wpeb.jpg (32274 bytes)The Liberal Catholic Church

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A tri-annual magazine exploring the deeper aspects of religious thought, experience and practice in the world today

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World News

Denmark
Bishop Børge turned 89 last month. The latest news is that he was hospitalised and is home again. Until recently he still celebrated services in the Church in Hjørring. He has served his Province as a Bishop for 29 years. May love and good care surround Bishop Søgaard and may the Angels give him peace in mind and in body.

The Presiding Bishop's world tour
The Presiding Bishop, accompanied by Maria, his wife, returned home in South Africa after a six month round-the-world tour, starting in Australia, continuing through New Zealand, California, Illinois, Iowa, Florida, Colombia, Cuba and Great Britain.

South America
Bishop Miguel Angel Batet is very happy in his new place at a communal farm in the Province of Cordoba, Argentina, operating on principles of natural health, and farming without the use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides. There are conference facilities with full board and a chapel on the farm. Bishop Batet has already extended an open invitation to hold the next All Spanish and Portuguese Church Congress at this farm in Cordoba.

The All-Spanish Church Congress
The All-Spanish Congress was held in Bogotá from 2-11 July 1999. Because of the very large distances between Parishes and more so between Church Provinces, there was no clear uniformity in conducting Church services. Most of all, there was a great need to forge closer links between Spanish and Portuguese speaking Liberal Catholic communities in the world.

Rev Mario Herrera, as Liaison officer for Spanish and Portuguese speaking communities, took charge of this Congress, which was held in the lecture hall of the Church. Extremely well-attended public lectures were held in the evenings at the Theosophical Society, the lecture hall often being filled to overflow. Lectures were presented by the Presiding Bishop, by Rev Herrera and two other delegates from Miami, as well as by Bishops Batet and Salzmann from Argentina and Bishop Torres from Cuba. Also included in the program were lectures presented by delegates from Puerto Rico and Costa Rica. As a token of appreciation, the Theosophical Society in Bogotá invited the Congress delegates for a social evening with a musical performance at the Lodge.

The Congress reached consensus on the following points:

The various Spanish Liturgies presently in use will be combined into one future Spanish Liturgy

A video recording was made of three presentations by Bishop Torres, demonstrating in detail how Holy Eucharist is performed by a Priest. These sessions were open to interested persons of the Laity in order that it might help them in their understanding

The need for following the LCIS course in Spanish from the school in Rosario, Argentina, by Clergy and Laity was stressed, as also the need for altar training for aspirant Clergy was clearly identified.

A strong link with theosophical teachings should remain the basis on which the principles of the Church are based.

Cuba
The visit to the Cuban Province was most interesting. Bishop Gaspar Torres bade the party a hearty welcome. The Church is doing well. In the beautiful church in Cienfuegos (Hundred fires), situated on a large block of land, Solemn Benediction was celebrated. The large grounds are destined for a future study and training centre. On Sunday, Holy Eucharist was celebrated at the Church in Havana. The service was well attended. Thereafter the party was welcomed at the Theosophical Society for lunch, followed in the afternoon by a well-attended lecture. On Saturday, Rev Herrera delivered his lecture at the same Lodge. These two occasions were marked by a deep and intelligent interest by those attending, followed by many probing questions. There appears to be an overall expectation, though the economy is still stagnant, that better times are to come.