I
first came to Redfern on Trinity Sunday. I think the
year was 1981. We had recently moved to Sydney,
were living in West
Ryde,
a fair way from Redfern, and had attended Mass at various
parishes near where we lived.
On
this particular Sunday, having heard of Ted Kennedy
and Redfern, we decided to go there. I saw a man who
was older than I expected but whose voice was strong
enough to fill the church. When it was time for the
sermon, I sat back and remember thinking that after
nearly ten years of theological training, I could practically
predict what Ted was going to say. "Today is the Feast
of the Holy Trinity," said Ted. He took off his glasses
and dangled them from his fingers. "I think there are
solid theological reasons," he continued, "for abolishing
this feast". I sat bolt upright and listened for ten
minutes of theological reflection that was both scholarly
and earthy, that seemed to come bubbling up from the
streets outside, the people who walked them and the
experience of the man who had spent the best part of
his life serving them. Ten years of theological training
shrank into more realistic perspective.
Over
the next couple of decades, I couldn’t count the number
of times Ted cracked open the Scriptures to reveal layers
of meaning that I had never encountered. His insight
came from the being at the point of contact where the
Good News was confronted by the reality of the lives
of poor people. Ted it was who made me understand that
people who are the edges of society, marginalised, demeaned,
impoverished, excluded, hear the Gospel in ways that
the rest of us do not, and cannot. We cannot gain this
insight, not because we are not sincere, but because
we are not poor. And "poor" can include all those who
suffer deeply. Hence shutting ourselves off from actual
face to face contact with "poor" people can mean shutting
ourselves off from a large part of the meaning of the
Gospel, the good news, the message of Christ. That was
a challenging message for me, working as I did for an
overseas aid organisation, and taking pride in the belief
that I was doing something about poverty without ever
having to encounter it. Coming to Mass at Redfern continued
to be a challenge. Ted always used to say that the Gospel
was about "comforting the afflicted and afflicting the
comfortable". I was comfortable, and I felt afflicted
more than once.
I
know from speaking to others who went regularly to Redfern
that I wasn’t the only one who experienced something
like this. I kept coming back because I knew it was
important for me to hear that message, and because I
could see it little by little changing me. You couldn’t
help but be changed at Redfern. On any given Sunday,
the place was full of people who had lived, were living,
the most extraordinary lives. Many had known Ted for
decades – since his days as a University chaplain. Others
were more recent arrivals. Some were aboriginal people,
but the majority were not. Occasionally one or another
would speak of what they were doing or what they believed
or what they had experienced. It was a humbling, privileged
experience to be part of such a community and, having
moved away from Sydney,
I miss it a lot.
During
the time I was attending Redfern, I began to write songs,
often with a social justice theme, and usually laced
with humour. Ted was very encouraging and invited me
to present some of these songs from time to time after
Mass.
I eventually wrote a couple about Ted and about Redfern,
and I append these to this reflection. They may convey
more of my feeling than the reflection itself!
SHAKING
FOUNDATIONS
A
song for Ted Kennedy on the occasion of the fortieth
anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood
Come
all you good Catholics whose faith is unshaken
Who
come here each Sunday to Redfern to Mass,
As
we sit here digesting our eggs and our bacon,
Let’s
thank the good Lord it has all come to pass.
For
it’s now forty years since Ted’s ordination,
And
those forty years have been interesting times,
So
I’m singing this song as a small celebration
And
I won’t let the facts interfere with the rhymes.
Refrain:
For
teaching, for speeching for pastoral preaching
For
making the Cardinal toss in his bed
There’s
no priest in the nation with such dedication
To
shaking foundations as our Father Ted.
In
the suburb of Marrickville early one morning
Ted
Kennedy first saw the light of the day.
His
Dad was a doctor whose patients were poor
So
he never sent bills they weren’t able to pay.
And
Ted he grew up and he studied at Manly,
And
raced through the course like an athlete in trim.
When
they thought they had trained him, the bishop ordained
him
And
said, "That’s the last we’ll be hearing from him!"
