Father Peter Kennedy, of St. Mary’s Catholic Church in South Brisbane, has been sacked by the Archbishop. Archbishop John Bathersby has sacked Fr. Kennedy because he has been blessing homosexual unions and celebrating the Mass in ways that are not campatible with Church doctrine.

In a video provided by news.ninemsn.com.au, Fr. Kennedy argues against claims by the Archbishop that he has harmed the ecclesiastical community, and his parishoners are supporting him.

We have broken litergical rules

Fr. Kennedy publicly admits it. Why then, is he complaining about being sacked as a Catholic priest? What would you expect? How can you claim to be a Catholic priest when you do not abide by the very rules that make you one?

Our community is as valid as any other community

This one makes me laugh. Of course it is a valid community, but what type of community? You cannot be a valid member of a pro-life community and a pro-abortion community at the same time – you would be living a life of contradiction. You cannot be a valid member of the police force and an organised crime group at the same time – you could only be a valid member to one or the other. In the same way, a Catholic Church community cannot be valid if it does not abide by Catholic Church doctrine. 

Our mass is a valid mass. We celebrate the mass in a way that is relevant to Australian Catholics rather than in totally one line that comes out from Rome

Is Fr. Kennedy actually rejecting the authority of Rome here? If he is, then how on earth could he consider himself and his community a part of the Roman Catholic Church? If he has got any wisdom at all, he could have a valid Catholic community and celebrate the mass in a way that is relevant to Australian Catholics at the same time – it is not like that is a task that Catholic priests in Australia have found incredibly hard to do.

 

In the end, we have a community who claims to be ’Catholic’ yet they break litergical rules and Catholic Church doctrine. Excuse me while I turn around and giggle to myself. Catholicism is a religion. You are either a part of that religion or not. How can a person claim to be a valid member of a religious organisation if he twists and turns the rules and teachings of that religion to suit himself? He cannot be a valid member that religion, because what he is doing is making up a religion of his own.

The community of St. Mary’s in Bisbane South must face the facts. If they wish to continue to uphold their beliefs and practices, they must join some protestant Christian community or start up their own, because they do not have the right to call themselves proud Catholics.

The Victorian bushfires have been truly horrific; this is certainly a time that all Australians are not going to forget any time soon. However, out of a time of such devestation comes a range of stories – stories of lost lives and homes, stories of survival, stories of heroism, and stories that reflect complete stubborness from our very own government. I am talking in particularly here about the Greens. When it comes to human lives vs nature, what do they really care about?

 

Councils have been fining residents who they claim have breached green-wedge planning regulations. How have these people breached regulations? By moving large, loose rocks on their own properties. Green-wedge regulations say that large rocks must not be moved, because it would be changing the natural state. Yep, as silly as that. Mind you, these resisdents were advised by the CFA to move such rocks into one big pile, so that it would be safe for fire engines to travel on the land in the case of an emergency. When it comes to protecting human life or rocks, where do the greenies stand?

Not only that, but a man who made a clearing on his property around his house so as to make it fire-safe, was also fined. I should note that his house was the only house in the neighbourhood left standing, thanks to the clearing he had made. It is not like he chopped down a whole forest. All he did was make his house harder to catch fire. Yet he was fined by the council, and no doubt for breaching green-influenced regulations. Once again, where do the Greens stand when it comes to a matter of life and death? How high up on their priority list is human life?

 

They love promoting abortion. They love promoting euthanasia. And they don’t like it when people cut down a couple trees or move a few rocks to make their homes fire-safe. I think it’s time we kicked the Greens out from our government, because they clearly do not even value the lives of Australian people who even vote them in.

I don’t understand Premier John Brumby 

 

I observed on television how Premier John Brumby was reduced to tears regarding the bushfire crisis. His heart was obviously distraught by the destruction brought on by the bushfires. Not merely the destruction of material goods and wildlife, but the destruction of Victorian people – their very lives. If a life was not lost, there is still the destruction of many things (if not everything) people worked hard for.

The point I want to make is this:

200 lives lost in such tragic circumstances reduces us all to tears. Hundreds more lost each week through the tragic circumstances of abortion also reduces many to tears. Last year our state government supported legislation that has given Victoria the most liberal abortion laws in the country. Babies in the womb have a life and a future, a life that our government has refused to recognise or at least respect. How come Mr. Brumby is reduced to tears (and rightfully so) over 200 Victorians who have lost their lives in the bushfires, but not over our children (and future) who are slaughted by the hundreds and are being pulled apart limb by limb from their mother’s womb every single week in our state? No, we seem to think whales and trees are far more valuable…

 

Vincent Stefano

Wishing You All a Very Happy New Year!

     Exams are over! Year 12 has been completed! Some 13 years of education is now brought to its end.

