1
The
SUN
The Unitarian Church in NSW
PO Box 355 Darlinghurst NSW 1300
15 Francis Street East Sydney
(near Museum Station)
Tel (02) 9360 2038
wwwsydneyunitarianchurchorg
Sydney Unitarian News Editor MR McPhee
December 2017January 2018
THE REFORMATION THAT FAILED This year and 2018 mark 450 years since the second phase of the French Wars of Religion (also known as the Huguenot Wars) a protracted struggle between Catholics and Protestants that lasted from 1562 to 1598 There was a total of eight periods of warfare separated by truces of varying duration and nearly every part of the country was affected While the wars were mainly between rival ruling houses other countries became in-volved at times and the fighting spilled across Francersquos borders It is estimated that three million people died from violence disease and famine during that time Religious and political tensions had been growing since Protestant ideas and publications appeared in France in 1519 (only two years after Martin Luther wrote his lsquo95 Thesesrsquo) The first French Protestant leader of any significance was Jean Calvin (see the JuneJuly 2014 issue) who converted in 1533 and developed his own distinctive theology King Francis I had tolerated the Protestants at first despite opposition from the Catholic Church but the actions of some extremists in 1534 prompted a crackdown in which some of the perpetrators were burned at the stake Calvin had no involvement in those events but he fled to Geneva and the church he established there eventually controlled the whole city Francis I was succeeded by his son Henry II whose Edict of Chacircteaubriant in 1551 severely curtailed the rights of Protestants to worship assemble or even discuss religious matters However the Calvinist influence from Geneva galvanised the movement to the point that in the 1560s over 1200 Protestant churches existed and even half of the French nobility had converted ndash most notably the Condeacute branch of the House of Bourbon When Henry II died in 1559 he left a political vacuum with his eldest son Francis II aged 15 and his widow Catherine dersquo Medici (pictured at left) as regent The Catholic Guise branch of the House of Lorraine sought to dominate the new king who died in 1560 and his brother Charles IX but Catherine convened a national council of clergy to give the Protestants a fair hearing Known as the Colloquy of Poissy after its location near Paris this led to the Edict of Saint-Germain in 1562 which permitted Protestants to worship publicly outside of cities and towns However only two months later the Duke of Guisersquos retainers attacked a Calvinist service at Wassy-sur-Blaise in the northeast massacring the worshippers and most of the townrsquos inhabitants The forces of Louis Prince of Condeacute (pictured
at centre) and his allies then seized control of Orleacuteans Tours Lyon and other strategic towns Battles and sieges followed and English troops occupied the port of Le Havre until Catherine mediated a truce in 1563
2
This lsquoArmed Peacersquo held until 1567 when the Huguenots became concerned that the Catholics were mobilis-ing this time with the support of Spain They attempted to capture Charles IX and his family at the Chacircteau de Montceaux near Paris ostensibly to protect them from an Italian plot but this was a failure A number of cities then declared themselves for the Protestant cause and a massacre of Catholics took place at Nicircmes in the south This led to the second phase of the wars and to the Battle of Saint-Denis near Paris in which 3500 Huguenot troops held off a force of 16000 Royalists before retreating to their eastern stronghold Another truce the Peace of Longjumeau was negotiated in 1568 but it lasted only a few months The third phase was a truly international affair but this time the Catholics started it Prince William of Orange brought an army of Dutch Protestants into France but it was under-resourced and the French government paid him to withdraw With financial help from England the Huguenots gathered a formidable army which includ-ed German mercenaries and the Catholics were reinforced by troops from Spain and Italy After some gains in the southwest the Prince of Condeacute was captured in the Battle of Jarmac in 1569 and subsequently killed The Catholic forces got the upper hand in two later battles but then the Huguenots launched a massive campaign up the Rhone Valley into the heart of the country Another truce the Peace of Saint-Germain-en-Laye was negoti-ated in 1570 which made concessions to the Protestants For a while it looked like the peace would hold ndash Charles IX treated the Huguenot leaders favourably to the point of marrying his sister Marguerite to the Protestant Prince Henry of Navarre (pictured at right) in 1572 However this only antagonised the Guise faction and they murdered the Huguenot military leader Admiral Gaspard de Coligny when he came to Paris for the wedding That precipitated the Saint Bartholomewrsquos Day Massacre on 24 August in which Catholic mobs killed an estimate 2000 Protestant civilians and a series of riots in a dozen other cities followed as the news spread The total death toll was at least 10000 Forces led by Henry Duke of Anjou (Charlesrsquo younger brother) then besieged three Huguenot cities only one of which was captured The fighting ceased in 1573 when Henry was elected King of Poland but the subse-quent Edict of Boulogne banned Protestant worship almost entirely In his absence the Huguenot leaders found Francis Duke of Alenccedilon (Charlesrsquo youngest brother) sympathetic to their cause In 1574 they attempted to free Henry of Navarre and the new Prince of Condeacute who had been held at the royal court since the formerrsquos wedding That failed but uprisings elsewhere were more successful precipitating another phase of the wars
Charles IX died in 1574 and his brother returned from Poland to become King Henry III Faced with a deteri-
orating situation in the south the defection of his brother Henry of Navarrersquos escape and an invasion from the Palatinate in Germany he was obliged to negotiate the Edict of Beaulieu in 1576 That gave the Hugue-
nots freedom of worship everywhere except in Paris and some of their leaders received land and titles Promising as this was Henry Duke of Guise and five dukes related to him formed the Catholic League in
fierce opposition to it Henry III capitulated to them and less equitable terms were enacted in 1577
(Continued on p 12)
SERVICE DIARY
Meetings every Sunday from 1030 ndash 1130 am
(followed by coffee tea and food)
These will be video presentations
[Please check the church website (wwwsydneyunitarianchurchorg) for updates The program for March will
be available from the beginning of February]
Date Presenter Topic
3rd December Peter Crawford Jonathon Swift
10th December Kelvin Auld Saving the Northern Beaches (Part 2)
17th December Peter Crawford Christmas in a Secular Age
NO SERVICES FOR SIX WEEKS
4th February Peter Crawford Perverse Reason Erewhon
11th February Michael Spicer Secrets of Kangaroo Island
18th February Peter Crawford The New Left
25th February Mike McPhee The Edict of Torda
3
Naam indha deepathai yetrumbodhu naam
anbin ikeeyathodu enaikappatulladhai
unarvomnam manam udal aanmaavilirundhu
irul agandrupovadhaga Indha thozhugaiyil
panguperum naam nammai undaakiyavar
namakku koduthhulla anbaiyum belanaiyum
ninaivukooruvomaaga Namakullaana manidha-
thanmai namakku puthiya nambikkaiyai
kodukattum unmaiyudanum muzhu sindhaiyu-
danum Devanai thozhuddhukollum naam
anbaiyum nanmaigalaiyum pirarukku kodukum-
padi anbinaal kattappaduvomaaga
As we light the Chalice an expression of
joining ourselves in the warmth of our
community and fellowship in oneness to
dispel the darkness from our mind and body
and soul We rejuvenate and rekindle the
assurance of Godrsquos love and the strengthening
of ourselves with Divine grace and participate
in this hour of worship and adoration
humbling our humanness and bringing New
Hope along with the illuminating Chalice
Submitted by the Unitarian Christian Church of Chennai Tamil and English words written by its minister Rev Harrison Kingsley
Minsan Isang Sandali
Kung minsan may kaseguruhan kung minsan may
pagtataka kung minsan may pagbabadya kung
minsan may pagkabigo kung minsan may simula
kung minsan may katapusan kung minsan may
pahinga at walang kailangang gawin ngunit tayorsquoy
laging magiging bahagi ng pag-inog ng mundo sa
ating pagkabuhay man o pagkamatay maging alik-
abok man tayo na lumulutang sa tubig o maging
hininga o maging abong nasa hangin matapos kain-
in ng apoy Ang mahalaga ay ang minutong ito ang
sandaling itong magkakasama kung saan tayo ay
mamamalagi na mistulang walang hanggan
Sometimes A Moment
Sometimes there is certainty sometimes wonder
sometimes somethingrsquos looming and sometimes
there is loss
Sometimes there is a start sometimes an end
sometimes there is rest and nothing needs doing
But we will always be part of the world going
around even in life or death should we be dust
floating on the water or breath or ash in the wind
after itrsquos been eaten by flames What is important
is this minute this moment together where we
shall remain as if it wouldnrsquot end Submitted by the Unitarian Universalist Church of the Philippines English and Tagalog words written by Rev Tet Gallarado minister of the Bicutan UU Congregation in Manila [These are the Chalice Lightings from the International Council of Unitarians and Universalists for the months of October and November] The Unitarian Christian Church of Chennai (Madras) was founded in 1813 by William Roberts (1768ndash1838)
a Tamil whose original name was Thiruvengatam As a teenager he was recruited to work on a British East
India Company ship only to find that the lsquoagentrsquo had sold him as a slave Freed in London three years later he
became a servant in the captainrsquos household where he learned to read in English and was introduced to
Christianity In 1789 he was baptised as an Anglican and took an English name
Roberts always had trouble with the doctrine of the Trinity however which was resolved when he discovered
Unitarianism in 1793 After studying the works of Joseph Priestley and Theophilus Lindsey he returned to
Madras and began instructing others about Unitarianism Meetings of ten families commenced before a small
chapel was built in 1813 using Tamil liturgy modelled on Lindseyrsquos Reformed Prayer Book Roberts wrote to
the London Unitarian Society asking for books and other help and that body paid for the printing of his
Tamil-language material
The chapel was used by the congregation for almost 200 years before it was replaced by a new building on
the same site 2009 Roberts died in 1838 and was succeeded by his son William jr whose ministry lasted
until 1885 Later ministers were Revs Moses Benjamin N A Samuel and Merlin Gabriel whose son Rev
Harrison Kingsley Gabriel has led the church since 1995 The UCCC is a member of the Indian Council of
Unitarian Churches along with the Khasi Hills Unitarians in the northeast of the country
4
THE MEIJI RESTORATION
By Peter Crawford
I can state unequivocally that my favourite country is Japan Its crime-rate is so low that the police have to
invent crime and other problems to keep themselves busy The cities and towns avoid the preposterous shoe-
box dystopia high-rise that seems to afflict other nationsrsquo cities Of course precaution against earthquakes is
a major reason for keeping the cities towns and villages reasonably low-rise something like a compact
version our workerrsquos towns in the Hunter Valley The countryside is an artists dream A place like Hokkaido
is like a mini-Canada ndash a snowbound paradise with high hills rushing streams and big black bears and
monkeys haunting the pristine forests Meanwhile Okinawa is a mini-Hawaii with coral coasts a subtropical
climate palm trees and local bananas as sweet as honey
An historic town like Kamakura the centre of a medieval Buddhist empire and now a tourist destination
may seem like a town en fecircte I once wandered to the railway station there one chilly afternoon and there
were rows of lanterns everywhere ndash reds golds and enchanting colours ndash and little stalls where you could
purchase a range of small foods I met two Mormon missionaries there that evening who told me they had
worked the area for two years but had not recruited so much as one Japanese ldquoEveryone is politerdquo they told
me ldquobut they all simply say we are Buddhistrdquo
Meanwhile around cities like Osaka there are mighty medieval castles terrifying and forbidding places that
now provide family weekend outings It was not always so ndash they resonate with a fierce Shogunate tradition
of bloodshed and mayhem and local power in times gone by And for the education of the people they pre-
sent all the fine steel and armaments those times This paraphernalia of medieval re-enactment and warfare
impresses the visitor as much as its terrifying European equivalents
The coastal and fertile areas are massively populated and the great industrial spine of Nippon Incorporated
probably festoons Honshu for a thousand kilometres or more The so-called rural areas seem as densely
populated as our quarter-acre block suburbs Some rural areas with their miniature rice farms seemed to me
as restricted as a suburb like Redfern in Sydney Yet once you get away to the eighty percent of Japan that is
not Nippon Incorporated you come to the aesthetic of the Honshu countryside where of course the ultimate
showpiece is Mt Fuji
Below Fuji is a lake where you can stay at beguiling inns near a spacious and very beautiful lake To the fit
walker who speaks Japanese or who can travel with a Japanese-speaking companion the hiking and touring
in the hills and to the inns for a warm reception is a great experience to be had The Japanese are scrupulous-
ly clean people When first intruded upon in the 16th Century by Portuguese and Dutch traders they were
utterly appalled by the unwashed stinking adventurers who had dared enter their sacred land At that time
Europeans literally didnt wash while Japanese maintained a ritual cleanliness every day
Now for those unaware of the fact Christianity is a subversive religion that teaches a militant ethic of
universalism and church control The Japanese became aware of the fact that Catholics were as loyal to the
Pope as they were to the Shogun (the power before the revival of imperial power in the 19th Century) Their
own Shinto religion revered national heroes nature and the emperor The Japanese elites soon had no time
for the Western religion ndash Buddhism was contemplative and deeply embedded and thus secure In the early
17th Century the feudal lords drove the Christians out with great cruelty often employing crucifixion as a
means of eliminating and terrorising Catholics The Calvinist Dutch traders were allowed to keep trading in
small outposts but the Catholic Portuguese were not
In 1854 the strident new nation of the United States decided to challenge Japanrsquos 250-year isolation
President Millard Fillmore sent Commodore Perry to insist that Japan open its ports to international trade
Perryrsquos sailors marched to a local commander whom they believed (quite wrongly) held the real power The
landed sailors marched in full colours of red white and blue with bands playing lsquoWhen Johnny Comes
Marching Home They were stunned by the fairy tale beauty of the villages and the petite civilised qualities
of everything around The locals were entranced by the colourful new arrivals The sailors were courteously
received and conned but not at first allowed to really understand what was going on Commodore Perry told
his beguiling hosts that he would give them a year or two to think about opening up or face the full weight
of American imperial aggression On his return the Japanese came to some compromise
5
Shortly after in 1860 America became involved in its own civil war over slavery and the preservation of the
Union Meanwhile between 1855 and 1868 a whole new power structure emerged in Japan with the old
Tokugawa Shogunate displaced and an empowered imperial Meiji restoration The process of proceeding
from medieval localisms to a modern centralised state took all of fourteen years The process was not easy
Local revolts were common and assassinations and a civil war of sorts were all part of the picture as Japan
rose from its feudal slumbers But in 1868 the young Meiji then aged fourteen was placed on the newly em-
powered Chrysanthemum Throne and performed as a sober and resolute ruler until his death aged 67 in
1911 He was capably steered and advised by the bureaucratic warriors who supervised his ascension
An underlying theme of the new Meiji rulers was lsquofokuku kyōheirsquo (rich nation strong military) The first aim
of the wily and highly prescient leaders of the new Japan was to avoid the fate of the rest of the world which
was rapidly falling under Western domination The Japanese rulers witnessed the fall of Vietnam to France
the conquest of India and the repeated humiliation of China by British French and Russian intrusions
Although it hurt somewhat they sidestepped an anti-Western narrative lsquoRepel the barbariansrsquo was replaced
by lsquoKnowledge shall be sought throughout the world to invigorate the foundations of imperial rulersquo
As Arnold Toynbee argues societies confronted by enemies with more powerful weapons and technology
must either adapt or perish The Japanese quickly decided to adapt As a proud and superior people with a
rational and committed set of bureaucrats at the top this was possible in Japan more than elsewhere Military
threats from within were also put down The samurai lost their feudal rights and were pensioned off and sent
to Hokkaido Local power elites had their powers removed The readers of Japanese history of the period are
amazed at the systematic progress of Japan from feudalism to some sort of parliamentary government ndash
parliamentary but by no means democratic That did not come until after World War II
The Meiji hired hundreds of Western advisers with expertise in such fields as education mining banking
law military affairs and transportation to remodel Japans institutions Conversely thousands of Japanese
students were sent to universities in the West even as a system of Imperial Universities was established in
the major cities in Japan A Constitution promulgated in 1889 established an elected House of Represent-
atives and an appointed House of Peers However only 2 of the population were eligible to vote any bills
passed by the lower house had to be approved by the upper house and the Cabinet was directly responsible
to the Emperor
The projects to build up the new economic system were costly Powerful feudal families were chosen to
fulfill this destiny ndash the present-day Mitsui and Mitsubishi conglomerates among others had their origins in
Japanese fiefdoms and merchant houses They took over production and manufacturing heavily favoured by
government subsidies and official protectionism Others who supported the Meiji faction in their rise to
power found themselves richly rewarded with government largesse and favours
Despite all the vicissitudes of altered business circumstances and war they were mighty then and remain
mighty today The Japanese government will not allow them to fall despite any setbacks This of course
gives the lie to modern free market advocates who claim as did our PM Tony Abbot lsquono country ever
became great through subsidiesrsquo Well what about Japan
Of course there was a lot more than subsidies that made Japan great A land tax instituted in 1873 was the
main source of government revenue and it fell heavily on the peasants At times the price of rice dropped
and the peasants suffered However the people worked long and hard with all the vitality of an East Asian
people ndash diligent dutiful traditional and loyal to emperor and native land No culture of arrogance religious
triumphalism and foreign exploitation rules the hearts and minds of the Japanese people as it does for
example throughout the Middle East in countries like Saudi Arabia No culture of immigration like that of
the US or Australia was tolerated nor is it tolerated today Multiculturalism has absolutely no place in the
Japanese paradigm
