It sounds like a B-grade horror flick (and perhaps it is), but the sermon to be given by Archbishop Pell at the World Youth Day Mass starting in just over half an hour will be based on Chapter 37 of the Prophecy of Ezechiel (according to the online Douay-Rheimes Bible).
Go read it if you’re curious about what it has to say. Or if you’d rather wait, I will be back after listening to the Mass to dissect, with the usual dose of snarkiness, the words of *ahem* wisdom spewed forth by Archbishop Pell into the ears of some the world’s most vulnerable youth (ie, the ones caught in the grip of religious fervour).
See you soon, my children. Ramen.
UPDATE: Unfortunately, neither the ABC nor SBS have a recording of Pelly’s sermon at yesterday’s mass, so I’m not going to be able to have my fun with it! Spoilsports. From the snippets of the sermon I have heard, it seems Pelly used the passage about the Valley of the Dry Bones to draw parallels with Australia’s drought. I’m no bible scholar, but: what???
UPDATE 2: Oh, nevermind – I’ve found a pdf version of the sermon (or ‘homily’). Critique is forthcoming. I’m not sure why I’m doing this, but it gives me some sort of sick pleasure to pit myself against everything about this event. Maybe it’s because all those in power have bent over to welcome WYD to Sydney, and apart from mention of sex abuse, even the usually good media outlets like the ABC and SBS have jumped on the bandwagon. But analysing why I feel so strongly about this is another post for another day.
July 19, 2008 at 7:38 pm |
Yeah, I’m uneasy about the Youth Day thing as well. I suppose you heard the speech Kevin Rudd gave at the start of the event? The whole “faith and reason can co-exist” spiel? Unfortunately, it made me like him a little bit less.
July 20, 2008 at 11:06 am |
Howdy Sumi – have you heard of Bishop Anthony Fisher? He’s coordinator for ‘World’ Youth Day and he’s concerned that some ‘cranky’ individuals are spoiling his moment in the sun. Click here to see how much of a fuckwit he really is.
July 21, 2008 at 9:42 am |
Oh, have I ever heard of that miserable git. I’ve been so snowed under with material from WYD, I don’t even know where to begin writing. I’m glad you got some fodder for your Wacko of the Week out of him, though. It amazes me that people like this exist. Did you hear the backflip he did when people called him out on his comments? I think he’s an idiot but you’d have to be a special brand of idiot not to know how your comments would be construed (y’know, if we believe him that he didn’t mean it THAT way).