2nd May, 2002
Notice
Board
TOUGH TIMES IN RUSSIA FOR THE CATHOLIC CHURCH
by Geraldine Fagan and Felix Corley, Keston News Service
ORTHODOX BISHOP BARS CATHOLIC
CHURCH BUILDING? (22 Apr)
Authorities in the western Russian city of Pskov have halted the
construction of a Catholic Church in the wake of a complaint by
the local Orthodox bishop, Keston News Service has learnt.
Archbishop Yevsevi (Savvin) of Pskov and Velikie Luki appealed to
Russian President Vladimir Putin and the head of the region’s
administration Yevgeni Mikhailov with a request “not to
allow the destroyers of our homeland and nation - the Roman Pope
and Catholicism – to triumph on Holy Pskov soil”. On 3
April, soon after the archbishop wrote his letter, the city
authorities issued an instruction halting the building.
JUSTICE DEPARTMENT SEEKS TO LIQUIDATE MAGADAN CATHOLIC PARISH (22
Apr).
A legal case in the Russian far eastern town of Magadan is to
decide on whether a foreign citizen without a residence permit
may lead a Catholic parish. The Church of Christ’s Nativity,
headed by Father Michael Shields, has been warned by the justice
department of Magadan region that it is contravening Russia’s
1997 law on religion. However the lawyer representing the parish
told Keston News Service that the parish is challenging this
interpretation of the law at Magadan city court. The majority of
Catholic priests in Russia are foreign citizens, and few have
managed to obtain a residence permit.
WHY WAS CATHOLIC BISHOP EXPELLED?
Varied responses from the Russian state authorities continue to
obscure the reasons for the annulment on 19 April of Bishop Jerzy
Mazur's valid visa when he tried to return to his Irkutsk-based
diocese from his native Poland. In recent days there have been
several high-level condemnations of the measures taken against
Bishop Mazur and requests to the Russian authorities for an
explanation.
CAMPAIGN AGAINST CATHOLICS?
"Events in recent months demonstrate that an organised
campaign is being waged against the Catholic Church in Russia,
" maintains a 20 April statement from the head of Russia's
Catholics, Archbishop Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz. The vice-chairman of
the Russian government's Commission for Religious Organisations
told Keston News Service that he found the recent incidents
involving Catholic clergy "surprising and incomprehensible",
but said that as yet he did could not comment on whether they
represented an anti-Catholic campaign. There have been calls for
a restriction on Catholic activity from the Russian parliament,
the Duma, but the presidential administration appears to be at
least mildly supportive of the Catholics' position.
DEIRDRE CLUNE, TD.
The building of a second incinerator by Indaver in Cork must be
stopped. The government’s failed waste management policy has
brought about the situation where there is demand for
incineration of domestic waste in Cork.
This is the wrong way to deal with the problem of waste disposal.
Fine Gael will introduce an effective waste management policy
which reduces, reuses and minimises waste.
We will not look on waste as a product that we must dispose of
but as a resource and maximise its reuse and recycling potential
Fine Gael is totally opposed to building this incinerator which
is a threat to the environment and opposed by the people of Cork.
Deirdre Clune T.D.
GET BACK IN THE GAME -
DRIVE WITHOUT PAIN!
Are you plagued by neck or low back stiffness
when you tentatively take those first few steps after a car
journey? Do you feel that in those short few miles you have
acquired the spine of an 80 year old? Has back pain, headaches,
shoulder ache and leg cramps become a familiar part of your daily
routine? – just an occupational hazard associated with those
thousands of miles covered in an average week’s work. Do you
have difficulty getting into and out of the car every morning for
the usual school run? Have you ever closely assessed the
ergonomic design of your car seat and considered the implication
of such poorly designed seats on your spine?
Since the first car was invented in the early 1800s we have
witnessed continuous improvements in safety, style, design and
power. As a race, we tend to pride ourselves in the type of car
that we chose to drive. Unfortunately, as the mechanical and
engineering design of our cars has evolved, we have left comfort
and correct ergonomic design back in the dark ages.
How often have we taken a car for a test drive and paid special
attention to the design of the seat? Here are some tips to help
you chose the correct car seat or to modify your seat and avoid
unnecessary pains and aches. Whether you are a long distance
driver or just out for a Sunday drive you can be sure of safe and
comfortable motoring.
BACK SUPPORT
Assess the back support offered by your car seat. Your buttocks
and lumbar spine should be well supported by the back of the seat
and you should sit well back into the chair. If your seat does
not offer sufficient back support it is essential that you either
buy a portable/transferable lumbar support or roll up a towel and
place it behind your lumbar spine (the small of your back). Once
this fits behind the lumbar spine, it provides support for the
spine in its natural “S” shape. This is a crucial area
of the spine to support and inadequate lumbar support will result
in a slouched posture whereby the shoulders are dragged forward
and the chin pokes outward. Such sustained postures can have
heavy implications especially for the muscles, ligaments and
joints in your cervical and lumbar spine. Driving with such poor
posture will not only re-awaken forgotten low back and neck ache
and contribute to overall stiffness but will also culminate in
poor concentration and a tendency to fatigue easily.
