Our Lady of Walsingham
Traditional Anglican Communion
Rockhampton Qld Australia

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Local News

The Sacrament of Holy Baptism was administered to Jo-Dee Elizabeth on the Feast of the Epiphany. She is pictured with her parents Lee-Allan and Katarina Eastment, brother Jack, and Godmother Sarah Slade.

Dave Morrison was kept busy packaging food parcels for distribution through Saint Vincent de Paul Society.

NEW ALTAR BLESSED: A magnificent high altar has been installed in the parish church in memory of our first parish priest, Canon Tom Rogers. Archbishop John Hepworth visited the parish in February 2004 for its consecration.

Canon Rogers served his ministry in both the Anglican Church of Australia and after retirement in the Anglican Catholic Church in Australia at Rockhampton.

Some of the women of the parish packaging food and toiletry items for distribution to the poor and needy in the city of Rockhampton through the St. Vincent de Paul Society.

WITH additional groceries received in December and January more than AU$1,000 in food and toiletry items have been delivered to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul during the past year. The parish has a sacrificial giving programme during Lent and Advent and the goods given are distributed through the Society to the needy in the local community. President of the Rockhampton Region, Michael Marrinan wrote that "since January call for assistance has been non-stop; this is usual and expected with families preparing for a new school year. Thanks be to God with the assistance given by donors and benefactors we are able to meet the demand placed on the Society's resources. It is the love of God that spurs all supportive of St. Vincent de Paul Society on to be Good Samaritans and share those families in need. My sincere thanks and God's choicest blessings to the congregation of Our Lady of Walsingham Anglican Catholic Church."

The origin of the name 'Candlemas' is generally supposed to lie in Simeon's words when, taking the infant Saviour in his arms, he prophesied that this Child would be the light to lighten the Gentiles and the glory of his people Israel. Tradition loves to tell that Simeon laid the infant Jesus upon the altar, showing that only through the sacrifice of the Lamb of God the sin of the world could be redeemed, and that as he did so the Temple became glorious with the light of unseen heavenly tapers.

Marina Lucy Buckton was married to Robert Leonard Boswood at Our Lady of Walsingham, Rockhampton. The officiant was Fr. Ken Clark.

Australian News

Stem Cell Research
A PASTORAL LETTER
To the clergy and people of the Anglican Catholic Church in Australia From time to time, we are confronted with something completely new. In order to proclaim clearly to the world the mind of God on something new, the Church must search the Gospels, the letters of the apostles, and the writings of those who have taught the faith through the ages. When the matter that is completely new involves human life, the Church must teach with particular clarity. Australia, in common with other nations with advanced standards of medical research, is now being forced to make decisions about human stem cell research. Stem cells are human cells found both in human embryos and in human adults. They grow to produce the other human organs that make the human body. The discovery of stem cells, and the technology to grow them in the laboratory, has opened up the possibility that, at some time in the future, replacement organs and human tissue will be grown to replace damaged organs or tissue in human beings. This is in itself an honourable aim ? and exciting science. In order for this research to continue, a source of stem cells must be found. Some researchers prefer to obtain stems cells from human embryos. Embryos are humans less than about 14 days old. Others believe that research will be more productive with stem cells derived from adults. This is a legitimate scientific argument that is not yet resolved. It is certain, however, that obtaining stem cells from the human embryo leads to the death of the embryo. Our Church, in common with the Catholic and Orthodox churches, teaches with one voice on this matter. The teaching may be summarised as follows: * All human life is sacred to God. This is reflected in the whole of the teaching of Jesus in the Gospels.
* Human life is constant from conception - when a new genetically complete individual is created - to death.
* The worth of each human life is never diminished because a person is dependent, whether because of being very young or because of being very old. In fact, Jesus teaches that the weak, the vulnerable, the socially unacceptable, the foreigner and the sinful have a special demand on our ministry and love.
* Nor is the worth of each human life diminished by being in some way less than perfect - such as in time of illness or disease.
* Each person is valued equally by God, and must be valued equally by other humans.
* All persons enjoy a right to life, regardless of their status or condition.
* There may be moments when one human being will be given the right to kill another, such as in time of war against an unjust aggressor, but those moments never occur at the whim of an individual. War is sanctioned very rarely by both Church and state as a lesser evil to all other consequences, but never as a good thing in itself.
* The destruction of dependent or helpless humans - such as the unborn or the very elderly or the seriously ill - is profoundly sinful.
* Both euthanasia and abortion are morally abhorrent to Christians and the Church will always teach that they are wrong.
* The production of test tube humans to be used and destroyed in laboratory research is morally evil.
* The production of surplus human embryos in fertility programs, in which they are frozen and eventually discarded if not needed is morally evil.
* No human being has the right to be cured of disease or to have a child (when natural conception is impossible) when the cost of such a cure or of such a baby is the destruction of other human beings.
* No Laboratory or medical procedure can be done that depends on the destruction of human beings. I have therefore publicly announced that I support research based on adult stem cells. I am totally opposed to the decision of the Australian Government to allow even limited research that requires the destruction of human embryos. + John Hepworth
St Etheldreda in the Hills
Adelaide
April 2002

World News

This beautiful painting of the Madonna and Child by Australian artist (and parishioner of Our Lady of Walsingham, Rockhampton), Agnes Thomas is a gift and symbol of the bond between the African and Australian Anglican continuing churches. Both Madonna and Child are black, in a striking depiction of the God who became Man for all people at all times and all nations. Below, Bishop John Hepworth presenting the painting to the Very Reverend Raymond Ball and Mr. Percy Mokwele on the occasion of the consecration of the new All Saints Pro-cathedral church, Seshego in 1999.

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