Archbishop of Sydney

Bali

By + George Pell
ARCHBISHOP OF SYDNEY
27 October 2002

It was one of many services across the nation, most of them religious as Australians struggled to come to grips with the killings, the suffering of the survivors and their loved ones and the realisation that fanatical violence is now at work close to home. Nor can we be sure that this is the end of the story, although this remains our hope against hope.

a joined the worshippers from the 10.30am Mass at St. Mary's Cathedral who walked over to the Domain. At Catholic masses throughout Sydney and in all the other dioceses, we prayed for peace in the afterlife for the victims, Australian and otherwise, for strength and healing for the surviving victims and for consolation and endurance for the families and loved ones of the victims.

We must not shy away from the awful fact that this was not a natural disaster like flood, typhoon or earthquake, beyond human control. These deaths and the suffering of many innocent people were caused by a few individuals with hate in their hearts. We cannot know whether they realise the enormity of the evil they created. Only God can judge intentions and motives accurately on some occasions. But it should be clear that these actions are terribly evil. They violate the fundamental moral principle which forbids the taking of innocent life. Moral truths should not be violated, and violations remain violations even when broken in ignorance or by bigoted zealots.

The Christian doctrine of forgiveness by God for all those who sincerely ask for forgiveness is not an alternative to justice. They are two sides of the one coin. In fact proper authorities, such as the Indonesian and Australian governments have an important duty to pursue the malefactors and bring them to justice.

The punishing of evildoers is one of the foundations of a healthy democracy. All Australians would have agreed with the Prime Minister, who just before the one minute's silence urged Australians to work to preserve our "open, tolerant and generous society".

This generous spirit was much in evidence at the Domain with the sadness and solidarity of a marvellous cross-section of Sydney's people, young and old, rich and poor. A group of Balinese were there in local costume, children and adults from a local Islamic school laid flowers in the pool of reflection. Everyone was represented.

The strongest applause was provoked by an interview with Wendy Griffiths, who had worked through the night at a Bali hospital with her husband to provide human support for the patients. "This has taught me", she said, "about the importance of family and friends, the fragility of life and the fruitlessness of hatred".

The Domain concert was deeply patriotic in the best sense of that word, which is used too infrequently. The loyalty of Australians, one to another, real, strong, and inclusive, ran through the entire programme. As always it was understated. A was struck by the large number of Australian flags carried by family members.

The Prime Minister got it right: "Let us also embrace not only each other, but all the peoples of the world, in peace".