What the Japanese cannot do themselves they generally wonrsquot do They will import resources from all over
the world but they will do the value-added processes themselves They were like this in the early years of the
Meiji Restoration and they are like this today Generally as Japan rose in the late 19th Century the people
worked and often suffered in silence Women of course were particularly exploited Their conditions in the
textile factories could scarcely have been better than those in England at the same time Yet just as in
England the Industrial Revolution started around textiles and progressed to shipbuilding and heavy industries
In an amazingly short time Japan became the only major exporter of manufactured goods in Asia
6
Women however could work as factory fodder farm hands or if they were lucky enter the lowly-paid yet
congenial occupation of primary teaching One exception for women however was in the area of medicine
which they entered in force well before they did in the United States By the 1870s education was made
compulsory for all Japanese children although four years was seen as sufficient and the families of school-
age children were heavily taxed to pay for it The adage lsquono community with an illiterate family nor a
family with an illiterate personrsquo became a guiding principle Suddenly an illiterate people became literate
and educated in all areas Meanwhile the numbers of Japanese increased dramatically from 30 million at the
time of the Meiji Restoration to about 70 million by the time of his death in 1911
Mountainous Japan had never had a road system worthy of the name relying largely on marine transport for
both goods and passengers In conjunction with the steam-powered spinning mills for silk and cotton rail-
ways were also built ndash but in its typical fashion the government insisted that the engines and rolling stock
were built in Japan and that locals were trained by the Western contractors to build and operate them Proper
sealed roads were also built at a similarly impressive rate as the railways were
As the 19th Century came to an end Japanese industry became diversified and sophisticated In the 1870s
when the Japanese decided upon building a navy they relied on two ships imported from Europe in order to
begin By the 1905 they had made their own sophisticated set of ships which under the British-trained and
influenced Admiral Toga were able to sink the pride of the Russian fleet in one swift twenty-four hour battle
in the Strait of Tsushima In the same Russo-Japanese War tens of thousands of troops were able to storm
the great Russian fortress of Port Arthur in Manchuria and drive a sizeable Russian army back into Siberia
In this terrible battle Japan committed 357000 troops and lost 57000 dead The Russians lost 27000
retreating in disarray and disillusion
The Japanese had employed the best of modern armaments copied from American and European weaponry
but largely made by themselves Not bad for a people who just fifty years earlier had been fighting clan
battles with muskets and bows and arrows shielded only by medieval chainmail After this war Japan
effectively gained control over Manchuria Korea the Kurile Islands and the southern half of the large island
of Sakhalin north of Hokkaido The Russians were spared a much worse humiliation when the US President
Theodore Roosevelt mediated a peace treaty in Portsmouth New Hampshire in which Japan dropped its
demand for an indemnity (Roosevelt won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1906 for that achievement)
Ten years before their victories over Russia the Japanese had used their new weapons and European military
practice to defeat China in the First Sino-Japanese War of 1895 This gave them possession of Taiwan
which they ruled for the next 50 years in a liberal and benign fashion with an amazing respect for the indi-
genous peoples of the island The Chinese had not treated them at all well since the island was recovered
from the Dutch in the 18th Century The Japanese even established an Imperial University in Taipei
Ironically Japanrsquos very success in Taiwan was a major cause of its long-term imperial downfall If Taiwan
could be ruled so easily why not China itself After all had not the still extant non-Chinese Manchu dynasty
ruled China comparatively peacefully for a period of 250 years There were only ten million Manchu ruling
forty times as many Chinese Why couldnt the Japanese numbering 60 million enjoy the same imperial
experience The Japanese began to dream big imperial dreams and for this they were to suffer very greatly as
a people fifty years later
So Japan aspired to be a mighty power and it became one The Japanese people were dragged unwillingly
onto the world stage when they had been happy to live in a stable homogenous and very beautiful society
They were forced by American capitalism to join the modern world and a terrible beauty was born
[This concludes Peterrsquos three-part series on Japan based on his trip there in January The earlier parts were
printed in the FebruaryMarch and JuneJuly issues which are archived on the church website
Emperor Meiji whose reign name was Mutsuhito was succeeded by his son Yosihito (1912ndash26) followed
by the latterrsquos son Hirohito (1926ndash89) It is claimed that the Emperors were all members of a single dynasty
that goes back to 660 BCE which makes it the longest-standing ruling family in the world That would still
be true if the first 14 Emperors who are considered legendary are excluded from the total of 125 rulers
Just for the record the Tokugawa Shoganate (1603ndash1868) was a period during which members of that family
acted as military dictators who ostensibly protected the various Emperors]
7
JAPANESE LANDMARKS
Senso-ji Temple Tokyo
Peace Bell Hiroshima
Nakanoshima Park Osaka
Great Buddha Kamakura
Temple City Nara
Botanical Garden Kyoto
[Nara was the capital of Japan in 710ndash794 after which the imperial court moved to nearby Kyoto until 1868
Tokyo (formerly called Edo) was the headquarters of the Tokugawas while Kamakura to the south was the
seat of an earlier Shogunate that ended in 1333 All of these cities are on the main island of Honshu]
8
YOU WENT THE WRONG WAY OLD KING LOUIE
Louis the Sixteenth was the King of France in 1789
He was worse than Louis the Fifteenth
He was worse than Louis the Fourteenth
He was worse than Louis the Thirteenth
He was the worst since Louis the First
King Louis was living like a king but the people were living rotten
So the people they started an uprising which they called the French Revolution
And of course you remember their battle cry which will never be forgotten
You went the wrong way Old King
Louie
You made the population cry
rsquoCause all you did was sit and pet
With Marie Antoinette
In your place at Versailles
And now the countryrsquos gone kablooie
So we are giving you the air
That oughta teach you not to
Spend all your time fooling rsquoround
At the Folies Bergegravere
If you had been a nicer king
We wouldnt do a thing
But you were bad you must admit
Wersquore gonna take you and the Queen
Down to the guillotine
And shorten you a little bit
You came the wrong way Old King
Louie
And now you ainrsquot got far to go
Too bad you wonrsquot be here to see
That great big Eiffel Tower
Or Brigitte Bardot
To you King Louie we say fooey
You disappointed all of France
But then what else could we expect
From a king in silk stockings
And pink satin pants
You filled your stomach with chop suey
And also crecircpe suzettes and steak
And when they told your wife Marie
That nobody had bread she said
ldquoLet rsquoem eat cakerdquo
Wersquore gonna take you and the Queen
Down to the guillotine
Itrsquos somewhere in the heart of town
And when that fellarsquos through
With what hersquos gonna do
Yoursquoll have no place to hang your
crown
You came the wrong way Old King
Louie
Now we must put you on the shelf
Thatrsquos why the people are revolting
rsquocause Louie
Yoursquore pretty revolting yourself
Allan Sherman (1963)
Understandably nothing funny was ever written about the French Wars of Religion so this will have to do
Allan Sherman (1924ndash73) was a famous Jewish-American writer of comic parodies based on existing songs
and even pieces of classical music This song begins with a riff of lsquoLa Marseillesrsquo but the verses are based on
lsquoYou Came a Long Way from St Louisrsquo composed in 1948 by Bob Russell and John Benson Brooks It was
recorded in Shermanrsquos third album My Son the Nut released in 1963
Born Allan Copelon in Chicago Sherman took his motherrsquos maiden name after his parents divorced He
attended the University of Illinois and wrote a humour column for the student newspaper He became a tele-
vision writer and producer of game shows in the 1950s before he turned his hobby of writing parodies to better
use in the 1960s His first album My Son the Folksinger came out in 1962 followed by My Son the
Celebrity but his best-known song was lsquoHello Muddah Hello Faddahrsquo released as a single in 1963
Sydney Keith lsquoBobrsquo Russell (1914ndash70) was a songwriter chiefly a lyricist who started with vaudeville songs
and later wrote musical scores for movies He co-wrote lsquoHe Ainrsquot Heavy Hersquos My Brotherrsquo with Bobby Scott
in 1960 John Benson Brooks (1917ndash99) was a pianist arranger and composer who worked with a number of
jazz and blues songwriters amongst others over his lengthy career
As always these songs need to be heard in order to be fully appreciated ndash just search wwwyoutubecom
9
I HEARD THE BELLS ON CHRISTMAS DAY
I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old familiar carols play
and wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth good-will to men
And thought how as the day had come
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along
The unbroken song
Of peace on earth good-will to men
Till ringing singing on its way
The world revolved from night to day
A voice a chime
A chant sublime
Of peace on earth good-will to men
Then from each black accursed mouth
The cannon thundered in the South
And with the sound
The carols drowned
Of peace on earth good-will to men
It was as if an earthquake rent
The hearth-stones of a continent
And made forlorn
The households born
Of peace on earth good-will to men
And in despair I bowed my head
ldquoThere is no peace on earthrdquo I said
ldquoFor hate is strong
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth good-will to menrdquo
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep
ldquoGod is not dead nor doth He sleep
The Wrong shall fail
The Right prevail
With peace on earth good-will to menrdquo
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1863)
This poem was written on Christmas Day 1863 at the height of the American Civil War Longfellowrsquos son
Charles had enlisted in the Unionist army without his fatherrsquos permission and was severely wounded in battle
in Virginia shortly before that time He eventually recovered but he did not return to military service
For reasons that are unclear the poem was first published in 1865 in a magazine called Our Young Folks It was
first set to music by the English organist John Baptiste Calkin in 1872 and that version has been recorded by
singers as various as Johnny Cash and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir (The verses relating to the Civil War are
usually left out however)
As everyone hopefully knows Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807ndash1882) was a Unitarian born into a family
of left-wing Congregationalists William Ellery Channing was a friend of the family having attend Harvard
with Longfellowrsquos father and he met Ralph Waldo Emerson in later life though his independent theology did
not fully embrace Transcendentalism (See the feature article in the AprilMay 2009 for the full story)
10
ALEXANDER (Part 4)
By Patrick Bernard
In 1966 the first post-scriptum to Alexanderrsquos story was written in a most unexpected place and circum-stances By the end of June of that year Mauricersquos existence had changed dramatically taking a new but not all that unpredictable course Due to a succession of events that may be told in detail later on he had hurled himself into a nomadic lifestyle trekking across Lapland and then having sailed leisurely from lake to lake on an old-fashioned steamer from the north to the south of Finland he ended up in Helsinki Possessed with the freewheeling spirit of those times he then decided without a second thought to hitchhike from the lsquoLand of the Midnight Sunrsquo with reindeer antlers precariously tied to his backpack all the way across Eastern Europe to Constantinople the sublime gate to the Orient Mildly disappointed when he arrived there he found Istanbul instead of Constantinople ndash but the splendour of Byzantium lingered on as the fragrance of mimosa does long after its bloom has faded Stunned and unsure as to whether he was in a dream or in Heaven he sat for hours admiring the Hagia Sophia1 the Byzantine Basilica completed in 537AD which for many centuries had proudly defied gravity with its dome reputedly the largest in the world The Ottomans would then meticulously and methodically vandalise the building a millennium later soon after they had conquered Constantinople on 29 May 1453 To add insult to injury this great historical centre of Christianity was then literally nailed to the ground with four minarets
Cross-section drawing of the Hagia Sophia in 537AD
The Hagia Sophia today
1 Hagia Sophia from the Greek Holy Wisdom was a Greek Orthodox Christian patriarchal basilica in Constantinople (now Istanbul)
11
While admiring this desecrated shrine Maurice met and befriended a young French poet called Philippe
who might have been appropriately dressed for an elegant cocktail party in Northern Europe but not for the
sweltering heat the stench and the dust of Istanbul He was one of those individuals who stubbornly adhere
to specific sartorial standards no matter how incongruous or uncomfortable like those sweaty European ex-
patriate civil servants one used to encounter in various colonial outposts of the tropics Maurice admired
Philippersquos defiant attire but he also found it slightly ridiculous and teased him about it for the next few days
Philippe did not mind as he was clearly accustomed to such jibes and he enjoyed play-acting the fop to a
receptive audience
The world being indeed a very small place this overdressed Alsatian bard was also the scion of a prominent
family of medical practitioners in his hometown of Strasbourg Having similar interests and sensitivities this
pair of drifters became travelling companions for a while although like most misfits they generally preferred
to be alone Philippe was short chubby and eloquent while Maurice was tall skinny and laconic They were a
mismatch but their obvious differences didnrsquot seem to matter to them This odd duo wandered the backstreets
and the bazaars of Istanbul visited the inevitable tourist sites absorbed the sounds and fragrances of the Orient
and ended up in a seedy bar drinking too much Raqi2 while philosophising on the collapse of Byzantium
In truth there were no alternative affordable locations for their libations as all bars in Istanbul appeared
seedy if not sleazy which made these shady dives all the more appealing to two middle class Western
adolescents seeking the frisson of exotic squalor Indeed no serious traveller wants to get sloshed in lsquonice
barsrsquo frequented by lsquonice peoplersquo and besides as we all know lsquonice peoplersquo have a tendency to be much
nastier than they appear For the audacious bourgeois adventurer seediness and sleaze are essential pre-
requisites of all urban explorations
It was in such a drinking hole more reminiscent of an odorous public toilet than a comfortable pub that one
evening in one of those intoxicated moments of youthful recklessness that cements long-lasting friendships
that Maurice and Philippe decided to emulate Lord Byron and swim across the Bosphorus Strait under the
cover of darkness to avoid police detection and certain arrest A couple of young German tourists called
Ursula and Thomas whom they had met in the flea-infested hotel near the Grand Bazaar where they all
stayed at offered to drive them in their Volkswagen minibus to their launching point take care of all their
belongings and wait for them at an agreed spot on the other side of the Bosphorus Strait the Asian side near
the Beylerbeyi Sarayi (Beylerbeyi Palace)
Maurice who had decided to trust them convinced a more circumspect Philippe that even if all their belong-
ings disappeared they could always go to the French Consulate and ask for assistance To use an expression
in vogue at the time one could say that for a generation that sincerely wanted to make the world a better
place ldquoit wouldnrsquot have been cool to rip each other offrdquo although later on many of those well-intended lsquoBaby
Boomersrsquo would get over their romantic idealism and returning to the fold they would prove to be as rapa-
cious as their forefathers To minimise risks and efforts they chose the narrowest section of the strait and
began their journey in front of the Ccedilirağan Surayi (Ccedilirağan Palace) which had been in ruins since 1909 but
would later be restored and converted into yet another ostentatious luxury hotel sometime around 1991
The Ccedilırağan Palace seen from the Bosphorus Strait
2 An alcoholic spirit drink distilled from grain grapes plums and flavoured with aniseed
12
This short aquatic trip from Europe to Asia was perilous if not downright stupid but it was also an adven-
ture neither would ever forget The water on the edge of the Bosphorus was a tepid odorous brew of
effluents and diesel fuel At first our swimmers had to paddle through floating islands of detritus and dead
creatures in various stages of decomposition but soon due to the salubrious effect of water currents things
got more pleasant Away from the shoreline the boys were at last able to pause to admire the stars and the
city lights flickering and sparkling over the dark flapping waves A mighty cruise ship went by with her pro-
pellers stomping and chopping the waters gliding by serenely with utter confidence in her great power
For a few long minutes Maurice and Philippe thought they were going to be drawn into a fatal whirlpool and
minced by this metallic behemoth but on this occasion fate if there is such a thing decided to spare them
Fishermen who spotted them in the glow of their kerosene lamps at first asked if they required some help
but as the boys kept swimming trying to explain that they were fine these Good Samaritans sailed on
joking among themselves puzzled and amused by the absurdity of these wayward Westerners whom they
ended up cursing for disturbing the fish
Being somewhat socially inept Maurice had since early childhood disliked all team sports As a matter of
fact he had disliked all sports in general considering such physical endeavours as complete wastes of time
either as a participant or particularly as a spectator In any case he considered competition to be one of the
most subversive of all human activities This being said he had periodically enjoyed some individual sports
such as tennis or running for any distance over a thousand metres As long as he was on his own being only
responsible to and for himself he found such exercise tolerable if not pleasurable He had for many years en-
joyed swimming long distances and had even hoped that one day he would swim across the English Channel
but that project would never eventuate
Although he had navigated in a sea of uncertainty for most of his young life and was chronically griped by
self-doubt he often wondered on the futility of all his endeavours but on that warm summer night of 1966
swimming between Europe and Asia across that fabled body of water which links the Mediterranean and the
Sea of Marmara to the Black Sea leading to his beloved Russia he had never felt more alive In any case this
was a feat worthy of Uncle Alexander to whom he always liked to compare himself Swimming calmly and
rambling on in one of his usual silent soliloquies he was brought back to more practical considerations by
Philippe who seemed to be paddling away with some difficulty bordering on panic
