WCR Letters to the Editor

Moore commended for going against tide of world opinion

Moore is to be commended for taking the stand he has, which flies in the face of world opinion, one which is currently attempting to portray Zionism - the calling of the Jews of the Diaspora home to Israel - as racism. Moore refuses to join the swelling ranks of the naive, as Zyp unfortunately does in his column, and as do Father Tim Boyle, C.K. Johnstone, and Gary Frank also do in their following letters.

Everyone remembers so-called "Israel expansionism," but no one seems to recall the expansionist agendas of its Arab neighbours. Everyone remembers the Persian Gulf War, but few seem to recall it began when Iraq invaded and annexed its fellow Arab neighbour, Kuwait. Fearing Iraq's expanionist goals, Saudi Arabia and Syria joined allied efforts to free Kuwait.

World consciousness also seems to forget that three years after the 1967 war, the Palestinians turned to Jordan - which is in fact comprised of 78 per cent of Palestine itself - and was so rejected by that Arab state that civil war broke out, and 10,000 Palestinians were killed.

The PLO retreated to Lebanon, where it found refuge, creating its own mini-state therein, and thereafter wreaking havoc on the population of that country. And no one seems to care about the fate of Arab Palestinian refugees who have been incarcerated in refugee camps in Arab territories since 1948.

The world was traumatized by the shootings of teenagers at Columbine High in a random act of violence, but scarcely seemed to notice when the Dolphinarium disco was targeted by the Palestinian terrorist machine, and several teenagers were blown to bits.

The Palestinians target children and the general public with their suicide bombers, and little is said on the political front, but when the Israelis try to defend their people and target those who craft such insidious crimes, the whole world rises up in a chorus of indignation against them.

We're all concerned about finding a political solution to the situation in the Middle East, but given the fact that the Jewish nation is surrounded by sworn enemies determined to annihilate it, it seems that a political solution is unlikely, and that all out warfare is inevitable.

Because even if a way can be found to create a Palestinian homeland, the conflict will go on, for the Arabs will not rest until the last Jew is dead.

Jim Verreault
Red Deer

Watching EWTN has changed my family's life

EWTN has made a profound change in the spiritual life of me and my family. My wife and I initially subscribed to EWTN through satellite so our parents, who were staying with us, could have something decent to watch on TV.

We have been receiving it now for more than a year, and it is basically all we watch. It makes us realize how distorted the secular media, and Hollywood TV shows really are. A classic example would be the CBC's Passionate Eye which recently aired a documentary that portrayed an abortionist as a saint and pro-life demonstrators as terrorists.

EWTN carries a wide range of educational and inspiring programs that would be a welcome addition to the home of any family. Some of my favourites are Mother Angelica, whose witty humour, and lack of political correctness make her a real treat to watch. Father Frank Pavone and his Defending Life series keeps me up to date on the latest pro-life issues. Father Benedict Groeschel, having just wrapped up a series on the Ten Commandments, is starting another on the Holy Trinity this month.

Father John Corapi (another of my favourites) is starting a new series on Catechism. Life on the Rock provides a viewing option for younger people, and discusses issues such as marriage preparation, dealing with peer pressure, and more recently about World Youth Day in Toronto. The Journey Home is a program showing people's conversion stories, and how they came home to the Church.

I can go on and on about the amazing selection of programs EWTN has; I have touched on only a few. EWTN is what Canada needs. This is the type of programming our families should be watching.

I want to urge everyone to call Shaw Cable, and let them know that they should be offering EWTN as quickly as possible. This network has had a very positive impact on me and my family in the past year, and I am sure that it will for many Canadians in the future. It is truly God's network.

Shaun Malo
Edmonton

Alpha evangelization already alive in diocese

We read with interest the above article and concur with the necessity to embrace evangelization within the Roman Catholic Church. Indeed, Pope John Paul has made the new evangelization a major priority for this new millennium.

In the WCR article, Father Len Hagel, St. Michael's Parish, Calgary, is quoted as saying, so far St. Michael's) is the only parish in Alberta offering the (Alpha) program.

However, we wish to bring to the attention of yourselves and the readers of the WCR that Holy Trinity Parish, serving Spruce Grove, Stony Plain and Parkland County, also offered the Alpha program in the Spring 2001. A second series will be offered staring in October 2001.

The "team" coordinators and leaders, (Jim and Bev Orieux), had attended the Alpha series and leadership preparation at St. Paul's Anglican Church, Edmonton, as well as attending two previous Alpha conferences, one of which was the large Alpha For Catholics conference hosted by the Archdiocese of Vancouver in July 2000.

In addition they were present at the recent Edmonton Alpha Conference, Aug. 24-25. A Catholic couple, (Pat and Muriel Lavin) from St. Rose of Lima parish, Onoway, who had attended the Alpha program at the Anglican church in Onoway, kindly accepted an invitation to serve on the first team. As mentioned in the article under discussion, they are anticipating offering the Alpha program in Onoway, January 2002.

More information about the Alpha Program and more specifically Alpha For Catholics can be obtained from the Alpha web site, www.alphacanada.org.

We also welcome any inquiries and can be reached at (780) 963-2615.

Jim and Bev Orieux
Alpha Coordinator
Holy Trinity Parish
Stony Plain

Middle East turmoil will escalate

I personally think Charles Moore wrote a pretty good editorial ("Israelis represent order, civilization," WCR, Aug. 20). Many of the things Moore said, have already been foretold.

It's time for Catholics to come out of the darkness and open up their Bibles, for the sake of many of our children, who are living in darkness. We should be thanking God and our pope (a living saint) for encouraging Catholics to evangelize the Good News and truly become followers of Our Lord Jesus Christ.

Pope John Paul is a very wise man and he is telling us that Jesus is coming soon, but only God knows the time of his arrival. Open up your Bible and read the book of Revelation and only then will you understand the turmoil that is going on in the Holy Land.

The Palestinians have a right to co-exist in peace, but their terrorist acts become an advantage for the Israelites to retaliate and push them further back. Moore is correct in saying that the Jews are home to stay and I will add that there is no power on earth that will dislodge them.

The turmoil is bound to escalate as the Jews are preparing to lay the cornerstones for God's Holy Temple in Jerusalem, as this will not be taken lightly by Palestine and other Muslim nations.

Canada will declare its position soon, but our souls belong to God and not to our government.

Be alert and pray for peace. Jesus said, be not alarmed, for all those things must come to pass. May God bless.

Gus Lapointe
Edmonton

Fear of federal raiding is rational

Chretien was a cabinet minister in the Trudeau government whose NEP was directly responsible for thousands of Alberta families losing their livelihoods, homes and in some cases even their lives, all to provide cheap oil to Ontario and Quebec industries and consumers.

Chretien has recently justified this 1980s raid on a constitutionally provincial resource as necessary for the national good. If destroying the lives of thousands of Albertans is acceptable to Chretien; if this is what Chretien sees as promoting "social justice," then the rational response of Albertans to hearing Chretien speak again of Albertans' need to "share" is suspicion and fear of another round of federal economic raiding.

Mr. Roche, despite Chretien's mouthed interest in "social justice," the real motivation behind these raids is blatantly political.

Other regions are jealous of the wealth produced by Albertans' good fortune and hard work and Liberal governments-knowing that Albertans consistently elect opposition MPs rather than Liberals-pander to this regional jealousy by unconstitutionally plundering Alberta's resource wealth.

Your column presents this Liberal predation and treatment of Alberta as the nation's whipping boy as a noble, moral thing.

How dare you spin Chretien's hypocrisy in a Christian newspaper!

Derryl Hermanutz
Spruce Grove

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