Refrain
When
they needed a chaplain to work at the Uni
Young
Ted’s name came up, they said "OK he’ll do."
Ted
made it a station of life and cognation
And
anticipation of Vatican
II.
But
when he went off for a well-earned vacation
They
hijacked his work and they put up a sign:
"This
chaplaincy zone is for Catholics only –
No
sinners, no thinkers, no dogs and no wine!"
Refrain
So
Ted came to Redfern and soon turned the presbytery
Into
a hostel for those with no bed
And
tried to suggest to the powers that be
That
the place should belong to the Kooris instead.
But
how could they make such a frivolous gesture
When
other demands are so urgently roused?
You
can’t give things away when you might have to pay
Forty
million or more for your school and your house.
Refrain
So,
thank God we’re here on this happy occasion,
And
thank God for those who were here and are gone,
And
thank God for Ted, for his heart and his head
And
his words here at Redfern now forty years on.
Where
else can you hear liberation theology
Preached
from the pulpit and practiced as well?
Where
else are there sermons that don’t make you squirm
And
that don’t mention building funds, bingo or hell?
Refrain
SUNDAY
MORNING
Snapshot
of a Sunday celebration at St
Vincent’s,
Redfern in 1995.
Well,
Sunday morning’s here again,
It’s
half
past nine
or a quarter
to ten
Folk
from Ryde to Rozelle
Bay
Are
deciding how they’ll spend the day,
Where
they’ll go and what they’ll do -
Drive
to the mountains, go to the Zoo
Head
for Bondi – that’s the ticket,
Or
just stay home and watch the cricket.
Go
to the Aquarium, see a shark,
Ride
the big dipper at Luna Park,
Darling
Harbour,
Paddy’s Market –
(You
can drive your car there, but you’ll never park it.)
My
Sundays usually start off slow,
Because
I always know where I’m going to go.
I
like the day to start with a treat,
So
I go to Mass at Redfern
Street.
Refrain:
Oh,
Mass at Redfern
Don’t
miss, don’t miss, don’t miss Mass at Redfern!
Well,
you meet all kinds of people here
They
come from far and they come from near
From
Normanhurst and Cammeray
Erskineville,
Elizabeth
Bay
Newtown,
Redfern, Woolloomooloo,
Annandale
and Leichhardt too.
Ted
comes up from Burrawang,
Then
there’s Eileen and all her gang
Denis,
Rhonda, Harold, Sam –
Hey,
there’s Angela pushing a pram.
Pat
and Dot and Marnie K -
They
all belong to RSCJ,
Gay
and David, saying "peace"
To
Barry, Diana and Annolies,
Pete
and Maggie, Kathy, Dan,
Christopher
and Lucyanne
And
who’s that down there behind your backs?
I
can only see his hat – oh, it’s Uncle Max!
Refrain
Now,
we have all kinds of celebrations,
Baptisms
and confirmations,
Retreats
and weddings, funerals, wakes,
And
once a month there’s tea and cakes
It’s
like no church you’ve been before,
With
a cricket match going on outside the door
And
kids all running round, being human
And
Ted, quoting from Cardinal Newman
Or
John Shaw Neilson or Thomas Aquinas,
Or
a hundred others, plus or minus.
It’s
the only Sydney Church that features
Homilies
from women preachers
(In
case the Archdiocese raises objections,
We
don’t call them sermons, just "reflections").
We
give pride of place to Koori people
And
no support for St Mary’s steeples.
Refrain
Well,
Sunday morning’s here again,
It’s
half
past nine
or a quarter
to ten
Winter’s
cold or summer’s heat,
I
go to Mass in Redfern
Street.
If
you get there early with your Sunday missal
Ted’ll
have you up to read the epistle
Or
blow the whistle, or say the dismissal.
(Can
we go home now, Mum?
In
a moment, darling, it won’t be long
That
man with the beard’s going to sing another song)
We’ve
dogs and kids and real religion,
Lift
up your eyes and spot the pigeon
It’s
a bit of a nuisance, according to most
But
I think it might be the Holy Ghost
Refrain
by Dermot Dorgan
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