Maurice lightheartedly convinced his new friend that this was not a race ndash rather they had all the time in the
world to enjoy this wonderful night and he should therefore save his energy if he wanted to make it to the
other side Philippe asked ldquoDonrsquot you have any fearsrdquo Maurice answered between breaststrokes ldquoOf course
I dohellipJust like everyone elsehellipBut if I listened to all my fears I would never do anythingrdquo ldquoToo truerdquo
responded Philippe who was easily convinced by this line of thought
Having both conquered their fears their youthful enthusiasm and health triumphed and at three-thirty in the
morning they landed in Asia near the Beylerbeyi Palace which had been the last place of captivity of the de-
posed Sultan Abdulhamid II from 1912 until his death there in 1918 Unfortunately since 1973 this elegant
historical building has been dwarfed by the Bosphorus Bridge
The Beylerbeyi Sarayi (Beylerbeyi Palace) and the 1973 Bosphorus Bridge linking Europe to Asia
13
Punctual and dependable Ursula and Thomas were already on location walking up and down the embank-
ment genuinely concerned for these two foolhardy Frenchmen although they hardly knew them After all this
was the 1960s when trusting and caring for even complete strangers were highly fashionable sentiments But in
that balmy summer night of 1966 having anxiously feared for the worst Ursula and Thomas were greatly
relieved when the boys emerged from the black waters exhausted but ecstatic For anyone else this could be
considered to have been an insignificant event but for Maurice and Philippe it would remain one of those rare
defining moments in their lives It is the sum of such experiences not the accumulation of lsquostuffrsquo no matter
how splendid that lsquostuffrsquo might be which gives meaning if not purpose to our existence
The four new friends then followed the happy ending with jubilant celebrations in the overgrown gardens
surrounding the Beylerbeyi Palace As Maurice and Philippe dried up they sat all there surrounded by flat-
tened plastic bottles broken glass cigarette butts weeds and thorny bushes but for them on that particular
night this was the Garden of Eden They talked endlessly and drank too much cheap wine waiting for the sun
to arise from beyond the Far East The uninhibited impulse to reveal the secrets of our souls is one of the most
precious treasures of youth With age too many of us deteriorate into poor listeners and crushing mono-
logists Without even noticing it we become cynical guarded and judgmental with a dwindling ability to
enjoy the company of others How much more intoxicating it is to share dreams rather than memories Half a
century later Maurice often wonders ldquoWhere are they all now these ephemeral merry companions who ap-
peared and disappeared from my firmament like shooting starsrdquo
On the edge of a new continent which might as well have been a new planet Maurice and Philippe spent the
next couple of days retelling each other the saga of their swim across the Bosphorus Strait in constantly
evolving details every new version of their story slightly more embellished and heroic than the previous one
which in Philippersquos case truly was lsquopoetic licensersquo Eventually they continued their journey to the excava-
tion site of the Homeric city of Troy which had lain buried for 2500 years During this pilgrimage Philippe
took great pleasure in reading aloud relevant passages of The Iliad but he seemed profoundly fatigued and
felt that it was time for him to go home He farewelled Maurice with an open invitation to visit him in Stras-
bourg whenever he wished and they parted ways on the most amicable terms
Istanbul in 1966
Istanbul now 3
3 In 1966 none of the high-rise buildings that appear in this photo existed and the two suspension bridges that cross the
Bosphorus had not yet been constructed either The Hagia Sophia appears in both photos
14
Freer than he would ever be again Maurice then ventured further and deeper into the Middle East which was a much safer and more welcoming region in those days Like so many adventurers poets and mystics before or since he willingly lost himself in that part of the world in order to lsquofind himselfrsquo Whether he did so or not is irrelevant - only the quest mattered The Middle East was an unparalleled feast for the senses The tumultuous multitudes the noise the music the fragrant foods the apparent vitality and even the still dormant hostility were all mesmerising charms he could not resist He dived into it and disappeared for the next several months as a submarine does beneath the waves much to his parentsrsquo chagrin To follow onersquos whims to live life to the fullest often demands a monstrous indifference to the suffering of those close to us He disappeared simply because one could easily do so in those blessed days before personal computers the internet mobile phones digital cameras and all that electronic gadgetry which has so impoverished our lives and withered our ability to exist in complete symbiosis with the world around us in complete anonymity if we so wish To paraphrase Milan Kundera lsquolife is now always elsewherersquo It is neither Dariusrsquo ghost nor the splendours of Persepolis nor the ruins of Babylon that Maurice remembers most from these peregrinations but a humble present he received from a gentle young woman in Isfahan in the heart of Iran when she farewelled him with three red roses she had carefully wrapped and placed in a small wooden box adorned with intricate Persian miniatures For the last fifty years this treasured gift with its three dried-up flowers has held pride and place in the successive homes he has temporarily occupied in his nomadic life In spite of the dark decades that followed in her turbulent country he often thinks about this young woman of Isfahan and hopes that life has been as kind to her as she was to him A few months later the Middle East exploded into a fire that has not been extinguished to this day4 ___________________________ 4 Ie the Six Day War of June 1967
A GOOD YEAR FOR MATHEMATICIANS In keeping with the article twelve months ago on British chemists born in 1766 this year we have three pro-minent mathematicians who were born in 1667 ndash two on the same day The first was a Frenchman Abraham de Moivre born into a Huguenot family on 26 May and educated at the Protestant Academy of Sedan until it was suppressed in 1682 He went on to study logic at Saumur and physics in Paris but the repression of his denomination by Louis XIV caused him to move to London in 1687 There he met Edmund Halley and Isaac Newton and he was admitted to the Royal Society in 1689 after writ-ing two papers that generalised the latterrsquos theorems Halley then encouraged him to study astronomy which led him to propose a prescient theory affecting elliptical orbits He proceeded to do further work in analytic geometry and wrote four books on probability followed by a fundamental theorem of what is now known as complex analysis (involving the lsquoimaginaryrsquo number i = radicminus1) It is said that he correctly calculated the date of his death on 27 November 1754 Also born on 26 May 1667 and of Huguenot descent was the Swiss mathematician Johann Bernoulli Educa-ted at Basel University with his older brother Jacob he became a professor at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands They both specialised in the new fields of calculus and differential equations which had important applications in physics Amazingly Johann developed a proof of de Moivrersquos proposal affecting elliptical orbits in 1710 amongst many other works The Bernoullis including a third brother were the first of three generations of prominent mathematicians and scientists Johann died in 1748 William Whiston was born in England on 09 December the son of a rector and studied at Cambridge He became a tutor there left to join the ministry and returned to become Sir Isaac Newtonrsquos understudy in 1701 He took the Lucasian Chair of Mathematics the next year when Newton retired but unlike his lsquocloset Unitarianrsquo predecessor he did not conceal his radical religious views Instead he gave lectures published books and even debated the doctrine of the Trinity with two archbishops after which he was expelled from Cambridge in 1710 He went on to a controversial career in both science and religion writing many books on both subjects Despite his unorthodoxy and never having been made a Member he often gave lectures to the Royal Society He co-authored a chart of the Solar System showing the paths of various comets and produced one of the first maps of the Earthrsquos magnetic field over southern England He died in 1752
15
(The Reformation That Failed contrsquod)
The final phase of the wars is known as lsquothe War of the Three Henrysrsquo because it involved King Henry III
Henry of Guise and Henry of Navarre It began when Prince Francis died in 1584 after spending four years
out of the country courting Queen Elizabeth I of England and taking part in William of Orangersquos revolt in the
Spanish Netherlands (present-day Holland and Belgium) As neither he nor Henry III had any children this
made their cousin Henry of Navarre the legal successor to the throne which the Catholic League could not
accept Under pressure from the Guises the king signed an edict in 1585 that suppressed Protestantism and
annulled Henry of Navarrersquos right to the succession in favour of Cardinal Charles de Bourbon
The Catholic League wanted total war against the Huguenots but the king who wanted a settlement insisted
that he had no funds for such a campaign When a Catholic uprising in Paris drove him from the city in 1588
Henry III concluded that the Guises meant to overthrow him His bodyguard assassinated Henry of Guise
and his brother Cardinal Louis de Guise at the Royal Chacircteau de Blois and the king joined forces with his
Protestant cousin However he in turn was assassinated by a Dominican monk in 1589 and Henry of Navarre
became King Henry IV of France
The Catholic League still controlled the north and east of the country but Henry attacked and defeated them in
two battles in Normandy He laid siege to Paris in 1590 until a Spanish army from the Netherlands forced him
back after which the two armies fought until the invaders withdrew at the end of 1592 Henry then realised that
he could never take Paris and rule the whole of France while he was a Protestant so he became a Catholic in
1593 and the Pope revoked his excommunication in exchange for the Churchrsquos supremacy in France
While Henry had committed to reserving all high positions to Catholics he wanted to assure the Huguenots
that he was not a puppet of Spain In 1595 he initiated the Franco-Spanish War in which he also sought to
subdue the few remnants of the Catholic League that refused to recognise his accession This led to another
invasion from the Spanish Netherlands which was stopped at Calais and driven back after which the Peace
of Vervins in 1598 deprived the French rebels of support from Spain Henry then pacified Brittany without
bloodshed and issued the Edict of Nantes which guaranteed the rights of Protestants and ended the wars
In 1599 Henryrsquos childless marriage was annulled and he married Marie dersquo Medici the next year She soon
gave birth to a son who became King Louis XIII when his father was assassinated by a fanatical Catholic in
1610 Marie became his regent until 1617 after which Louis used various means to erode the provisions of
the Edict of Nantes His son Louis XIV was even more hostile to the Huguenots and from 1661 he actively
pressured them to either convert or leave the country Finally his Edict of Fontainebleau in 1865 declared
Protestantism illegal and between 200000 and a million Huguenots emigrated
Some Protestants remained in the mountainous Ceacutevennes region in the southeast where they were largely left
alone In more settled areas many who claimed to have converted practiced their faith in secret suffering
severe penalties if they were detected Ironically religious freedom was restored by Louis XVI in his Edict of
Versailles of 1787 ndash two years before the Revolution and the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen
[This story has a number of interesting historical sidelines starting with the regent queens Catherine and
Marie dersquo Medici Both were scions of the ruling house of Florence which also produced three popes Leo X
who excommunicated Martin Luther Clement VII who granted King Henry VIII of Englandrsquos annulment
and Leo XI who was elected at 69 and died less than a month later
The short-lived King Francis II was married to Mary Stuart Queen of Scots whose mother was the sister of
Francis Duke of Guise She lived in France from the age of five until her husbandrsquos death after which she
returned to rule Scotland Her son James VI succeeded Queen Elizabeth I as King James I of England in
1603 (His great-grandmother Margaret Tudor was King Henry VIIIrsquos sister)
Henry III was the last ruler from the House of Valois whereas Henry IV founded the Bourbon Dynasty His
eldest daughter Elisabeth married King Philip IV of Spain while his youngest Henrietta Maria became the
wife of King Charles I of England Scotland and Ireland Louis XIII died when his elder son was four years
old giving Louis XIV the longest recorded reign (72 years) of any monarch of a sovereign European nation
Known as the lsquoSun Kingrsquo his time was a period of political centralisation economic advancement military
success and empire building in North America India and Africa]
16
MORE ICCU NEWS Just as we go to press the Chalice Lighting for December has arrived
Saat gelap kita terkungkung rasa takut maka nyalakanlah harapan dalam jiwa Saat gelap kita penuh kecurigaan dan prasangka buruk pada sesama maka nyalakanlah kasih dalam hati Saat gelap kita kehilangan sadar mana yang baik dan mana yang jahat maka nyalakanlah hikmat dalam nurani Saat gelap kita merasa bisa berbuat semau kita tanpa ingat Sang Maha Suci dan sesama maka nyalakanlah iman yang dipenuhi kebenaran Gelap ada saat kita abai menyalakan terang Gelap tak bisa diusir dengan marah dan geram sebab gelap akan sirna jika kita menyalakan terang Saat kita menyalakan lentera kita dalam ibadah ini Marilah tak hanya mengundang terang bagi mata jasmani tetapi selalu undang terang bagi mata rohani Yang akan memerdekakan hati serta membawa kebijaksanaan dan kebahagiaan sejati
When it is dark we are surrounded by fear so light hope in your soul When it is dark we are full of distrust and prejudice to the others so light love in your heart When it is dark we lose awareness of good and evil so light wisdom in your conscience When it is dark we feel that we can do whatever we want without remembering The Most Holy One and our neighbors so light faith that is fulfilled with truth Darkness exist when we forget to turn on the light Darkness cannot be expelled with our anger and wrath because darkness will be gone when we turn on the light When we light up our chalice in this worship Let us not only welcoming the light for our physical eyes but always invite the light for our spiritual eyes A light that will free our heart bringing wisdom and real happiness
Submitted by the Unitarian Christian Church of Indonesia Indonesian words (and presumably the English translation) written by its minister Rev Aryanto Nugroho Membership renewals for 2017 are due from 01 January so the best time to pay them will be at the
Christmas Party Those wishing to join our church can use this form by way of application but should
not send payment until their membership is accepted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MEMBERSHIPRENEWAL FORM
I (name) ___________________________________________________ of (address) _________________________________________________ ________________________________ Postcode _________ Phone(s) (home) __________________ (other) ___________________ Email ______________________________________________________ I apply to joinrenew membership in (delete one) the Sydney Unitarian Church and agree to abide by the rules as set down by the Constitution and management of the church Signature ________________________________ Fee enclosed $_____ Cheques should be made payable to Treasurer Sydney Unitarian Church Membership will be valid for the calendar year 2016 Annual membership is $20 and includes the SUN journal subscription to the SUN only is $15
2
This lsquoArmed Peacersquo held until 1567 when the Huguenots became concerned that the Catholics were mobilis-ing this time with the support of Spain They attempted to capture Charles IX and his family at the Chacircteau de Montceaux near Paris ostensibly to protect them from an Italian plot but this was a failure A number of cities then declared themselves for the Protestant cause and a massacre of Catholics took place at Nicircmes in the south This led to the second phase of the wars and to the Battle of Saint-Denis near Paris in which 3500 Huguenot troops held off a force of 16000 Royalists before retreating to their eastern stronghold Another truce the Peace of Longjumeau was negotiated in 1568 but it lasted only a few months The third phase was a truly international affair but this time the Catholics started it Prince William of Orange brought an army of Dutch Protestants into France but it was under-resourced and the French government paid him to withdraw With financial help from England the Huguenots gathered a formidable army which includ-ed German mercenaries and the Catholics were reinforced by troops from Spain and Italy After some gains in the southwest the Prince of Condeacute was captured in the Battle of Jarmac in 1569 and subsequently killed The Catholic forces got the upper hand in two later battles but then the Huguenots launched a massive campaign up the Rhone Valley into the heart of the country Another truce the Peace of Saint-Germain-en-Laye was negoti-ated in 1570 which made concessions to the Protestants For a while it looked like the peace would hold ndash Charles IX treated the Huguenot leaders favourably to the point of marrying his sister Marguerite to the Protestant Prince Henry of Navarre (pictured at right) in 1572 However this only antagonised the Guise faction and they murdered the Huguenot military leader Admiral Gaspard de Coligny when he came to Paris for the wedding That precipitated the Saint Bartholomewrsquos Day Massacre on 24 August in which Catholic mobs killed an estimate 2000 Protestant civilians and a series of riots in a dozen other cities followed as the news spread The total death toll was at least 10000 Forces led by Henry Duke of Anjou (Charlesrsquo younger brother) then besieged three Huguenot cities only one of which was captured The fighting ceased in 1573 when Henry was elected King of Poland but the subse-quent Edict of Boulogne banned Protestant worship almost entirely In his absence the Huguenot leaders found Francis Duke of Alenccedilon (Charlesrsquo youngest brother) sympathetic to their cause In 1574 they attempted to free Henry of Navarre and the new Prince of Condeacute who had been held at the royal court since the formerrsquos wedding That failed but uprisings elsewhere were more successful precipitating another phase of the wars
Charles IX died in 1574 and his brother returned from Poland to become King Henry III Faced with a deteri-
orating situation in the south the defection of his brother Henry of Navarrersquos escape and an invasion from the Palatinate in Germany he was obliged to negotiate the Edict of Beaulieu in 1576 That gave the Hugue-
nots freedom of worship everywhere except in Paris and some of their leaders received land and titles Promising as this was Henry Duke of Guise and five dukes related to him formed the Catholic League in
fierce opposition to it Henry III capitulated to them and less equitable terms were enacted in 1577
(Continued on p 12)
SERVICE DIARY
Meetings every Sunday from 1030 ndash 1130 am
(followed by coffee tea and food)
These will be video presentations
[Please check the church website (wwwsydneyunitarianchurchorg) for updates The program for March will
be available from the beginning of February]
Date Presenter Topic
3rd December Peter Crawford Jonathon Swift
10th December Kelvin Auld Saving the Northern Beaches (Part 2)