     Such is the situation that thousands of seventeen and eighteen year old Australians find themselves in at this time. There is no better feeling than making it through a long term project successfully, something that these students have now achieved. 13 years ago, they began that long term project. That project has included learning a basket-full of skills, including a wide rage of those which are grammatical and mathematical, and they have also in that time informed themselves of the history of the world in which they live, and they have discovered and learnt about our world through the means of science, and they have developed and used their God-given talents in art and sport.

 

     Now that these students have just completed such a period of their life, they have every right to celebrate and share their joy and success with others. There is nothing wrong with that – nothing could be more natural to the human race than a celebration for one’s success and achievement, in this case the completion of many years education. However, it is the way these students around the country choose to celebrate that should be a concern to us all.

 

     Alcohol, alcohol, and more alcohol. During schoolies week, thousands of youth around the country will be drinking as much alcohol as they can muster: alco-pops, beers, wines, spirits, cocktails and other mixed drinks - anything that is alcoholic will be taken and drunk of deeply. Drunkedness results in drugs, violence, rape, sex, illness, death. Why is it that the young people of today, in such a civilised society as ours, ignore the consequences of excessive drinking? It is not that they have not been informed of or warned of the consequences. Why is it then that they make such decisions? Year after year we hear countless stories of students who have been bashed, drowned, raped, drugged, even dead… all because of the effects of excessive drinking. Lives are destroyed, memories are ruined. To me it is clear: what happened to responsibility? Why is it that so many students are not taking responsibility of their lives and the lives of their friends? I pat the backs of the few who have gone through schoolies week as responsible young adults who have avoided drunkedness and taken care of their friends.

 

     What is the solution to making schoolies week a safe and happy time for all?

Increase the legal drinking age to 21? No. If alcohol is drunk excessively at 16th birthday parties when the legal age for drinking in public is 18, then people will still drink excessively at 18 if the legal age was 21.

Increase the price of alcohol? No. Why should responible drinkers suffer by paying more as a result of other people’s stupidity?

Make alcohol harder to aquire? No.

More responsibility taken by parents for their children? Yes. How can this be done?

The phrase we hear over and over by many parents today is “Let them be, they’ll learn from their own mistakes”. Such a belief holds true in some matters. For example, exams. Students will learn from their mistake of not committing enough time to study for it. But a mistake in this area cannot destroy one’s life. A second example: responsibility over finances. Teenagers will learn from their mistake of having spent all their part-time work money when they reach a time when they realise that if they didn’t spend it all on clothes or games, they could have had a significant amount in their savings that could have gone towards a holiday or something greatly desired. However, yet again such a mistake cannot destroy one’s life. Parents are right in letting their children learn from their own mistakes in such situations. But a mistake made in regards to things like alcohol, sex, and drugs can most certainly destroy people’s lives, and parents who believe in the “Let them be, they’ll learn from their mistakes” in regards to these issues must have nuts and bolts in their heads. What good parent would let their child learn from a mistake when in reality that mistake could cause serious damage or grief that could have otherwise been avoided? How can young people be expected to be responsible in their lives when their parents have been slack in practicing responsibility over them? 

 

     I have no doubt that the problem we have with many young people today stems down to a lack of responsibility, which is a reflection of our society.

 

     Finally, I must add one more thing. I have never known a young Christian who practices and lives his or her faith to be a drunkard or a person lacking in responsibility. They do their best to live their lives as the Word of God in the Bible teaches, and if Catholic, also by living their lives in accordance to Church doctrine. If they ever fail, they repent and ask for God’s help to strengthen them. Infact, the more I think about it, there is a link between religion and responsibility. Does this make sense to you? Our society is secular and teaches “believe what you want, you only live once, hell doesn’t exist so have fun and do watever you want!” Hmm. Perhaps religion isn’t such an “uncool” thing afterall. I have no doubt that the very reason society is the way it is today is because of its negect of the importance of God and His commands in our lives.       

 

Vincent Stefano

Director of Youth for Australia

Here are details of another event organised by Youth 4 Life. Please pass this on to everyone you know -

Dear Pro- Life Friend,

You are cordially invited to attend Youth 4 Life’s inaugural Life Chain event, an occasion to celebrate all the stages of life from the moment of conception.

Date: Saturday 8 November 2008
Time: 8:00pm – 9:00pm
Location: Parliament House Steps
Street: Spring Street, Melbourne
City/Town: Melbourne, Victoria

It is time to change our language when dealing with the matter of abortion. For too long now we have employed euphemisms on this, the biggest human rights issue of all time. Youth 4 Life however, insist that our language be reformed. The youth of Australia demand that the facts are faced.

We are on a mission to once more humanise the babies of this country. We, as good men in a world gone wild, are ready to meet this challenge head on. We are no longer mere ostriches with our heads in the proverbial sand. We will no more employ flowery language when addressing the bloodied subject of abortion- no more code words, no more glib speeches; no more talking ourselves out of a tight spot.

