The Holy Irritant

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A song for John Howard

on April 16, 2007

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Bonding time the Nativity in Townsville. Artist Jan Hynes.

Bonding time: the Nativity in Townsville. Artist: Jan Hynes. The location of this picture is a service station, as stables are no longer found in our urban environment. Garage workers replace the shepherds as they tend the newly born baby Jesus. One carries a light (the light that Jesus is to bring to the world); the second carries a tool of his trade, hinting at the instruments of the birthing process; and the third mechanic carries oil (a reference to the handmaiden oil lamps, the good oil spiritual grace, illumination and benediction, the anointing of kings and the perfumed oils mentioned in the New Testament on several occasions). Oil is a symbol in many cultures of consecration, dedication and wisdom. The golden Shell logo, symbolic of birth (Botticelli's Birth of Venus, 1482) is commonly used in religious paintings. In many cultures it is linked with conception, regeneration and baptism. It is also a reference to Christian pilgrimage (St Christopher's attribute).

Singing My Way Through Catholicism

Friday March 8th this year marks the 71st anniversary of my baptism at the Church of St John the Evangelist in 1953. Part of Catholic culture at the time of my birth was to name children after great saints This was my parents choice rather than dedicate me to Troy Donahue or even " Bing Crosby " one of my father's idols. Family lore tells that I was entitled to be called "Alexander" in the custom of my father and grandfather as a first born son. However, Irish Catholicism won the day and I was named in honour of St Anthony (of Padua) and St Gerard Majella. Both these men have been associated with working among the poor and being pretty passionate about most things in life except sex. Pity most of the popular images of such men portray them as insipid blokes with total disinterest in the world around them. My parents initiated me into a Catholicism that continues to be a core community of faith and challenge in my life. At the heart of this

The Madonna del Roario Exhibition in Brisbane

The Madonna del Roario exhibition was originally presented by the Wollongong City Council and the Wollongong Italian community in 2006. It takes its name from the Church of the Community of Falerno in Southern Italy. First generation migrants to Wollongong brought the local festival to the city and in 1991 installed a magnificent replica of the statue of Madonna del Rosario in the church of St John Vianny in Fairy Meadows. In 2006 the Wollo0ngong City Council hosted the inaugural Madonna del Rosario Acquisitive Art Award. The exhibition attracts work by some of Australia’s leading artists, jewelers, and designers who contribute diverse and unique representations of a popular Catholic devotion. The Brisbane exhibition was launched in 2008 at Artisan Gallery in Fortitude Valley and provided visitors with a graced opportunity to join artists and designers responding to the spiritual theme of the rosary. For local visitors to Madonna del Rosario there is the added attraction of

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