17th December Peter Crawford Christmas in a Secular Age
NO SERVICES FOR SIX WEEKS
4th February Peter Crawford Perverse Reason Erewhon
11th February Michael Spicer Secrets of Kangaroo Island
18th February Peter Crawford The New Left
25th February Mike McPhee The Edict of Torda
3
Naam indha deepathai yetrumbodhu naam
anbin ikeeyathodu enaikappatulladhai
unarvomnam manam udal aanmaavilirundhu
irul agandrupovadhaga Indha thozhugaiyil
panguperum naam nammai undaakiyavar
namakku koduthhulla anbaiyum belanaiyum
ninaivukooruvomaaga Namakullaana manidha-
thanmai namakku puthiya nambikkaiyai
kodukattum unmaiyudanum muzhu sindhaiyu-
danum Devanai thozhuddhukollum naam
anbaiyum nanmaigalaiyum pirarukku kodukum-
padi anbinaal kattappaduvomaaga
As we light the Chalice an expression of
joining ourselves in the warmth of our
community and fellowship in oneness to
dispel the darkness from our mind and body
and soul We rejuvenate and rekindle the
assurance of Godrsquos love and the strengthening
of ourselves with Divine grace and participate
in this hour of worship and adoration
humbling our humanness and bringing New
Hope along with the illuminating Chalice
Submitted by the Unitarian Christian Church of Chennai Tamil and English words written by its minister Rev Harrison Kingsley
Minsan Isang Sandali
Kung minsan may kaseguruhan kung minsan may
pagtataka kung minsan may pagbabadya kung
minsan may pagkabigo kung minsan may simula
kung minsan may katapusan kung minsan may
pahinga at walang kailangang gawin ngunit tayorsquoy
laging magiging bahagi ng pag-inog ng mundo sa
ating pagkabuhay man o pagkamatay maging alik-
abok man tayo na lumulutang sa tubig o maging
hininga o maging abong nasa hangin matapos kain-
in ng apoy Ang mahalaga ay ang minutong ito ang
sandaling itong magkakasama kung saan tayo ay
mamamalagi na mistulang walang hanggan
Sometimes A Moment
Sometimes there is certainty sometimes wonder
sometimes somethingrsquos looming and sometimes
there is loss
Sometimes there is a start sometimes an end
sometimes there is rest and nothing needs doing
But we will always be part of the world going
around even in life or death should we be dust
floating on the water or breath or ash in the wind
after itrsquos been eaten by flames What is important
is this minute this moment together where we
shall remain as if it wouldnrsquot end Submitted by the Unitarian Universalist Church of the Philippines English and Tagalog words written by Rev Tet Gallarado minister of the Bicutan UU Congregation in Manila [These are the Chalice Lightings from the International Council of Unitarians and Universalists for the months of October and November] The Unitarian Christian Church of Chennai (Madras) was founded in 1813 by William Roberts (1768ndash1838)
a Tamil whose original name was Thiruvengatam As a teenager he was recruited to work on a British East
India Company ship only to find that the lsquoagentrsquo had sold him as a slave Freed in London three years later he
became a servant in the captainrsquos household where he learned to read in English and was introduced to
Christianity In 1789 he was baptised as an Anglican and took an English name
Roberts always had trouble with the doctrine of the Trinity however which was resolved when he discovered
Unitarianism in 1793 After studying the works of Joseph Priestley and Theophilus Lindsey he returned to
Madras and began instructing others about Unitarianism Meetings of ten families commenced before a small
chapel was built in 1813 using Tamil liturgy modelled on Lindseyrsquos Reformed Prayer Book Roberts wrote to
the London Unitarian Society asking for books and other help and that body paid for the printing of his
Tamil-language material
The chapel was used by the congregation for almost 200 years before it was replaced by a new building on
the same site 2009 Roberts died in 1838 and was succeeded by his son William jr whose ministry lasted
until 1885 Later ministers were Revs Moses Benjamin N A Samuel and Merlin Gabriel whose son Rev
Harrison Kingsley Gabriel has led the church since 1995 The UCCC is a member of the Indian Council of
Unitarian Churches along with the Khasi Hills Unitarians in the northeast of the country
4
THE MEIJI RESTORATION
By Peter Crawford
I can state unequivocally that my favourite country is Japan Its crime-rate is so low that the police have to
invent crime and other problems to keep themselves busy The cities and towns avoid the preposterous shoe-
box dystopia high-rise that seems to afflict other nationsrsquo cities Of course precaution against earthquakes is
a major reason for keeping the cities towns and villages reasonably low-rise something like a compact
version our workerrsquos towns in the Hunter Valley The countryside is an artists dream A place like Hokkaido
is like a mini-Canada ndash a snowbound paradise with high hills rushing streams and big black bears and
monkeys haunting the pristine forests Meanwhile Okinawa is a mini-Hawaii with coral coasts a subtropical
climate palm trees and local bananas as sweet as honey
An historic town like Kamakura the centre of a medieval Buddhist empire and now a tourist destination
may seem like a town en fecircte I once wandered to the railway station there one chilly afternoon and there
were rows of lanterns everywhere ndash reds golds and enchanting colours ndash and little stalls where you could
purchase a range of small foods I met two Mormon missionaries there that evening who told me they had
worked the area for two years but had not recruited so much as one Japanese ldquoEveryone is politerdquo they told
me ldquobut they all simply say we are Buddhistrdquo
Meanwhile around cities like Osaka there are mighty medieval castles terrifying and forbidding places that
now provide family weekend outings It was not always so ndash they resonate with a fierce Shogunate tradition
of bloodshed and mayhem and local power in times gone by And for the education of the people they pre-
sent all the fine steel and armaments those times This paraphernalia of medieval re-enactment and warfare
impresses the visitor as much as its terrifying European equivalents
The coastal and fertile areas are massively populated and the great industrial spine of Nippon Incorporated
probably festoons Honshu for a thousand kilometres or more The so-called rural areas seem as densely
populated as our quarter-acre block suburbs Some rural areas with their miniature rice farms seemed to me
as restricted as a suburb like Redfern in Sydney Yet once you get away to the eighty percent of Japan that is
not Nippon Incorporated you come to the aesthetic of the Honshu countryside where of course the ultimate
showpiece is Mt Fuji
Below Fuji is a lake where you can stay at beguiling inns near a spacious and very beautiful lake To the fit
walker who speaks Japanese or who can travel with a Japanese-speaking companion the hiking and touring
in the hills and to the inns for a warm reception is a great experience to be had The Japanese are scrupulous-
ly clean people When first intruded upon in the 16th Century by Portuguese and Dutch traders they were
utterly appalled by the unwashed stinking adventurers who had dared enter their sacred land At that time
Europeans literally didnt wash while Japanese maintained a ritual cleanliness every day
Now for those unaware of the fact Christianity is a subversive religion that teaches a militant ethic of
universalism and church control The Japanese became aware of the fact that Catholics were as loyal to the
Pope as they were to the Shogun (the power before the revival of imperial power in the 19th Century) Their
own Shinto religion revered national heroes nature and the emperor The Japanese elites soon had no time
for the Western religion ndash Buddhism was contemplative and deeply embedded and thus secure In the early
17th Century the feudal lords drove the Christians out with great cruelty often employing crucifixion as a
means of eliminating and terrorising Catholics The Calvinist Dutch traders were allowed to keep trading in
small outposts but the Catholic Portuguese were not
In 1854 the strident new nation of the United States decided to challenge Japanrsquos 250-year isolation
President Millard Fillmore sent Commodore Perry to insist that Japan open its ports to international trade
Perryrsquos sailors marched to a local commander whom they believed (quite wrongly) held the real power The
landed sailors marched in full colours of red white and blue with bands playing lsquoWhen Johnny Comes
Marching Home They were stunned by the fairy tale beauty of the villages and the petite civilised qualities
of everything around The locals were entranced by the colourful new arrivals The sailors were courteously
received and conned but not at first allowed to really understand what was going on Commodore Perry told
his beguiling hosts that he would give them a year or two to think about opening up or face the full weight
of American imperial aggression On his return the Japanese came to some compromise
5
Shortly after in 1860 America became involved in its own civil war over slavery and the preservation of the
Union Meanwhile between 1855 and 1868 a whole new power structure emerged in Japan with the old
Tokugawa Shogunate displaced and an empowered imperial Meiji restoration The process of proceeding
from medieval localisms to a modern centralised state took all of fourteen years The process was not easy
Local revolts were common and assassinations and a civil war of sorts were all part of the picture as Japan
rose from its feudal slumbers But in 1868 the young Meiji then aged fourteen was placed on the newly em-
powered Chrysanthemum Throne and performed as a sober and resolute ruler until his death aged 67 in
1911 He was capably steered and advised by the bureaucratic warriors who supervised his ascension
An underlying theme of the new Meiji rulers was lsquofokuku kyōheirsquo (rich nation strong military) The first aim
of the wily and highly prescient leaders of the new Japan was to avoid the fate of the rest of the world which
was rapidly falling under Western domination The Japanese rulers witnessed the fall of Vietnam to France
the conquest of India and the repeated humiliation of China by British French and Russian intrusions
Although it hurt somewhat they sidestepped an anti-Western narrative lsquoRepel the barbariansrsquo was replaced
by lsquoKnowledge shall be sought throughout the world to invigorate the foundations of imperial rulersquo
As Arnold Toynbee argues societies confronted by enemies with more powerful weapons and technology
must either adapt or perish The Japanese quickly decided to adapt As a proud and superior people with a
rational and committed set of bureaucrats at the top this was possible in Japan more than elsewhere Military
threats from within were also put down The samurai lost their feudal rights and were pensioned off and sent
to Hokkaido Local power elites had their powers removed The readers of Japanese history of the period are
amazed at the systematic progress of Japan from feudalism to some sort of parliamentary government ndash
parliamentary but by no means democratic That did not come until after World War II
The Meiji hired hundreds of Western advisers with expertise in such fields as education mining banking
law military affairs and transportation to remodel Japans institutions Conversely thousands of Japanese
students were sent to universities in the West even as a system of Imperial Universities was established in
the major cities in Japan A Constitution promulgated in 1889 established an elected House of Represent-
atives and an appointed House of Peers However only 2 of the population were eligible to vote any bills
passed by the lower house had to be approved by the upper house and the Cabinet was directly responsible
to the Emperor
The projects to build up the new economic system were costly Powerful feudal families were chosen to
fulfill this destiny ndash the present-day Mitsui and Mitsubishi conglomerates among others had their origins in
Japanese fiefdoms and merchant houses They took over production and manufacturing heavily favoured by
government subsidies and official protectionism Others who supported the Meiji faction in their rise to
power found themselves richly rewarded with government largesse and favours
Despite all the vicissitudes of altered business circumstances and war they were mighty then and remain
mighty today The Japanese government will not allow them to fall despite any setbacks This of course
gives the lie to modern free market advocates who claim as did our PM Tony Abbot lsquono country ever
became great through subsidiesrsquo Well what about Japan
Of course there was a lot more than subsidies that made Japan great A land tax instituted in 1873 was the
main source of government revenue and it fell heavily on the peasants At times the price of rice dropped
and the peasants suffered However the people worked long and hard with all the vitality of an East Asian
people ndash diligent dutiful traditional and loyal to emperor and native land No culture of arrogance religious
triumphalism and foreign exploitation rules the hearts and minds of the Japanese people as it does for
example throughout the Middle East in countries like Saudi Arabia No culture of immigration like that of
the US or Australia was tolerated nor is it tolerated today Multiculturalism has absolutely no place in the
Japanese paradigm
What the Japanese cannot do themselves they generally wonrsquot do They will import resources from all over
the world but they will do the value-added processes themselves They were like this in the early years of the
Meiji Restoration and they are like this today Generally as Japan rose in the late 19th Century the people
worked and often suffered in silence Women of course were particularly exploited Their conditions in the
textile factories could scarcely have been better than those in England at the same time Yet just as in
England the Industrial Revolution started around textiles and progressed to shipbuilding and heavy industries
In an amazingly short time Japan became the only major exporter of manufactured goods in Asia
6
Women however could work as factory fodder farm hands or if they were lucky enter the lowly-paid yet
congenial occupation of primary teaching One exception for women however was in the area of medicine
which they entered in force well before they did in the United States By the 1870s education was made
compulsory for all Japanese children although four years was seen as sufficient and the families of school-
age children were heavily taxed to pay for it The adage lsquono community with an illiterate family nor a
family with an illiterate personrsquo became a guiding principle Suddenly an illiterate people became literate
and educated in all areas Meanwhile the numbers of Japanese increased dramatically from 30 million at the
time of the Meiji Restoration to about 70 million by the time of his death in 1911
Mountainous Japan had never had a road system worthy of the name relying largely on marine transport for
both goods and passengers In conjunction with the steam-powered spinning mills for silk and cotton rail-
ways were also built ndash but in its typical fashion the government insisted that the engines and rolling stock
were built in Japan and that locals were trained by the Western contractors to build and operate them Proper
sealed roads were also built at a similarly impressive rate as the railways were
As the 19th Century came to an end Japanese industry became diversified and sophisticated In the 1870s
when the Japanese decided upon building a navy they relied on two ships imported from Europe in order to
begin By the 1905 they had made their own sophisticated set of ships which under the British-trained and
influenced Admiral Toga were able to sink the pride of the Russian fleet in one swift twenty-four hour battle
in the Strait of Tsushima In the same Russo-Japanese War tens of thousands of troops were able to storm
the great Russian fortress of Port Arthur in Manchuria and drive a sizeable Russian army back into Siberia
In this terrible battle Japan committed 357000 troops and lost 57000 dead The Russians lost 27000
retreating in disarray and disillusion
The Japanese had employed the best of modern armaments copied from American and European weaponry
but largely made by themselves Not bad for a people who just fifty years earlier had been fighting clan
battles with muskets and bows and arrows shielded only by medieval chainmail After this war Japan
effectively gained control over Manchuria Korea the Kurile Islands and the southern half of the large island
of Sakhalin north of Hokkaido The Russians were spared a much worse humiliation when the US President
Theodore Roosevelt mediated a peace treaty in Portsmouth New Hampshire in which Japan dropped its
demand for an indemnity (Roosevelt won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1906 for that achievement)
Ten years before their victories over Russia the Japanese had used their new weapons and European military
practice to defeat China in the First Sino-Japanese War of 1895 This gave them possession of Taiwan
which they ruled for the next 50 years in a liberal and benign fashion with an amazing respect for the indi-
genous peoples of the island The Chinese had not treated them at all well since the island was recovered
from the Dutch in the 18th Century The Japanese even established an Imperial University in Taipei
Ironically Japanrsquos very success in Taiwan was a major cause of its long-term imperial downfall If Taiwan
could be ruled so easily why not China itself After all had not the still extant non-Chinese Manchu dynasty
ruled China comparatively peacefully for a period of 250 years There were only ten million Manchu ruling
forty times as many Chinese Why couldnt the Japanese numbering 60 million enjoy the same imperial
experience The Japanese began to dream big imperial dreams and for this they were to suffer very greatly as
a people fifty years later
So Japan aspired to be a mighty power and it became one The Japanese people were dragged unwillingly
onto the world stage when they had been happy to live in a stable homogenous and very beautiful society
They were forced by American capitalism to join the modern world and a terrible beauty was born
[This concludes Peterrsquos three-part series on Japan based on his trip there in January The earlier parts were
printed in the FebruaryMarch and JuneJuly issues which are archived on the church website
Emperor Meiji whose reign name was Mutsuhito was succeeded by his son Yosihito (1912ndash26) followed
by the latterrsquos son Hirohito (1926ndash89) It is claimed that the Emperors were all members of a single dynasty
that goes back to 660 BCE which makes it the longest-standing ruling family in the world That would still
be true if the first 14 Emperors who are considered legendary are excluded from the total of 125 rulers
Just for the record the Tokugawa Shoganate (1603ndash1868) was a period during which members of that family
acted as military dictators who ostensibly protected the various Emperors]
7
JAPANESE LANDMARKS
Senso-ji Temple Tokyo
Peace Bell Hiroshima
Nakanoshima Park Osaka
Great Buddha Kamakura
Temple City Nara
Botanical Garden Kyoto
[Nara was the capital of Japan in 710ndash794 after which the imperial court moved to nearby Kyoto until 1868
Tokyo (formerly called Edo) was the headquarters of the Tokugawas while Kamakura to the south was the
seat of an earlier Shogunate that ended in 1333 All of these cities are on the main island of Honshu]
8
YOU WENT THE WRONG WAY OLD KING LOUIE
Louis the Sixteenth was the King of France in 1789
He was worse than Louis the Fifteenth
He was worse than Louis the Fourteenth
He was worse than Louis the Thirteenth
He was the worst since Louis the First
King Louis was living like a king but the people were living rotten
So the people they started an uprising which they called the French Revolution
And of course you remember their battle cry which will never be forgotten
You went the wrong way Old King
Louie
You made the population cry
rsquoCause all you did was sit and pet
With Marie Antoinette
In your place at Versailles
And now the countryrsquos gone kablooie
So we are giving you the air
That oughta teach you not to
