"… And last year was a watershed in the Australian church, with a 22-page Statement of Conclusions issued jointly by Vatican officials and the Australian bishops reporting that a "crisis of faith" had enveloped the Australian church. It bore the undeniable imprint of the John Paul/Ratzinger worldview, explaining how and why the "crisis" had led to declining attendances, theological dissent, and widespread moral confusion …". (Of Cardinal Importance, Paul Gray, Courier Mail, 10 July 1999, p. 19)

Nowhere in Australia is this moral confusion more in evidence than in Brisbane’s St Stephen’s Cathedral and in its cross-cultural "mystery" shrine "The Human Search For God" – a shrine which archbishop John Bathersby appears incapable of either defending or explaining.

So, how did the shrine get into St Stephen’s in the first place? Why was it put it there? Why does Archbishop Bathersby not have it removed? And, why does the archbishop fail to publicly explain or defend the shrine?

These are the questions we examine in this and coming issues.

Over the past year or so, in examining the St Stephen’s Cathedral shrine "The Human Search For God", we have seen how the artwork in the shrine is embedded with hidden occult and sexual meanings and is deeply offensive to traditional Aboriginal and Catholic spirituality.

In previous issues, "News From The Pews" has shown:

• that its presence in St Stephen’s is in breach of church law

• the "Eliza Fraser Heads 4 Trouble" reading

• the mocking "black cock/_a_too" reading

• the "L_u_c_i_f_e_r" reading

• the "C _ _ _" reading

• the secret-sacred "K_u_n_a/_pipi" reading

• how the sign complements these readings

• how Cathedral artist Ms Fiona Foley breached Aboriginal customary law in a number of ways, including appropriating and inappropriately re-working ritual knowledge from her earlier works, "Moon Fish", "Gunabibi 3" & "Maningrida"

• how Ms Foley cross-matched that ritual knowledge with the demonic ritual knowledge of the "hard core" western occultist Aleister    Crowley, making specific reference to –
   - "witchcraft"
   - "the false moon of the sorceress", and
   - Crowley’s "Liber Samekh"/"Congressus cum Daemone" ritual.

Perhaps the most curious element of the whole affair has been the claim made in a statement by Archbishop Bathersby that he, "… is very happy that it (the shrine) is there. It is a fitting tribute to the Aboriginal people who originally owned the land on which the Cathedral is built. As well it acknowledges the Aboriginal people’s search for God." (Archbishop’s Statement, 29 June 1998)

So, why does no-one come forward to support His Grace’s claim?

There are a number of reasons why no traditional owners of "the land on which the Cathedral is built" have come out in support of His Grace’s "tribute" claim, including:

1. There are the shrine’s breaches of Aboriginal customary law, to which we have referred a number of times. No traditional owner will come forward to support a "tribute" which itself breaches Aboriginal law.

2. In similar vein, there is the calculated mockery of traditional Aboriginal law and spirituality, (see NFTP No. 14). No traditional owner can support the mockery of another traditional owner’s law or spirituality.

3. Aboriginal art is about land. The art itself contains a land claim element. Mixing a land claim relating to the Brisbane archdiocese with a reference to "Kunapipi" (appropriated from the Northern Territory) is, in Aboriginal terms, grossly and calculatingly offensive.

4. We have previously seen that the "shrine" expresses a certain kind of "New Age" Koori perspective. This perspective is one which finds acceptable a mixing of Aboriginal beliefs and practices with those from the western occult, including the likes of Aleister Crowley. This perspective is deeply offensive to traditional Aboriginal people. In supporting the presentation of this perspective in St Stephen’s, Archbishop Bathersby is staking out a divisive position in relation to the Aboriginal community.

For a "tribute" to be acceptable to traditional Aboriginal owners, the owners would have had to be involved in the tribute from the outset. Their permission would have been essential. Considerable discussion, consultation and negotiation would have been necessary, both between the church and the traditional owners and within the traditional owning community.

The Brisbane archdiocese has a wealth of knowledge about Aborigines and Aboriginal culture. It is not remotely likely that the church somehow naively overlooked Aboriginal protocol when it installed the shrine.

One of the more intriguing aspects of the shrine is the particular "New Age" Koori perspective which it expresses. As we have seen, this particular perspective does not respect traditional Aboriginal spirituality nor Christian spirituality nor the Catholic Church.

"New Age" influences in the Catholic church are not a new phenomenon. The "New Age" in the church is a known quantity. A great deal has been written about the subject.

What is unusual about this shrine, however, is that the "New Age" content is specifically sourced, via Crowley’s unique codes and numerology, to Crowley himself and his cult.

If you know how Crowley’s codes work, the meaning of this otherwise obscure shrine is laid bare. This is not your average or run-of-the-mill "New Age" influence. This is from the hard core "Crowleyan" occult – and it is on public display in St Stephen’s.

Now that we are all able to see the nature of the "mystery" shrine in St Stephen’s, the key question has become one of where Archbishop Bathersby himself stands.

• Why has His Grace not denied any of NFTP revelations?

• How can he allow such an offensive shrine to stay in place?

• Does he stand with Crowley’s "spirituality"?

• Does he stand with the other disparaged parties - the traditional Aborigines and the Catholic Church?

• Or, is His Grace nowhere to be seen?

Tim Pemble-Smith
3 – 111 Central Avenue
Indooroopilly Q 4068
after hours: (07) 3871 2047

Want NFTP by mail or e-mail? For e-mail, let NFTP know at: trps@ozemail.com.au

Current & all back issues are available on the Internet at the ‘News From The Pews’ web site:
www.ozemail.com.au/~trps

Links to recent articles from The Wanderer about occult activity in the Archdiocese of Brisbane click HERE