HEAD REST
Another essential safely feature designed to reduce whiplash
injuries of the cervical spine is the head restraint. The greater
the head-set distance, the greater the whiplash effect. It is
imperative that we adjust the head rest so that it is
approximately level with the drivers ear.
STEERING WHEEL HEIGHT
Some cars are equipped with adjustable steering wheel height.
Ensure that your wheel is correctly positioned for you, so that
your arms are not over-stretched and held in such an
uncomfortable sustained postural position. This will place extra
strain on your neck and shoulders and easily lead to fatigue.
Equally check that the wheel isn’t too low and close to your
body and that you are consequently sitting with your shoulders
and arms in a cramped position.
CHAIR HEIGHT & DISTANCE FROM PEDALS
Adequately designed car seats will have height adjustable chairs.
This is necessary so that optimum comfort can be achieved,
allowing the driver to obtain a good view of the road,
irrespective of driver height. If you are small, ensure that you
make use of this facility by jacking up your seat and preventing
overstrain of your neck as you try to peer over the steering
wheel. Be certain to slide your car seat backward if you are
tall, so that you can avoid leg cramp. Smaller drivers must be
careful that the seat is not positioned so that their feet are
too far from the pedals.
More on ‘Driving Without’ Pain Next Week
For further information, contact Dr. Nichola Dunne BSc.; D.C. at
the Douglas Village Chiropractic Clinic, phone: 021-4361559.
EUROPEAN COMPUTER DRIVING LICENCE
By George Thompson
When it comes to confusion there is none more than the E.C.D. L.
What’s so confusing you ask? This is a question I posed to
the guys at A-1 Sight & Sound in Penrose Wharf recently and
they explained that, they get many ‘customers’ coming
in having booked their course only to find that these unwary
customers have booked their driving licence (car) theory test
elsewhere and because this theory test is done by means of a
computer, hence the confusion. So here is a brief synopsis of
what the E.C.D.L. is all about………
The European Computer Driving Licence (ECDL) is a certificate
stating that the holder has passed seven tests. The fast paced
course covers the complete syllabus . The first test assesses the
candidate’s knowledge of the basic concepts of information
technology ; the other tests are practical tests – which
assess the candidate’s competence in using the computer. The
Computer Driving Licence is an internationally recognised
document. It can simplify employment procedures and assure an
employer that applicants for a position and employees in work are
competent in managing computers and using common applications.
The ECDL is based on a single agreed European Syllabus and
includes……..
Basic concepts of I.T. - Using the computer and managing files.
– Word Processing. – Spreadsheets. – Databases/Filing
Systems. – Presentations. – Information Network
Services.
This course can be availed of in various forms including the ECDL
Flexi -Course using the unique Sight & Sound system ensuring
that you get the benefit of a classroom style tutorial but at
your own pace.
A-1 Sight & Sound also conduct a host of other courses from
Secretarial to Web Design in a friendly and professional
atmosphere. For further information on these courses contact A-1
Sight & Sound, Penrose Wharf on 021-4551668.
EVAN DANDO - Live in the Half Moon
By Aoife Barry
Aah, the Lemonheads – purveyors of scarily poppy rock,
hummable tunes that stick in your head for weeks and remind you
of all that is good in the music business. But alas, the
Lemonheads have, as of their last album, 1996’s ‘Car,
Button, Cloth’, sadly departed ways, and it is now up to
their strapping young(ish) frontman, the rather charismatic, and
notoriously moody Evan Dando, to wave the flag and keep the
Lemonheads spirit alive. Monday’s gig in the Half Moon was
an affair that was perhaps strictly for the fans – and it
appeared from the amount of talking going on during the support
acts that those who weren’t fans and who had been dragged
there by an obsessed girlfriend/boyfriend were all too happy to
let this unique opportunity go right over their heads.
First on stage was the young Cork troubadour Niall Connolly, he
with the quintessentially Irish looks and dab hand at writing
tortured little tunes about nearly setting his parents’
house on fire after a night out, entitled ‘I Forgot To Thank
You’, not to mention his ode to teenage drinking (!), ‘Two
For A Fiver’. But much of his charm was lost, or rather,
drowned out, when half the audience decided to indulge in a spot
of banter with the leather-jacket-clad man next to them. But,
fortunately for the rest of us, Niall didn’t seem to be very
put off by the racket and was on fine form as usual, nicely
plugging his debut album, ‘Songs From a Corner’ (which
I myself would wholeheartedly recommend!) in between songs.