Spend all your time fooling rsquoround
At the Folies Bergegravere
If you had been a nicer king
We wouldnt do a thing
But you were bad you must admit
Wersquore gonna take you and the Queen
Down to the guillotine
And shorten you a little bit
You came the wrong way Old King
Louie
And now you ainrsquot got far to go
Too bad you wonrsquot be here to see
That great big Eiffel Tower
Or Brigitte Bardot
To you King Louie we say fooey
You disappointed all of France
But then what else could we expect
From a king in silk stockings
And pink satin pants
You filled your stomach with chop suey
And also crecircpe suzettes and steak
And when they told your wife Marie
That nobody had bread she said
ldquoLet rsquoem eat cakerdquo
Wersquore gonna take you and the Queen
Down to the guillotine
Itrsquos somewhere in the heart of town
And when that fellarsquos through
With what hersquos gonna do
Yoursquoll have no place to hang your
crown
You came the wrong way Old King
Louie
Now we must put you on the shelf
Thatrsquos why the people are revolting
rsquocause Louie
Yoursquore pretty revolting yourself
Allan Sherman (1963)
Understandably nothing funny was ever written about the French Wars of Religion so this will have to do
Allan Sherman (1924ndash73) was a famous Jewish-American writer of comic parodies based on existing songs
and even pieces of classical music This song begins with a riff of lsquoLa Marseillesrsquo but the verses are based on
lsquoYou Came a Long Way from St Louisrsquo composed in 1948 by Bob Russell and John Benson Brooks It was
recorded in Shermanrsquos third album My Son the Nut released in 1963
Born Allan Copelon in Chicago Sherman took his motherrsquos maiden name after his parents divorced He
attended the University of Illinois and wrote a humour column for the student newspaper He became a tele-
vision writer and producer of game shows in the 1950s before he turned his hobby of writing parodies to better
use in the 1960s His first album My Son the Folksinger came out in 1962 followed by My Son the
Celebrity but his best-known song was lsquoHello Muddah Hello Faddahrsquo released as a single in 1963
Sydney Keith lsquoBobrsquo Russell (1914ndash70) was a songwriter chiefly a lyricist who started with vaudeville songs
and later wrote musical scores for movies He co-wrote lsquoHe Ainrsquot Heavy Hersquos My Brotherrsquo with Bobby Scott
in 1960 John Benson Brooks (1917ndash99) was a pianist arranger and composer who worked with a number of
jazz and blues songwriters amongst others over his lengthy career
As always these songs need to be heard in order to be fully appreciated ndash just search wwwyoutubecom
9
I HEARD THE BELLS ON CHRISTMAS DAY
I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old familiar carols play
and wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth good-will to men
And thought how as the day had come
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along
The unbroken song
Of peace on earth good-will to men
Till ringing singing on its way
The world revolved from night to day
A voice a chime
A chant sublime
Of peace on earth good-will to men
Then from each black accursed mouth
The cannon thundered in the South
And with the sound
The carols drowned
Of peace on earth good-will to men
It was as if an earthquake rent
The hearth-stones of a continent
And made forlorn
The households born
Of peace on earth good-will to men
And in despair I bowed my head
ldquoThere is no peace on earthrdquo I said
ldquoFor hate is strong
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth good-will to menrdquo
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep
ldquoGod is not dead nor doth He sleep
The Wrong shall fail
The Right prevail
With peace on earth good-will to menrdquo
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1863)
This poem was written on Christmas Day 1863 at the height of the American Civil War Longfellowrsquos son
Charles had enlisted in the Unionist army without his fatherrsquos permission and was severely wounded in battle
in Virginia shortly before that time He eventually recovered but he did not return to military service
For reasons that are unclear the poem was first published in 1865 in a magazine called Our Young Folks It was
first set to music by the English organist John Baptiste Calkin in 1872 and that version has been recorded by
singers as various as Johnny Cash and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir (The verses relating to the Civil War are
usually left out however)
As everyone hopefully knows Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807ndash1882) was a Unitarian born into a family
of left-wing Congregationalists William Ellery Channing was a friend of the family having attend Harvard
with Longfellowrsquos father and he met Ralph Waldo Emerson in later life though his independent theology did
not fully embrace Transcendentalism (See the feature article in the AprilMay 2009 for the full story)
10
ALEXANDER (Part 4)
By Patrick Bernard
In 1966 the first post-scriptum to Alexanderrsquos story was written in a most unexpected place and circum-stances By the end of June of that year Mauricersquos existence had changed dramatically taking a new but not all that unpredictable course Due to a succession of events that may be told in detail later on he had hurled himself into a nomadic lifestyle trekking across Lapland and then having sailed leisurely from lake to lake on an old-fashioned steamer from the north to the south of Finland he ended up in Helsinki Possessed with the freewheeling spirit of those times he then decided without a second thought to hitchhike from the lsquoLand of the Midnight Sunrsquo with reindeer antlers precariously tied to his backpack all the way across Eastern Europe to Constantinople the sublime gate to the Orient Mildly disappointed when he arrived there he found Istanbul instead of Constantinople ndash but the splendour of Byzantium lingered on as the fragrance of mimosa does long after its bloom has faded Stunned and unsure as to whether he was in a dream or in Heaven he sat for hours admiring the Hagia Sophia1 the Byzantine Basilica completed in 537AD which for many centuries had proudly defied gravity with its dome reputedly the largest in the world The Ottomans would then meticulously and methodically vandalise the building a millennium later soon after they had conquered Constantinople on 29 May 1453 To add insult to injury this great historical centre of Christianity was then literally nailed to the ground with four minarets
Cross-section drawing of the Hagia Sophia in 537AD
The Hagia Sophia today
1 Hagia Sophia from the Greek Holy Wisdom was a Greek Orthodox Christian patriarchal basilica in Constantinople (now Istanbul)
11
While admiring this desecrated shrine Maurice met and befriended a young French poet called Philippe
who might have been appropriately dressed for an elegant cocktail party in Northern Europe but not for the
sweltering heat the stench and the dust of Istanbul He was one of those individuals who stubbornly adhere
to specific sartorial standards no matter how incongruous or uncomfortable like those sweaty European ex-
patriate civil servants one used to encounter in various colonial outposts of the tropics Maurice admired
Philippersquos defiant attire but he also found it slightly ridiculous and teased him about it for the next few days
Philippe did not mind as he was clearly accustomed to such jibes and he enjoyed play-acting the fop to a
receptive audience
The world being indeed a very small place this overdressed Alsatian bard was also the scion of a prominent
family of medical practitioners in his hometown of Strasbourg Having similar interests and sensitivities this
pair of drifters became travelling companions for a while although like most misfits they generally preferred
to be alone Philippe was short chubby and eloquent while Maurice was tall skinny and laconic They were a
mismatch but their obvious differences didnrsquot seem to matter to them This odd duo wandered the backstreets
and the bazaars of Istanbul visited the inevitable tourist sites absorbed the sounds and fragrances of the Orient
and ended up in a seedy bar drinking too much Raqi2 while philosophising on the collapse of Byzantium
In truth there were no alternative affordable locations for their libations as all bars in Istanbul appeared
seedy if not sleazy which made these shady dives all the more appealing to two middle class Western
adolescents seeking the frisson of exotic squalor Indeed no serious traveller wants to get sloshed in lsquonice
barsrsquo frequented by lsquonice peoplersquo and besides as we all know lsquonice peoplersquo have a tendency to be much
nastier than they appear For the audacious bourgeois adventurer seediness and sleaze are essential pre-
requisites of all urban explorations
It was in such a drinking hole more reminiscent of an odorous public toilet than a comfortable pub that one
evening in one of those intoxicated moments of youthful recklessness that cements long-lasting friendships
that Maurice and Philippe decided to emulate Lord Byron and swim across the Bosphorus Strait under the
cover of darkness to avoid police detection and certain arrest A couple of young German tourists called
Ursula and Thomas whom they had met in the flea-infested hotel near the Grand Bazaar where they all
stayed at offered to drive them in their Volkswagen minibus to their launching point take care of all their
belongings and wait for them at an agreed spot on the other side of the Bosphorus Strait the Asian side near
the Beylerbeyi Sarayi (Beylerbeyi Palace)
Maurice who had decided to trust them convinced a more circumspect Philippe that even if all their belong-
ings disappeared they could always go to the French Consulate and ask for assistance To use an expression
in vogue at the time one could say that for a generation that sincerely wanted to make the world a better
place ldquoit wouldnrsquot have been cool to rip each other offrdquo although later on many of those well-intended lsquoBaby
Boomersrsquo would get over their romantic idealism and returning to the fold they would prove to be as rapa-
cious as their forefathers To minimise risks and efforts they chose the narrowest section of the strait and
began their journey in front of the Ccedilirağan Surayi (Ccedilirağan Palace) which had been in ruins since 1909 but
would later be restored and converted into yet another ostentatious luxury hotel sometime around 1991
The Ccedilırağan Palace seen from the Bosphorus Strait
2 An alcoholic spirit drink distilled from grain grapes plums and flavoured with aniseed
12
This short aquatic trip from Europe to Asia was perilous if not downright stupid but it was also an adven-
ture neither would ever forget The water on the edge of the Bosphorus was a tepid odorous brew of
effluents and diesel fuel At first our swimmers had to paddle through floating islands of detritus and dead
creatures in various stages of decomposition but soon due to the salubrious effect of water currents things
got more pleasant Away from the shoreline the boys were at last able to pause to admire the stars and the
city lights flickering and sparkling over the dark flapping waves A mighty cruise ship went by with her pro-
pellers stomping and chopping the waters gliding by serenely with utter confidence in her great power
For a few long minutes Maurice and Philippe thought they were going to be drawn into a fatal whirlpool and
minced by this metallic behemoth but on this occasion fate if there is such a thing decided to spare them
Fishermen who spotted them in the glow of their kerosene lamps at first asked if they required some help
but as the boys kept swimming trying to explain that they were fine these Good Samaritans sailed on
joking among themselves puzzled and amused by the absurdity of these wayward Westerners whom they
ended up cursing for disturbing the fish
Being somewhat socially inept Maurice had since early childhood disliked all team sports As a matter of
fact he had disliked all sports in general considering such physical endeavours as complete wastes of time
either as a participant or particularly as a spectator In any case he considered competition to be one of the
most subversive of all human activities This being said he had periodically enjoyed some individual sports
such as tennis or running for any distance over a thousand metres As long as he was on his own being only
responsible to and for himself he found such exercise tolerable if not pleasurable He had for many years en-
joyed swimming long distances and had even hoped that one day he would swim across the English Channel
but that project would never eventuate
Although he had navigated in a sea of uncertainty for most of his young life and was chronically griped by
self-doubt he often wondered on the futility of all his endeavours but on that warm summer night of 1966
swimming between Europe and Asia across that fabled body of water which links the Mediterranean and the
Sea of Marmara to the Black Sea leading to his beloved Russia he had never felt more alive In any case this
was a feat worthy of Uncle Alexander to whom he always liked to compare himself Swimming calmly and
rambling on in one of his usual silent soliloquies he was brought back to more practical considerations by
Philippe who seemed to be paddling away with some difficulty bordering on panic
Maurice lightheartedly convinced his new friend that this was not a race ndash rather they had all the time in the
world to enjoy this wonderful night and he should therefore save his energy if he wanted to make it to the
other side Philippe asked ldquoDonrsquot you have any fearsrdquo Maurice answered between breaststrokes ldquoOf course
I dohellipJust like everyone elsehellipBut if I listened to all my fears I would never do anythingrdquo ldquoToo truerdquo
responded Philippe who was easily convinced by this line of thought
Having both conquered their fears their youthful enthusiasm and health triumphed and at three-thirty in the
morning they landed in Asia near the Beylerbeyi Palace which had been the last place of captivity of the de-
posed Sultan Abdulhamid II from 1912 until his death there in 1918 Unfortunately since 1973 this elegant
historical building has been dwarfed by the Bosphorus Bridge
The Beylerbeyi Sarayi (Beylerbeyi Palace) and the 1973 Bosphorus Bridge linking Europe to Asia
13
Punctual and dependable Ursula and Thomas were already on location walking up and down the embank-
ment genuinely concerned for these two foolhardy Frenchmen although they hardly knew them After all this
was the 1960s when trusting and caring for even complete strangers were highly fashionable sentiments But in
that balmy summer night of 1966 having anxiously feared for the worst Ursula and Thomas were greatly
relieved when the boys emerged from the black waters exhausted but ecstatic For anyone else this could be
considered to have been an insignificant event but for Maurice and Philippe it would remain one of those rare
defining moments in their lives It is the sum of such experiences not the accumulation of lsquostuffrsquo no matter
how splendid that lsquostuffrsquo might be which gives meaning if not purpose to our existence
The four new friends then followed the happy ending with jubilant celebrations in the overgrown gardens
surrounding the Beylerbeyi Palace As Maurice and Philippe dried up they sat all there surrounded by flat-
tened plastic bottles broken glass cigarette butts weeds and thorny bushes but for them on that particular
night this was the Garden of Eden They talked endlessly and drank too much cheap wine waiting for the sun
to arise from beyond the Far East The uninhibited impulse to reveal the secrets of our souls is one of the most
precious treasures of youth With age too many of us deteriorate into poor listeners and crushing mono-
logists Without even noticing it we become cynical guarded and judgmental with a dwindling ability to
enjoy the company of others How much more intoxicating it is to share dreams rather than memories Half a
century later Maurice often wonders ldquoWhere are they all now these ephemeral merry companions who ap-
peared and disappeared from my firmament like shooting starsrdquo
On the edge of a new continent which might as well have been a new planet Maurice and Philippe spent the
next couple of days retelling each other the saga of their swim across the Bosphorus Strait in constantly
evolving details every new version of their story slightly more embellished and heroic than the previous one
which in Philippersquos case truly was lsquopoetic licensersquo Eventually they continued their journey to the excava-
tion site of the Homeric city of Troy which had lain buried for 2500 years During this pilgrimage Philippe
took great pleasure in reading aloud relevant passages of The Iliad but he seemed profoundly fatigued and
felt that it was time for him to go home He farewelled Maurice with an open invitation to visit him in Stras-
bourg whenever he wished and they parted ways on the most amicable terms
Istanbul in 1966
Istanbul now 3
3 In 1966 none of the high-rise buildings that appear in this photo existed and the two suspension bridges that cross the
Bosphorus had not yet been constructed either The Hagia Sophia appears in both photos
14
Freer than he would ever be again Maurice then ventured further and deeper into the Middle East which was a much safer and more welcoming region in those days Like so many adventurers poets and mystics before or since he willingly lost himself in that part of the world in order to lsquofind himselfrsquo Whether he did so or not is irrelevant - only the quest mattered The Middle East was an unparalleled feast for the senses The tumultuous multitudes the noise the music the fragrant foods the apparent vitality and even the still dormant hostility were all mesmerising charms he could not resist He dived into it and disappeared for the next several months as a submarine does beneath the waves much to his parentsrsquo chagrin To follow onersquos whims to live life to the fullest often demands a monstrous indifference to the suffering of those close to us He disappeared simply because one could easily do so in those blessed days before personal computers the internet mobile phones digital cameras and all that electronic gadgetry which has so impoverished our lives and withered our ability to exist in complete symbiosis with the world around us in complete anonymity if we so wish To paraphrase Milan Kundera lsquolife is now always elsewherersquo It is neither Dariusrsquo ghost nor the splendours of Persepolis nor the ruins of Babylon that Maurice remembers most from these peregrinations but a humble present he received from a gentle young woman in Isfahan in the heart of Iran when she farewelled him with three red roses she had carefully wrapped and placed in a small wooden box adorned with intricate Persian miniatures For the last fifty years this treasured gift with its three dried-up flowers has held pride and place in the successive homes he has temporarily occupied in his nomadic life In spite of the dark decades that followed in her turbulent country he often thinks about this young woman of Isfahan and hopes that life has been as kind to her as she was to him A few months later the Middle East exploded into a fire that has not been extinguished to this day4 ___________________________ 4 Ie the Six Day War of June 1967