To this end we are holding a Life Chain outside Parliament House, in order to show the development of the baby in the womb at each stage of their life- large posters will depict monthly growth and emphasise the humanity of our unborn brothers and sisters.

Abortion kills more people in this country and any country than famine, poverty and disease. And we are not speaking about ’separating the fetal calvarium’ here. We are not talking in terms of ‘terminating the blood cell matter’ and ‘disarticulating the fetus’. It’s not about ‘gently removing the clot’. We are talking about killing babies. None of these code words are any help the the tiny little person on death row in their mother’s womb.

Come attend this Life Chain, be there in solidarity for our unborn, and become a part of this movement to rehumanise babies, protect mothers and change Australia.

Look forward to seeing you there,

Youth 4 Life

We hope to see many of you there – bring family and friends.

Earlier today Youth 4 Life confronted Premier John Brumby as he prepared to raise awareness in the recent “Arrive Alive Road Safety Strategy” campaign. Some people may believe this is not an appropriate time to demonstrate against the passing of the abortion law reform. However, we believe it was appropriate and there will be more events to come where pro-life youth will continue to drum into Brumby the lagacy he has set. Today’s demonstration was so apt. We should all be concerned with saving lives across the board. No one should be exempt. No one has the right to decide who should die.

There is a common misconception in this State that more young people are killed or maimed from road trauma than any other cause. We urge our Premier to recognise alonside the tragedy of these deaths on our roads, the slaughter of the most vulnerable of our countrymen, and insist that the infamous Abortion Law Reform Bill be immediately repealed. *

The Victorian road toll for 2007 was 332 - this tragic loss of life can be avoided. The death toll through abortion is 20,000 plus – another tragic loss of life which can also be avoided.

While at this demonstation we were amazed at the comments from people who were unaware abortion had been legalised in Victoria, or even that it had been debated in parliament. As usual though, the media just about ignored us. Channel 9 news described us having “marred the launch” and “cause for more police to ensure the premier’s safety”. The media can ignore us once, twice … tenfold, but they eventually will not be able to ignore the fact that Youth for Australia and Youth 4 Life will not go away. We mean business and we’ll not rest until the Abortion Law Reform Bill is repealed. We will be out in the streets educating people on the truth about abortion and directing women to organisations who will help and support them in their need.

Come and join us. Also, keep a check on my mum’s blog Precious Treasures for more information on our events.

* The above quote was taken from the Youth 4 Life blog.  If you wish to visit this blog be be warned there are graphic images on the home page which some will find disturbing.

Another pro life youth group has formed - Youth 4 Life. I have met their members and joined in with their planned events. Of course, this does not mean that Youth for Australia will cease. We wll continue the fight against abortion. We each have our own goals and we certainly share many of them. It’s early days for both pro life youth groups but I believe that together we will achieve more than Australian adults & politicians may think. We are in an awful state where abortion has been decriminalised and doctors will be crimianlised for not performing abortions or referring women to abortionists. Pro abortionists may believe they have won this battle but the war has just begun – for God has the final victory.

Here is Youth 4 Life’s first video -

An excerpt from the Youth 4 Life press release

In the next election, Youth 4 Life will dedicate itself to unseating the child-killers in our Parliament. Youth 4 Life have answered the pro-life call to arms and demand that our generation are no longer slaughtered under the thin euphemism of ‘choice’. With a series of rallies, events and street work already planned, Youth 4 Life has launched their campaign to re-establish the criminalisation of abortion and the restoration of a Culture of Life.

Vincent

 

Dear Friends,

On Tuesday 7th October members of the Legislative Council will begin voting on the legalisation of abortion – a horrendous Bill which seeks to legalise abortion up to 24 weeks and beyond with the approval of 2 doctors. It would force pro-life doctors to refer women to abortionists, and nurses will have no choice but to take part in the procedure. So far the Bill has been passed in the Lower House. There is a chance the Bill will be blocked by the Upeer House but the vote is going to be very close.

On Monday 6th October, we invite all WYD Pilgrims, along with Parishioners of St Anthony’s Glen Huntly, Youth for Australia (a newly formed pro life youth initiative founded by Vincent Stefano), and anyone else who wishes to join us, will pray in front of the Blessed Sacrament that this Bill will be defeated in its entirety.

Please make a note in your diaries – Monday 6th October.
We will begin with Mass at 7pm, followed by an hour of Adoration. The hour of Adoration will include prayers, hymns and quiet prayer time.

Please join us. If you can’t make it in time for mass at 7 pm you are welcome to join us afterwards. If you absolutely can’t make it please pray from where you are.

St. Anthony’s Glen Huntly is on the corner of Grange and Neerim Rds in Glen Huntly, Melbourne. (South-Eastern suburbs, next to Caulfield) 

If you have any queries please contact me. I will be away from 22nd – 27th September but will answer your queries when we return.

God Bless,

Vincent Stefano