Next up was a certain Mr. Chris Brokaw, the American uber-talented
guitarist who would go on to accompany Evan on the electric
guitar for the rest of the night. His repertoire was a little too
instrumental for my liking, and it did seem that at the time he
didn’t quite have the charisma to pull off keeping the crowd
entertained during his 30-minute slot. A genuine talent, and an
accomplished and respected musician in his home country, he didn’t
seem to mind the lack of interest, and played with the confidence
and poise that only a self-assured musician with many years of
experience behind him can. After Chris came Eugene Kelly, the
Glaswegian musician who has somewhat of a cult following after
the late Kurt Cobain covered some of his band The Vaselines’
songs during Nirvana’s career. Playing such favourites as
‘Molly’s Lips’, ‘Jesus Doesn’t Want Me
For A Sunbeam’ and ‘Son of a Gun’, he succeeded on
being the only other person on the night, besides Mr.Dando
himself, in getting the crowd interested and singing along. This
was a rare appearance by Eugene, and one that did not go
unnoticed or unappreciated.
When Evan Dando finally took to the stage, he did so with a scowl
on his face and a glint of anger in his eye – something that
I feared did not bode well for the night. But happily, I was
proved wrong when he quickly composed himself and got into the
swing of things with as much vigour as was possible for a man who
many consider as the King of Cool. Slightly detached though he
was, he went down a storm, not least owing to the large amount of
Lemonheads songs he played during his set – he even
apologised for playing new tracks from his forthcoming album!
‘Into your Arms’, ‘Confetti’, ‘Big Gay
Heart’ and ‘Shame About Ray’ got us all singing
along, loudly and boisterously. Now we were starting to have fun!
Keeping the audience amused and entertained came easily to Dando,
not just owing to his huge reputation and large following here in
Ireland, but also because he clearly had the fans in mind when he
composed his setlist and decided on not using a full band on the
night, as well as keeping us up well past the midnight hour when
the alcohol coursing through everyone’s veins guaranteed a
very happy audience. A great gig, a genius musician and an
intimate venue. Who could ask for more?
BUTTERFLIES AT CORK ARTS THEATRE
“When I had a spare moment, I
used to look down over the road, over the frosted glass and
sometimes I’d see you....I used to mark it down in my
Observations Diary - the one I use for my Entomological studies...
I used to think of you like a butterfly....I captured you and
took you to a house in the country where I kept you and gradually
you came to know me and like me and then suddenly...”
Extracts from the riveting play, ‘The Collector’ by
David Parker, which is to be brought to life by Cabal Theatre
Company at the Cork Arts Theatre from Tues 7th May to Saturday 11th
May 2002.
Based on the novel of the same name by John Fowles, ‘The
Collector’ tells the story of the abduction and imprisonment
of young Art Student Miranda Grey. Her abductor Frederick Clegg,
a lottery winner of alien mindset does not trust the ordinary
sequence of events to bring him and Miranda together, so he takes
fate into his own hands by kidnapping her.
The play in it’s depiction of their forced relationship,
brings to light the stark differences in their characters. Clegg’s
attitude leads him to regard Miranda as a beautiful butterfly, as
an object from which he may derive pleasurable control. Clegg is
ridden with insecurities and is overbearingly class conscious and
has feelings of discomfort towards his new found wealth. He is
unable to find his own place in society and so preys on Miranda
for societal positioning allowing his ultimate destructive side
to deprive Miranda of her freedom and much more. In an atmosphere
of gradually increasing tension, the play descends into a
nightmare of horror, violence and madness.
Directed by James Horgan, James describes ‘The Collector’
as being a very chilling and pivotal drama. With over twenty
years of stage work, James has acted in some sixty productions
and he holds a Gold Medal in Acting from London Academy of Music
and Dramatic Art. Credits include roles in Hair, Godspell, Annie,
Oliver, Last of the Mohicans, The Servant, Big Maggie, The
Farndale Macbeth and Checkmate. He has receive numerous awards
for both acting and direction
Ciaran Birmingham who plays Clegg has just recently decided to
devote his life to Professional Acting on a full-time basis and
has since taken on a montage of roles. His last role was as the
Pharaoh in Joseph and his Amazing Techni-Coloured Coat and after
finishing as Clegg in ‘The Collector’, he goes straight
into rehearsals for the Opera House’s Production of ‘The
Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe’. His vast experience in
theatre gives him more than enough scope to become the dangerous
paradox that is Frederick Clegg.
Joy Buckle makes her stage debut as victim Miranda Grey, the
object of Clegg’s manic obsession. Joy brings an
unprecedented energy and enthusiasm to the stage. A student of
Montfort College of Performing Arts for many years, Joy holds a
Silver Medal with the London Academy of Dramatic Art.
‘The Collector’ as presented by Cabal Theatre Company
is representative of it’s main objective which is to create
challenging, yet accessible theatre with an emphasis on high
standards of performance and production. With that, it hopes to
provide a professional outlet for both established and emerging
talent.
For further information on ‘The Collector’, please
contact Hazel Morrison or James Horgan at 021 4503600