A GOOD YEAR FOR MATHEMATICIANS In keeping with the article twelve months ago on British chemists born in 1766 this year we have three pro-minent mathematicians who were born in 1667 ndash two on the same day The first was a Frenchman Abraham de Moivre born into a Huguenot family on 26 May and educated at the Protestant Academy of Sedan until it was suppressed in 1682 He went on to study logic at Saumur and physics in Paris but the repression of his denomination by Louis XIV caused him to move to London in 1687 There he met Edmund Halley and Isaac Newton and he was admitted to the Royal Society in 1689 after writ-ing two papers that generalised the latterrsquos theorems Halley then encouraged him to study astronomy which led him to propose a prescient theory affecting elliptical orbits He proceeded to do further work in analytic geometry and wrote four books on probability followed by a fundamental theorem of what is now known as complex analysis (involving the lsquoimaginaryrsquo number i = radicminus1) It is said that he correctly calculated the date of his death on 27 November 1754 Also born on 26 May 1667 and of Huguenot descent was the Swiss mathematician Johann Bernoulli Educa-ted at Basel University with his older brother Jacob he became a professor at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands They both specialised in the new fields of calculus and differential equations which had important applications in physics Amazingly Johann developed a proof of de Moivrersquos proposal affecting elliptical orbits in 1710 amongst many other works The Bernoullis including a third brother were the first of three generations of prominent mathematicians and scientists Johann died in 1748 William Whiston was born in England on 09 December the son of a rector and studied at Cambridge He became a tutor there left to join the ministry and returned to become Sir Isaac Newtonrsquos understudy in 1701 He took the Lucasian Chair of Mathematics the next year when Newton retired but unlike his lsquocloset Unitarianrsquo predecessor he did not conceal his radical religious views Instead he gave lectures published books and even debated the doctrine of the Trinity with two archbishops after which he was expelled from Cambridge in 1710 He went on to a controversial career in both science and religion writing many books on both subjects Despite his unorthodoxy and never having been made a Member he often gave lectures to the Royal Society He co-authored a chart of the Solar System showing the paths of various comets and produced one of the first maps of the Earthrsquos magnetic field over southern England He died in 1752
15
(The Reformation That Failed contrsquod)
The final phase of the wars is known as lsquothe War of the Three Henrysrsquo because it involved King Henry III
Henry of Guise and Henry of Navarre It began when Prince Francis died in 1584 after spending four years
out of the country courting Queen Elizabeth I of England and taking part in William of Orangersquos revolt in the
Spanish Netherlands (present-day Holland and Belgium) As neither he nor Henry III had any children this
made their cousin Henry of Navarre the legal successor to the throne which the Catholic League could not
accept Under pressure from the Guises the king signed an edict in 1585 that suppressed Protestantism and
annulled Henry of Navarrersquos right to the succession in favour of Cardinal Charles de Bourbon
The Catholic League wanted total war against the Huguenots but the king who wanted a settlement insisted
that he had no funds for such a campaign When a Catholic uprising in Paris drove him from the city in 1588
Henry III concluded that the Guises meant to overthrow him His bodyguard assassinated Henry of Guise
and his brother Cardinal Louis de Guise at the Royal Chacircteau de Blois and the king joined forces with his
Protestant cousin However he in turn was assassinated by a Dominican monk in 1589 and Henry of Navarre
became King Henry IV of France
The Catholic League still controlled the north and east of the country but Henry attacked and defeated them in
two battles in Normandy He laid siege to Paris in 1590 until a Spanish army from the Netherlands forced him
back after which the two armies fought until the invaders withdrew at the end of 1592 Henry then realised that
he could never take Paris and rule the whole of France while he was a Protestant so he became a Catholic in
1593 and the Pope revoked his excommunication in exchange for the Churchrsquos supremacy in France
While Henry had committed to reserving all high positions to Catholics he wanted to assure the Huguenots
that he was not a puppet of Spain In 1595 he initiated the Franco-Spanish War in which he also sought to
subdue the few remnants of the Catholic League that refused to recognise his accession This led to another
invasion from the Spanish Netherlands which was stopped at Calais and driven back after which the Peace
of Vervins in 1598 deprived the French rebels of support from Spain Henry then pacified Brittany without
bloodshed and issued the Edict of Nantes which guaranteed the rights of Protestants and ended the wars
In 1599 Henryrsquos childless marriage was annulled and he married Marie dersquo Medici the next year She soon
gave birth to a son who became King Louis XIII when his father was assassinated by a fanatical Catholic in
1610 Marie became his regent until 1617 after which Louis used various means to erode the provisions of
the Edict of Nantes His son Louis XIV was even more hostile to the Huguenots and from 1661 he actively
pressured them to either convert or leave the country Finally his Edict of Fontainebleau in 1865 declared
Protestantism illegal and between 200000 and a million Huguenots emigrated
Some Protestants remained in the mountainous Ceacutevennes region in the southeast where they were largely left
alone In more settled areas many who claimed to have converted practiced their faith in secret suffering
severe penalties if they were detected Ironically religious freedom was restored by Louis XVI in his Edict of
Versailles of 1787 ndash two years before the Revolution and the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen
[This story has a number of interesting historical sidelines starting with the regent queens Catherine and
Marie dersquo Medici Both were scions of the ruling house of Florence which also produced three popes Leo X
who excommunicated Martin Luther Clement VII who granted King Henry VIII of Englandrsquos annulment
and Leo XI who was elected at 69 and died less than a month later
The short-lived King Francis II was married to Mary Stuart Queen of Scots whose mother was the sister of
Francis Duke of Guise She lived in France from the age of five until her husbandrsquos death after which she
returned to rule Scotland Her son James VI succeeded Queen Elizabeth I as King James I of England in
1603 (His great-grandmother Margaret Tudor was King Henry VIIIrsquos sister)
Henry III was the last ruler from the House of Valois whereas Henry IV founded the Bourbon Dynasty His
eldest daughter Elisabeth married King Philip IV of Spain while his youngest Henrietta Maria became the
wife of King Charles I of England Scotland and Ireland Louis XIII died when his elder son was four years
old giving Louis XIV the longest recorded reign (72 years) of any monarch of a sovereign European nation
Known as the lsquoSun Kingrsquo his time was a period of political centralisation economic advancement military
success and empire building in North America India and Africa]
16
MORE ICCU NEWS Just as we go to press the Chalice Lighting for December has arrived
Saat gelap kita terkungkung rasa takut maka nyalakanlah harapan dalam jiwa Saat gelap kita penuh kecurigaan dan prasangka buruk pada sesama maka nyalakanlah kasih dalam hati Saat gelap kita kehilangan sadar mana yang baik dan mana yang jahat maka nyalakanlah hikmat dalam nurani Saat gelap kita merasa bisa berbuat semau kita tanpa ingat Sang Maha Suci dan sesama maka nyalakanlah iman yang dipenuhi kebenaran Gelap ada saat kita abai menyalakan terang Gelap tak bisa diusir dengan marah dan geram sebab gelap akan sirna jika kita menyalakan terang Saat kita menyalakan lentera kita dalam ibadah ini Marilah tak hanya mengundang terang bagi mata jasmani tetapi selalu undang terang bagi mata rohani Yang akan memerdekakan hati serta membawa kebijaksanaan dan kebahagiaan sejati
When it is dark we are surrounded by fear so light hope in your soul When it is dark we are full of distrust and prejudice to the others so light love in your heart When it is dark we lose awareness of good and evil so light wisdom in your conscience When it is dark we feel that we can do whatever we want without remembering The Most Holy One and our neighbors so light faith that is fulfilled with truth Darkness exist when we forget to turn on the light Darkness cannot be expelled with our anger and wrath because darkness will be gone when we turn on the light When we light up our chalice in this worship Let us not only welcoming the light for our physical eyes but always invite the light for our spiritual eyes A light that will free our heart bringing wisdom and real happiness
Submitted by the Unitarian Christian Church of Indonesia Indonesian words (and presumably the English translation) written by its minister Rev Aryanto Nugroho Membership renewals for 2017 are due from 01 January so the best time to pay them will be at the
Christmas Party Those wishing to join our church can use this form by way of application but should
not send payment until their membership is accepted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MEMBERSHIPRENEWAL FORM
I (name) ___________________________________________________ of (address) _________________________________________________ ________________________________ Postcode _________ Phone(s) (home) __________________ (other) ___________________ Email ______________________________________________________ I apply to joinrenew membership in (delete one) the Sydney Unitarian Church and agree to abide by the rules as set down by the Constitution and management of the church Signature ________________________________ Fee enclosed $_____ Cheques should be made payable to Treasurer Sydney Unitarian Church Membership will be valid for the calendar year 2016 Annual membership is $20 and includes the SUN journal subscription to the SUN only is $15
3
Naam indha deepathai yetrumbodhu naam
anbin ikeeyathodu enaikappatulladhai
unarvomnam manam udal aanmaavilirundhu
irul agandrupovadhaga Indha thozhugaiyil
panguperum naam nammai undaakiyavar
namakku koduthhulla anbaiyum belanaiyum
ninaivukooruvomaaga Namakullaana manidha-
thanmai namakku puthiya nambikkaiyai
kodukattum unmaiyudanum muzhu sindhaiyu-
danum Devanai thozhuddhukollum naam
anbaiyum nanmaigalaiyum pirarukku kodukum-
padi anbinaal kattappaduvomaaga
As we light the Chalice an expression of
joining ourselves in the warmth of our
community and fellowship in oneness to
dispel the darkness from our mind and body
and soul We rejuvenate and rekindle the
assurance of Godrsquos love and the strengthening
of ourselves with Divine grace and participate
in this hour of worship and adoration
humbling our humanness and bringing New
Hope along with the illuminating Chalice
Submitted by the Unitarian Christian Church of Chennai Tamil and English words written by its minister Rev Harrison Kingsley
Minsan Isang Sandali
Kung minsan may kaseguruhan kung minsan may
pagtataka kung minsan may pagbabadya kung
minsan may pagkabigo kung minsan may simula
kung minsan may katapusan kung minsan may
pahinga at walang kailangang gawin ngunit tayorsquoy
laging magiging bahagi ng pag-inog ng mundo sa
ating pagkabuhay man o pagkamatay maging alik-
abok man tayo na lumulutang sa tubig o maging
hininga o maging abong nasa hangin matapos kain-
in ng apoy Ang mahalaga ay ang minutong ito ang
sandaling itong magkakasama kung saan tayo ay
mamamalagi na mistulang walang hanggan
Sometimes A Moment
Sometimes there is certainty sometimes wonder
sometimes somethingrsquos looming and sometimes
there is loss
Sometimes there is a start sometimes an end
sometimes there is rest and nothing needs doing
But we will always be part of the world going
around even in life or death should we be dust
floating on the water or breath or ash in the wind
after itrsquos been eaten by flames What is important
is this minute this moment together where we
shall remain as if it wouldnrsquot end Submitted by the Unitarian Universalist Church of the Philippines English and Tagalog words written by Rev Tet Gallarado minister of the Bicutan UU Congregation in Manila [These are the Chalice Lightings from the International Council of Unitarians and Universalists for the months of October and November] The Unitarian Christian Church of Chennai (Madras) was founded in 1813 by William Roberts (1768ndash1838)
a Tamil whose original name was Thiruvengatam As a teenager he was recruited to work on a British East
India Company ship only to find that the lsquoagentrsquo had sold him as a slave Freed in London three years later he
became a servant in the captainrsquos household where he learned to read in English and was introduced to
Christianity In 1789 he was baptised as an Anglican and took an English name
Roberts always had trouble with the doctrine of the Trinity however which was resolved when he discovered
Unitarianism in 1793 After studying the works of Joseph Priestley and Theophilus Lindsey he returned to
Madras and began instructing others about Unitarianism Meetings of ten families commenced before a small
chapel was built in 1813 using Tamil liturgy modelled on Lindseyrsquos Reformed Prayer Book Roberts wrote to
the London Unitarian Society asking for books and other help and that body paid for the printing of his
Tamil-language material
The chapel was used by the congregation for almost 200 years before it was replaced by a new building on
the same site 2009 Roberts died in 1838 and was succeeded by his son William jr whose ministry lasted
until 1885 Later ministers were Revs Moses Benjamin N A Samuel and Merlin Gabriel whose son Rev
Harrison Kingsley Gabriel has led the church since 1995 The UCCC is a member of the Indian Council of
Unitarian Churches along with the Khasi Hills Unitarians in the northeast of the country
4
THE MEIJI RESTORATION
By Peter Crawford
I can state unequivocally that my favourite country is Japan Its crime-rate is so low that the police have to
invent crime and other problems to keep themselves busy The cities and towns avoid the preposterous shoe-
box dystopia high-rise that seems to afflict other nationsrsquo cities Of course precaution against earthquakes is
a major reason for keeping the cities towns and villages reasonably low-rise something like a compact
version our workerrsquos towns in the Hunter Valley The countryside is an artists dream A place like Hokkaido
is like a mini-Canada ndash a snowbound paradise with high hills rushing streams and big black bears and
monkeys haunting the pristine forests Meanwhile Okinawa is a mini-Hawaii with coral coasts a subtropical
climate palm trees and local bananas as sweet as honey
An historic town like Kamakura the centre of a medieval Buddhist empire and now a tourist destination
may seem like a town en fecircte I once wandered to the railway station there one chilly afternoon and there
were rows of lanterns everywhere ndash reds golds and enchanting colours ndash and little stalls where you could
purchase a range of small foods I met two Mormon missionaries there that evening who told me they had
worked the area for two years but had not recruited so much as one Japanese ldquoEveryone is politerdquo they told
me ldquobut they all simply say we are Buddhistrdquo
Meanwhile around cities like Osaka there are mighty medieval castles terrifying and forbidding places that
now provide family weekend outings It was not always so ndash they resonate with a fierce Shogunate tradition
of bloodshed and mayhem and local power in times gone by And for the education of the people they pre-
sent all the fine steel and armaments those times This paraphernalia of medieval re-enactment and warfare
impresses the visitor as much as its terrifying European equivalents
The coastal and fertile areas are massively populated and the great industrial spine of Nippon Incorporated
probably festoons Honshu for a thousand kilometres or more The so-called rural areas seem as densely
populated as our quarter-acre block suburbs Some rural areas with their miniature rice farms seemed to me
as restricted as a suburb like Redfern in Sydney Yet once you get away to the eighty percent of Japan that is
not Nippon Incorporated you come to the aesthetic of the Honshu countryside where of course the ultimate
showpiece is Mt Fuji
Below Fuji is a lake where you can stay at beguiling inns near a spacious and very beautiful lake To the fit
walker who speaks Japanese or who can travel with a Japanese-speaking companion the hiking and touring
in the hills and to the inns for a warm reception is a great experience to be had The Japanese are scrupulous-
ly clean people When first intruded upon in the 16th Century by Portuguese and Dutch traders they were
utterly appalled by the unwashed stinking adventurers who had dared enter their sacred land At that time
Europeans literally didnt wash while Japanese maintained a ritual cleanliness every day
Now for those unaware of the fact Christianity is a subversive religion that teaches a militant ethic of
universalism and church control The Japanese became aware of the fact that Catholics were as loyal to the
Pope as they were to the Shogun (the power before the revival of imperial power in the 19th Century) Their
own Shinto religion revered national heroes nature and the emperor The Japanese elites soon had no time
for the Western religion ndash Buddhism was contemplative and deeply embedded and thus secure In the early
17th Century the feudal lords drove the Christians out with great cruelty often employing crucifixion as a
means of eliminating and terrorising Catholics The Calvinist Dutch traders were allowed to keep trading in
small outposts but the Catholic Portuguese were not
In 1854 the strident new nation of the United States decided to challenge Japanrsquos 250-year isolation
President Millard Fillmore sent Commodore Perry to insist that Japan open its ports to international trade
Perryrsquos sailors marched to a local commander whom they believed (quite wrongly) held the real power The
landed sailors marched in full colours of red white and blue with bands playing lsquoWhen Johnny Comes
Marching Home They were stunned by the fairy tale beauty of the villages and the petite civilised qualities
of everything around The locals were entranced by the colourful new arrivals The sailors were courteously
received and conned but not at first allowed to really understand what was going on Commodore Perry told
his beguiling hosts that he would give them a year or two to think about opening up or face the full weight
of American imperial aggression On his return the Japanese came to some compromise
5
Shortly after in 1860 America became involved in its own civil war over slavery and the preservation of the
Union Meanwhile between 1855 and 1868 a whole new power structure emerged in Japan with the old
Tokugawa Shogunate displaced and an empowered imperial Meiji restoration The process of proceeding
from medieval localisms to a modern centralised state took all of fourteen years The process was not easy
Local revolts were common and assassinations and a civil war of sorts were all part of the picture as Japan
rose from its feudal slumbers But in 1868 the young Meiji then aged fourteen was placed on the newly em-
powered Chrysanthemum Throne and performed as a sober and resolute ruler until his death aged 67 in
1911 He was capably steered and advised by the bureaucratic warriors who supervised his ascension
An underlying theme of the new Meiji rulers was lsquofokuku kyōheirsquo (rich nation strong military) The first aim
of the wily and highly prescient leaders of the new Japan was to avoid the fate of the rest of the world which
was rapidly falling under Western domination The Japanese rulers witnessed the fall of Vietnam to France
the conquest of India and the repeated humiliation of China by British French and Russian intrusions
Although it hurt somewhat they sidestepped an anti-Western narrative lsquoRepel the barbariansrsquo was replaced
by lsquoKnowledge shall be sought throughout the world to invigorate the foundations of imperial rulersquo
As Arnold Toynbee argues societies confronted by enemies with more powerful weapons and technology
must either adapt or perish The Japanese quickly decided to adapt As a proud and superior people with a
rational and committed set of bureaucrats at the top this was possible in Japan more than elsewhere Military
threats from within were also put down The samurai lost their feudal rights and were pensioned off and sent
to Hokkaido Local power elites had their powers removed The readers of Japanese history of the period are
