, Project Compassion raised more then $6 million. We should try to do better this year.
I urge you to do every thing you can to support Project Compassion this year, and to donate generously to this worthy cause; a communal exercise reflecting our decision this Lent to deepen our faith and renew our enthusiasm to strive towards goodness. We will show again that we are not free riders.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