amazed at the systematic progress of Japan from feudalism to some sort of parliamentary government ndash
parliamentary but by no means democratic That did not come until after World War II
The Meiji hired hundreds of Western advisers with expertise in such fields as education mining banking
law military affairs and transportation to remodel Japans institutions Conversely thousands of Japanese
students were sent to universities in the West even as a system of Imperial Universities was established in
the major cities in Japan A Constitution promulgated in 1889 established an elected House of Represent-
atives and an appointed House of Peers However only 2 of the population were eligible to vote any bills
passed by the lower house had to be approved by the upper house and the Cabinet was directly responsible
to the Emperor
The projects to build up the new economic system were costly Powerful feudal families were chosen to
fulfill this destiny ndash the present-day Mitsui and Mitsubishi conglomerates among others had their origins in
Japanese fiefdoms and merchant houses They took over production and manufacturing heavily favoured by
government subsidies and official protectionism Others who supported the Meiji faction in their rise to
power found themselves richly rewarded with government largesse and favours
Despite all the vicissitudes of altered business circumstances and war they were mighty then and remain
mighty today The Japanese government will not allow them to fall despite any setbacks This of course
gives the lie to modern free market advocates who claim as did our PM Tony Abbot lsquono country ever
became great through subsidiesrsquo Well what about Japan
Of course there was a lot more than subsidies that made Japan great A land tax instituted in 1873 was the
main source of government revenue and it fell heavily on the peasants At times the price of rice dropped
and the peasants suffered However the people worked long and hard with all the vitality of an East Asian
people ndash diligent dutiful traditional and loyal to emperor and native land No culture of arrogance religious
triumphalism and foreign exploitation rules the hearts and minds of the Japanese people as it does for
example throughout the Middle East in countries like Saudi Arabia No culture of immigration like that of
the US or Australia was tolerated nor is it tolerated today Multiculturalism has absolutely no place in the
Japanese paradigm
What the Japanese cannot do themselves they generally wonrsquot do They will import resources from all over
the world but they will do the value-added processes themselves They were like this in the early years of the
Meiji Restoration and they are like this today Generally as Japan rose in the late 19th Century the people
worked and often suffered in silence Women of course were particularly exploited Their conditions in the
textile factories could scarcely have been better than those in England at the same time Yet just as in
England the Industrial Revolution started around textiles and progressed to shipbuilding and heavy industries
In an amazingly short time Japan became the only major exporter of manufactured goods in Asia
6
Women however could work as factory fodder farm hands or if they were lucky enter the lowly-paid yet
congenial occupation of primary teaching One exception for women however was in the area of medicine
which they entered in force well before they did in the United States By the 1870s education was made
compulsory for all Japanese children although four years was seen as sufficient and the families of school-
age children were heavily taxed to pay for it The adage lsquono community with an illiterate family nor a
family with an illiterate personrsquo became a guiding principle Suddenly an illiterate people became literate
and educated in all areas Meanwhile the numbers of Japanese increased dramatically from 30 million at the
time of the Meiji Restoration to about 70 million by the time of his death in 1911
Mountainous Japan had never had a road system worthy of the name relying largely on marine transport for
both goods and passengers In conjunction with the steam-powered spinning mills for silk and cotton rail-
ways were also built ndash but in its typical fashion the government insisted that the engines and rolling stock
were built in Japan and that locals were trained by the Western contractors to build and operate them Proper
sealed roads were also built at a similarly impressive rate as the railways were
As the 19th Century came to an end Japanese industry became diversified and sophisticated In the 1870s
when the Japanese decided upon building a navy they relied on two ships imported from Europe in order to
begin By the 1905 they had made their own sophisticated set of ships which under the British-trained and
influenced Admiral Toga were able to sink the pride of the Russian fleet in one swift twenty-four hour battle
in the Strait of Tsushima In the same Russo-Japanese War tens of thousands of troops were able to storm
the great Russian fortress of Port Arthur in Manchuria and drive a sizeable Russian army back into Siberia
In this terrible battle Japan committed 357000 troops and lost 57000 dead The Russians lost 27000
retreating in disarray and disillusion
The Japanese had employed the best of modern armaments copied from American and European weaponry
but largely made by themselves Not bad for a people who just fifty years earlier had been fighting clan
battles with muskets and bows and arrows shielded only by medieval chainmail After this war Japan
effectively gained control over Manchuria Korea the Kurile Islands and the southern half of the large island
of Sakhalin north of Hokkaido The Russians were spared a much worse humiliation when the US President
Theodore Roosevelt mediated a peace treaty in Portsmouth New Hampshire in which Japan dropped its
demand for an indemnity (Roosevelt won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1906 for that achievement)
Ten years before their victories over Russia the Japanese had used their new weapons and European military
practice to defeat China in the First Sino-Japanese War of 1895 This gave them possession of Taiwan
which they ruled for the next 50 years in a liberal and benign fashion with an amazing respect for the indi-
genous peoples of the island The Chinese had not treated them at all well since the island was recovered
from the Dutch in the 18th Century The Japanese even established an Imperial University in Taipei
Ironically Japanrsquos very success in Taiwan was a major cause of its long-term imperial downfall If Taiwan
could be ruled so easily why not China itself After all had not the still extant non-Chinese Manchu dynasty
ruled China comparatively peacefully for a period of 250 years There were only ten million Manchu ruling
forty times as many Chinese Why couldnt the Japanese numbering 60 million enjoy the same imperial
experience The Japanese began to dream big imperial dreams and for this they were to suffer very greatly as
a people fifty years later
So Japan aspired to be a mighty power and it became one The Japanese people were dragged unwillingly
onto the world stage when they had been happy to live in a stable homogenous and very beautiful society
They were forced by American capitalism to join the modern world and a terrible beauty was born
[This concludes Peterrsquos three-part series on Japan based on his trip there in January The earlier parts were
printed in the FebruaryMarch and JuneJuly issues which are archived on the church website
Emperor Meiji whose reign name was Mutsuhito was succeeded by his son Yosihito (1912ndash26) followed
by the latterrsquos son Hirohito (1926ndash89) It is claimed that the Emperors were all members of a single dynasty
that goes back to 660 BCE which makes it the longest-standing ruling family in the world That would still
be true if the first 14 Emperors who are considered legendary are excluded from the total of 125 rulers
Just for the record the Tokugawa Shoganate (1603ndash1868) was a period during which members of that family
acted as military dictators who ostensibly protected the various Emperors]
7
JAPANESE LANDMARKS
Senso-ji Temple Tokyo
Peace Bell Hiroshima
Nakanoshima Park Osaka
Great Buddha Kamakura
Temple City Nara
Botanical Garden Kyoto
[Nara was the capital of Japan in 710ndash794 after which the imperial court moved to nearby Kyoto until 1868
Tokyo (formerly called Edo) was the headquarters of the Tokugawas while Kamakura to the south was the
seat of an earlier Shogunate that ended in 1333 All of these cities are on the main island of Honshu]
8
YOU WENT THE WRONG WAY OLD KING LOUIE
Louis the Sixteenth was the King of France in 1789
He was worse than Louis the Fifteenth
He was worse than Louis the Fourteenth
He was worse than Louis the Thirteenth
He was the worst since Louis the First
King Louis was living like a king but the people were living rotten
So the people they started an uprising which they called the French Revolution
And of course you remember their battle cry which will never be forgotten
You went the wrong way Old King
Louie
You made the population cry
rsquoCause all you did was sit and pet
With Marie Antoinette
In your place at Versailles
And now the countryrsquos gone kablooie
So we are giving you the air
That oughta teach you not to
Spend all your time fooling rsquoround
At the Folies Bergegravere
If you had been a nicer king
We wouldnt do a thing
But you were bad you must admit
Wersquore gonna take you and the Queen
Down to the guillotine
And shorten you a little bit
You came the wrong way Old King
Louie
And now you ainrsquot got far to go
Too bad you wonrsquot be here to see
That great big Eiffel Tower
Or Brigitte Bardot
To you King Louie we say fooey
You disappointed all of France
But then what else could we expect
From a king in silk stockings
And pink satin pants
You filled your stomach with chop suey
And also crecircpe suzettes and steak
And when they told your wife Marie
That nobody had bread she said
ldquoLet rsquoem eat cakerdquo
Wersquore gonna take you and the Queen
Down to the guillotine
Itrsquos somewhere in the heart of town
And when that fellarsquos through
With what hersquos gonna do
Yoursquoll have no place to hang your
crown
You came the wrong way Old King
Louie
Now we must put you on the shelf
Thatrsquos why the people are revolting
rsquocause Louie
Yoursquore pretty revolting yourself
Allan Sherman (1963)
Understandably nothing funny was ever written about the French Wars of Religion so this will have to do
Allan Sherman (1924ndash73) was a famous Jewish-American writer of comic parodies based on existing songs
and even pieces of classical music This song begins with a riff of lsquoLa Marseillesrsquo but the verses are based on
lsquoYou Came a Long Way from St Louisrsquo composed in 1948 by Bob Russell and John Benson Brooks It was
recorded in Shermanrsquos third album My Son the Nut released in 1963
Born Allan Copelon in Chicago Sherman took his motherrsquos maiden name after his parents divorced He
attended the University of Illinois and wrote a humour column for the student newspaper He became a tele-
vision writer and producer of game shows in the 1950s before he turned his hobby of writing parodies to better
use in the 1960s His first album My Son the Folksinger came out in 1962 followed by My Son the
Celebrity but his best-known song was lsquoHello Muddah Hello Faddahrsquo released as a single in 1963
Sydney Keith lsquoBobrsquo Russell (1914ndash70) was a songwriter chiefly a lyricist who started with vaudeville songs
and later wrote musical scores for movies He co-wrote lsquoHe Ainrsquot Heavy Hersquos My Brotherrsquo with Bobby Scott
in 1960 John Benson Brooks (1917ndash99) was a pianist arranger and composer who worked with a number of
jazz and blues songwriters amongst others over his lengthy career
As always these songs need to be heard in order to be fully appreciated ndash just search wwwyoutubecom
9
I HEARD THE BELLS ON CHRISTMAS DAY
I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old familiar carols play
and wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth good-will to men
And thought how as the day had come
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along
The unbroken song
Of peace on earth good-will to men
Till ringing singing on its way
The world revolved from night to day
A voice a chime
A chant sublime
Of peace on earth good-will to men
Then from each black accursed mouth
The cannon thundered in the South
And with the sound
The carols drowned
Of peace on earth good-will to men
It was as if an earthquake rent
The hearth-stones of a continent
And made forlorn
The households born
Of peace on earth good-will to men
And in despair I bowed my head
ldquoThere is no peace on earthrdquo I said
ldquoFor hate is strong
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth good-will to menrdquo
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep
ldquoGod is not dead nor doth He sleep
The Wrong shall fail
The Right prevail
With peace on earth good-will to menrdquo
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1863)
This poem was written on Christmas Day 1863 at the height of the American Civil War Longfellowrsquos son
Charles had enlisted in the Unionist army without his fatherrsquos permission and was severely wounded in battle
in Virginia shortly before that time He eventually recovered but he did not return to military service
For reasons that are unclear the poem was first published in 1865 in a magazine called Our Young Folks It was
first set to music by the English organist John Baptiste Calkin in 1872 and that version has been recorded by
singers as various as Johnny Cash and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir (The verses relating to the Civil War are
usually left out however)
As everyone hopefully knows Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807ndash1882) was a Unitarian born into a family
of left-wing Congregationalists William Ellery Channing was a friend of the family having attend Harvard
with Longfellowrsquos father and he met Ralph Waldo Emerson in later life though his independent theology did
not fully embrace Transcendentalism (See the feature article in the AprilMay 2009 for the full story)
10
ALEXANDER (Part 4)
By Patrick Bernard
In 1966 the first post-scriptum to Alexanderrsquos story was written in a most unexpected place and circum-stances By the end of June of that year Mauricersquos existence had changed dramatically taking a new but not all that unpredictable course Due to a succession of events that may be told in detail later on he had hurled himself into a nomadic lifestyle trekking across Lapland and then having sailed leisurely from lake to lake on an old-fashioned steamer from the north to the south of Finland he ended up in Helsinki Possessed with the freewheeling spirit of those times he then decided without a second thought to hitchhike from the lsquoLand of the Midnight Sunrsquo with reindeer antlers precariously tied to his backpack all the way across Eastern Europe to Constantinople the sublime gate to the Orient Mildly disappointed when he arrived there he found Istanbul instead of Constantinople ndash but the splendour of Byzantium lingered on as the fragrance of mimosa does long after its bloom has faded Stunned and unsure as to whether he was in a dream or in Heaven he sat for hours admiring the Hagia Sophia1 the Byzantine Basilica completed in 537AD which for many centuries had proudly defied gravity with its dome reputedly the largest in the world The Ottomans would then meticulously and methodically vandalise the building a millennium later soon after they had conquered Constantinople on 29 May 1453 To add insult to injury this great historical centre of Christianity was then literally nailed to the ground with four minarets
Cross-section drawing of the Hagia Sophia in 537AD
The Hagia Sophia today
1 Hagia Sophia from the Greek Holy Wisdom was a Greek Orthodox Christian patriarchal basilica in Constantinople (now Istanbul)
11
While admiring this desecrated shrine Maurice met and befriended a young French poet called Philippe
who might have been appropriately dressed for an elegant cocktail party in Northern Europe but not for the
sweltering heat the stench and the dust of Istanbul He was one of those individuals who stubbornly adhere
to specific sartorial standards no matter how incongruous or uncomfortable like those sweaty European ex-
patriate civil servants one used to encounter in various colonial outposts of the tropics Maurice admired
Philippersquos defiant attire but he also found it slightly ridiculous and teased him about it for the next few days
Philippe did not mind as he was clearly accustomed to such jibes and he enjoyed play-acting the fop to a
receptive audience
The world being indeed a very small place this overdressed Alsatian bard was also the scion of a prominent
family of medical practitioners in his hometown of Strasbourg Having similar interests and sensitivities this
pair of drifters became travelling companions for a while although like most misfits they generally preferred
to be alone Philippe was short chubby and eloquent while Maurice was tall skinny and laconic They were a
mismatch but their obvious differences didnrsquot seem to matter to them This odd duo wandered the backstreets
and the bazaars of Istanbul visited the inevitable tourist sites absorbed the sounds and fragrances of the Orient
and ended up in a seedy bar drinking too much Raqi2 while philosophising on the collapse of Byzantium
In truth there were no alternative affordable locations for their libations as all bars in Istanbul appeared
seedy if not sleazy which made these shady dives all the more appealing to two middle class Western
adolescents seeking the frisson of exotic squalor Indeed no serious traveller wants to get sloshed in lsquonice
barsrsquo frequented by lsquonice peoplersquo and besides as we all know lsquonice peoplersquo have a tendency to be much
nastier than they appear For the audacious bourgeois adventurer seediness and sleaze are essential pre-
requisites of all urban explorations
It was in such a drinking hole more reminiscent of an odorous public toilet than a comfortable pub that one
evening in one of those intoxicated moments of youthful recklessness that cements long-lasting friendships
that Maurice and Philippe decided to emulate Lord Byron and swim across the Bosphorus Strait under the
cover of darkness to avoid police detection and certain arrest A couple of young German tourists called
Ursula and Thomas whom they had met in the flea-infested hotel near the Grand Bazaar where they all
stayed at offered to drive them in their Volkswagen minibus to their launching point take care of all their
belongings and wait for them at an agreed spot on the other side of the Bosphorus Strait the Asian side near
the Beylerbeyi Sarayi (Beylerbeyi Palace)
Maurice who had decided to trust them convinced a more circumspect Philippe that even if all their belong-
ings disappeared they could always go to the French Consulate and ask for assistance To use an expression
in vogue at the time one could say that for a generation that sincerely wanted to make the world a better
place ldquoit wouldnrsquot have been cool to rip each other offrdquo although later on many of those well-intended lsquoBaby
Boomersrsquo would get over their romantic idealism and returning to the fold they would prove to be as rapa-
cious as their forefathers To minimise risks and efforts they chose the narrowest section of the strait and
began their journey in front of the Ccedilirağan Surayi (Ccedilirağan Palace) which had been in ruins since 1909 but
would later be restored and converted into yet another ostentatious luxury hotel sometime around 1991
The Ccedilırağan Palace seen from the Bosphorus Strait
2 An alcoholic spirit drink distilled from grain grapes plums and flavoured with aniseed
12
This short aquatic trip from Europe to Asia was perilous if not downright stupid but it was also an adven-
ture neither would ever forget The water on the edge of the Bosphorus was a tepid odorous brew of
effluents and diesel fuel At first our swimmers had to paddle through floating islands of detritus and dead
creatures in various stages of decomposition but soon due to the salubrious effect of water currents things
got more pleasant Away from the shoreline the boys were at last able to pause to admire the stars and the
city lights flickering and sparkling over the dark flapping waves A mighty cruise ship went by with her pro-
pellers stomping and chopping the waters gliding by serenely with utter confidence in her great power
For a few long minutes Maurice and Philippe thought they were going to be drawn into a fatal whirlpool and
minced by this metallic behemoth but on this occasion fate if there is such a thing decided to spare them
Fishermen who spotted them in the glow of their kerosene lamps at first asked if they required some help
but as the boys kept swimming trying to explain that they were fine these Good Samaritans sailed on
joking among themselves puzzled and amused by the absurdity of these wayward Westerners whom they
ended up cursing for disturbing the fish
Being somewhat socially inept Maurice had since early childhood disliked all team sports As a matter of
fact he had disliked all sports in general considering such physical endeavours as complete wastes of time
either as a participant or particularly as a spectator In any case he considered competition to be one of the
most subversive of all human activities This being said he had periodically enjoyed some individual sports
such as tennis or running for any distance over a thousand metres As long as he was on his own being only
responsible to and for himself he found such exercise tolerable if not pleasurable He had for many years en-
joyed swimming long distances and had even hoped that one day he would swim across the English Channel
but that project would never eventuate
Although he had navigated in a sea of uncertainty for most of his young life and was chronically griped by
self-doubt he often wondered on the futility of all his endeavours but on that warm summer night of 1966
swimming between Europe and Asia across that fabled body of water which links the Mediterranean and the
Sea of Marmara to the Black Sea leading to his beloved Russia he had never felt more alive In any case this
was a feat worthy of Uncle Alexander to whom he always liked to compare himself Swimming calmly and
rambling on in one of his usual silent soliloquies he was brought back to more practical considerations by
Philippe who seemed to be paddling away with some difficulty bordering on panic
Maurice lightheartedly convinced his new friend that this was not a race ndash rather they had all the time in the
world to enjoy this wonderful night and he should therefore save his energy if he wanted to make it to the
other side Philippe asked ldquoDonrsquot you have any fearsrdquo Maurice answered between breaststrokes ldquoOf course
I dohellipJust like everyone elsehellipBut if I listened to all my fears I would never do anythingrdquo ldquoToo truerdquo
responded Philippe who was easily convinced by this line of thought
Having both conquered their fears their youthful enthusiasm and health triumphed and at three-thirty in the
morning they landed in Asia near the Beylerbeyi Palace which had been the last place of captivity of the de-
posed Sultan Abdulhamid II from 1912 until his death there in 1918 Unfortunately since 1973 this elegant
historical building has been dwarfed by the Bosphorus Bridge
The Beylerbeyi Sarayi (Beylerbeyi Palace) and the 1973 Bosphorus Bridge linking Europe to Asia
13
Punctual and dependable Ursula and Thomas were already on location walking up and down the embank-
ment genuinely concerned for these two foolhardy Frenchmen although they hardly knew them After all this
was the 1960s when trusting and caring for even complete strangers were highly fashionable sentiments But in
that balmy summer night of 1966 having anxiously feared for the worst Ursula and Thomas were greatly
relieved when the boys emerged from the black waters exhausted but ecstatic For anyone else this could be
considered to have been an insignificant event but for Maurice and Philippe it would remain one of those rare
defining moments in their lives It is the sum of such experiences not the accumulation of lsquostuffrsquo no matter
how splendid that lsquostuffrsquo might be which gives meaning if not purpose to our existence
The four new friends then followed the happy ending with jubilant celebrations in the overgrown gardens
surrounding the Beylerbeyi Palace As Maurice and Philippe dried up they sat all there surrounded by flat-
tened plastic bottles broken glass cigarette butts weeds and thorny bushes but for them on that particular
night this was the Garden of Eden They talked endlessly and drank too much cheap wine waiting for the sun
to arise from beyond the Far East The uninhibited impulse to reveal the secrets of our souls is one of the most
precious treasures of youth With age too many of us deteriorate into poor listeners and crushing mono-
logists Without even noticing it we become cynical guarded and judgmental with a dwindling ability to
enjoy the company of others How much more intoxicating it is to share dreams rather than memories Half a
century later Maurice often wonders ldquoWhere are they all now these ephemeral merry companions who ap-
peared and disappeared from my firmament like shooting starsrdquo
On the edge of a new continent which might as well have been a new planet Maurice and Philippe spent the
next couple of days retelling each other the saga of their swim across the Bosphorus Strait in constantly
evolving details every new version of their story slightly more embellished and heroic than the previous one
which in Philippersquos case truly was lsquopoetic licensersquo Eventually they continued their journey to the excava-
tion site of the Homeric city of Troy which had lain buried for 2500 years During this pilgrimage Philippe
took great pleasure in reading aloud relevant passages of The Iliad but he seemed profoundly fatigued and
felt that it was time for him to go home He farewelled Maurice with an open invitation to visit him in Stras-
bourg whenever he wished and they parted ways on the most amicable terms
Istanbul in 1966
Istanbul now 3
3 In 1966 none of the high-rise buildings that appear in this photo existed and the two suspension bridges that cross the
Bosphorus had not yet been constructed either The Hagia Sophia appears in both photos
14
Freer than he would ever be again Maurice then ventured further and deeper into the Middle East which was a much safer and more welcoming region in those days Like so many adventurers poets and mystics before or since he willingly lost himself in that part of the world in order to lsquofind himselfrsquo Whether he did so or not is irrelevant - only the quest mattered The Middle East was an unparalleled feast for the senses The tumultuous multitudes the noise the music the fragrant foods the apparent vitality and even the still dormant hostility were all mesmerising charms he could not resist He dived into it and disappeared for the next several months as a submarine does beneath the waves much to his parentsrsquo chagrin To follow onersquos whims to live life to the fullest often demands a monstrous indifference to the suffering of those close to us He disappeared simply because one could easily do so in those blessed days before personal computers the internet mobile phones digital cameras and all that electronic gadgetry which has so impoverished our lives and withered our ability to exist in complete symbiosis with the world around us in complete anonymity if we so wish To paraphrase Milan Kundera lsquolife is now always elsewherersquo It is neither Dariusrsquo ghost nor the splendours of Persepolis nor the ruins of Babylon that Maurice remembers most from these peregrinations but a humble present he received from a gentle young woman in Isfahan in the heart of Iran when she farewelled him with three red roses she had carefully wrapped and placed in a small wooden box adorned with intricate Persian miniatures For the last fifty years this treasured gift with its three dried-up flowers has held pride and place in the successive homes he has temporarily occupied in his nomadic life In spite of the dark decades that followed in her turbulent country he often thinks about this young woman of Isfahan and hopes that life has been as kind to her as she was to him A few months later the Middle East exploded into a fire that has not been extinguished to this day4 ___________________________ 4 Ie the Six Day War of June 1967
A GOOD YEAR FOR MATHEMATICIANS In keeping with the article twelve months ago on British chemists born in 1766 this year we have three pro-minent mathematicians who were born in 1667 ndash two on the same day The first was a Frenchman Abraham de Moivre born into a Huguenot family on 26 May and educated at the Protestant Academy of Sedan until it was suppressed in 1682 He went on to study logic at Saumur and physics in Paris but the repression of his denomination by Louis XIV caused him to move to London in 1687 There he met Edmund Halley and Isaac Newton and he was admitted to the Royal Society in 1689 after writ-ing two papers that generalised the latterrsquos theorems Halley then encouraged him to study astronomy which led him to propose a prescient theory affecting elliptical orbits He proceeded to do further work in analytic geometry and wrote four books on probability followed by a fundamental theorem of what is now known as complex analysis (involving the lsquoimaginaryrsquo number i = radicminus1) It is said that he correctly calculated the date of his death on 27 November 1754 Also born on 26 May 1667 and of Huguenot descent was the Swiss mathematician Johann Bernoulli Educa-ted at Basel University with his older brother Jacob he became a professor at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands They both specialised in the new fields of calculus and differential equations which had important applications in physics Amazingly Johann developed a proof of de Moivrersquos proposal affecting elliptical orbits in 1710 amongst many other works The Bernoullis including a third brother were the first of three generations of prominent mathematicians and scientists Johann died in 1748 William Whiston was born in England on 09 December the son of a rector and studied at Cambridge He became a tutor there left to join the ministry and returned to become Sir Isaac Newtonrsquos understudy in 1701 He took the Lucasian Chair of Mathematics the next year when Newton retired but unlike his lsquocloset Unitarianrsquo predecessor he did not conceal his radical religious views Instead he gave lectures published books and even debated the doctrine of the Trinity with two archbishops after which he was expelled from Cambridge in 1710 He went on to a controversial career in both science and religion writing many books on both subjects Despite his unorthodoxy and never having been made a Member he often gave lectures to the Royal Society He co-authored a chart of the Solar System showing the paths of various comets and produced one of the first maps of the Earthrsquos magnetic field over southern England He died in 1752
15
(The Reformation That Failed contrsquod)
The final phase of the wars is known as lsquothe War of the Three Henrysrsquo because it involved King Henry III
Henry of Guise and Henry of Navarre It began when Prince Francis died in 1584 after spending four years
out of the country courting Queen Elizabeth I of England and taking part in William of Orangersquos revolt in the
Spanish Netherlands (present-day Holland and Belgium) As neither he nor Henry III had any children this
made their cousin Henry of Navarre the legal successor to the throne which the Catholic League could not
accept Under pressure from the Guises the king signed an edict in 1585 that suppressed Protestantism and
annulled Henry of Navarrersquos right to the succession in favour of Cardinal Charles de Bourbon
The Catholic League wanted total war against the Huguenots but the king who wanted a settlement insisted
that he had no funds for such a campaign When a Catholic uprising in Paris drove him from the city in 1588
Henry III concluded that the Guises meant to overthrow him His bodyguard assassinated Henry of Guise
and his brother Cardinal Louis de Guise at the Royal Chacircteau de Blois and the king joined forces with his
Protestant cousin However he in turn was assassinated by a Dominican monk in 1589 and Henry of Navarre
became King Henry IV of France
The Catholic League still controlled the north and east of the country but Henry attacked and defeated them in
two battles in Normandy He laid siege to Paris in 1590 until a Spanish army from the Netherlands forced him
back after which the two armies fought until the invaders withdrew at the end of 1592 Henry then realised that
he could never take Paris and rule the whole of France while he was a Protestant so he became a Catholic in
1593 and the Pope revoked his excommunication in exchange for the Churchrsquos supremacy in France
While Henry had committed to reserving all high positions to Catholics he wanted to assure the Huguenots
that he was not a puppet of Spain In 1595 he initiated the Franco-Spanish War in which he also sought to
subdue the few remnants of the Catholic League that refused to recognise his accession This led to another
invasion from the Spanish Netherlands which was stopped at Calais and driven back after which the Peace
of Vervins in 1598 deprived the French rebels of support from Spain Henry then pacified Brittany without
bloodshed and issued the Edict of Nantes which guaranteed the rights of Protestants and ended the wars
In 1599 Henryrsquos childless marriage was annulled and he married Marie dersquo Medici the next year She soon
gave birth to a son who became King Louis XIII when his father was assassinated by a fanatical Catholic in
1610 Marie became his regent until 1617 after which Louis used various means to erode the provisions of
the Edict of Nantes His son Louis XIV was even more hostile to the Huguenots and from 1661 he actively
pressured them to either convert or leave the country Finally his Edict of Fontainebleau in 1865 declared
Protestantism illegal and between 200000 and a million Huguenots emigrated
Some Protestants remained in the mountainous Ceacutevennes region in the southeast where they were largely left
alone In more settled areas many who claimed to have converted practiced their faith in secret suffering
severe penalties if they were detected Ironically religious freedom was restored by Louis XVI in his Edict of
Versailles of 1787 ndash two years before the Revolution and the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen
[This story has a number of interesting historical sidelines starting with the regent queens Catherine and
Marie dersquo Medici Both were scions of the ruling house of Florence which also produced three popes Leo X
who excommunicated Martin Luther Clement VII who granted King Henry VIII of Englandrsquos annulment
and Leo XI who was elected at 69 and died less than a month later
The short-lived King Francis II was married to Mary Stuart Queen of Scots whose mother was the sister of
Francis Duke of Guise She lived in France from the age of five until her husbandrsquos death after which she
returned to rule Scotland Her son James VI succeeded Queen Elizabeth I as King James I of England in
1603 (His great-grandmother Margaret Tudor was King Henry VIIIrsquos sister)
Henry III was the last ruler from the House of Valois whereas Henry IV founded the Bourbon Dynasty His
eldest daughter Elisabeth married King Philip IV of Spain while his youngest Henrietta Maria became the
wife of King Charles I of England Scotland and Ireland Louis XIII died when his elder son was four years
old giving Louis XIV the longest recorded reign (72 years) of any monarch of a sovereign European nation
Known as the lsquoSun Kingrsquo his time was a period of political centralisation economic advancement military
success and empire building in North America India and Africa]
16
MORE ICCU NEWS Just as we go to press the Chalice Lighting for December has arrived
Saat gelap kita terkungkung rasa takut maka nyalakanlah harapan dalam jiwa Saat gelap kita penuh kecurigaan dan prasangka buruk pada sesama maka nyalakanlah kasih dalam hati Saat gelap kita kehilangan sadar mana yang baik dan mana yang jahat maka nyalakanlah hikmat dalam nurani Saat gelap kita merasa bisa berbuat semau kita tanpa ingat Sang Maha Suci dan sesama maka nyalakanlah iman yang dipenuhi kebenaran Gelap ada saat kita abai menyalakan terang Gelap tak bisa diusir dengan marah dan geram sebab gelap akan sirna jika kita menyalakan terang Saat kita menyalakan lentera kita dalam ibadah ini Marilah tak hanya mengundang terang bagi mata jasmani tetapi selalu undang terang bagi mata rohani Yang akan memerdekakan hati serta membawa kebijaksanaan dan kebahagiaan sejati
When it is dark we are surrounded by fear so light hope in your soul When it is dark we are full of distrust and prejudice to the others so light love in your heart When it is dark we lose awareness of good and evil so light wisdom in your conscience When it is dark we feel that we can do whatever we want without remembering The Most Holy One and our neighbors so light faith that is fulfilled with truth Darkness exist when we forget to turn on the light Darkness cannot be expelled with our anger and wrath because darkness will be gone when we turn on the light When we light up our chalice in this worship Let us not only welcoming the light for our physical eyes but always invite the light for our spiritual eyes A light that will free our heart bringing wisdom and real happiness
Submitted by the Unitarian Christian Church of Indonesia Indonesian words (and presumably the English translation) written by its minister Rev Aryanto Nugroho Membership renewals for 2017 are due from 01 January so the best time to pay them will be at the
Christmas Party Those wishing to join our church can use this form by way of application but should
not send payment until their membership is accepted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MEMBERSHIPRENEWAL FORM
I (name) ___________________________________________________ of (address) _________________________________________________ ________________________________ Postcode _________ Phone(s) (home) __________________ (other) ___________________ Email ______________________________________________________ I apply to joinrenew membership in (delete one) the Sydney Unitarian Church and agree to abide by the rules as set down by the Constitution and management of the church Signature ________________________________ Fee enclosed $_____ Cheques should be made payable to Treasurer Sydney Unitarian Church Membership will be valid for the calendar year 2016 Annual membership is $20 and includes the SUN journal subscription to the SUN only is $15
4
THE MEIJI RESTORATION
By Peter Crawford
I can state unequivocally that my favourite country is Japan Its crime-rate is so low that the police have to
invent crime and other problems to keep themselves busy The cities and towns avoid the preposterous shoe-
box dystopia high-rise that seems to afflict other nationsrsquo cities Of course precaution against earthquakes is
a major reason for keeping the cities towns and villages reasonably low-rise something like a compact
version our workerrsquos towns in the Hunter Valley The countryside is an artists dream A place like Hokkaido
is like a mini-Canada ndash a snowbound paradise with high hills rushing streams and big black bears and
monkeys haunting the pristine forests Meanwhile Okinawa is a mini-Hawaii with coral coasts a subtropical
climate palm trees and local bananas as sweet as honey
An historic town like Kamakura the centre of a medieval Buddhist empire and now a tourist destination
may seem like a town en fecircte I once wandered to the railway station there one chilly afternoon and there
were rows of lanterns everywhere ndash reds golds and enchanting colours ndash and little stalls where you could
purchase a range of small foods I met two Mormon missionaries there that evening who told me they had
worked the area for two years but had not recruited so much as one Japanese ldquoEveryone is politerdquo they told
me ldquobut they all simply say we are Buddhistrdquo
Meanwhile around cities like Osaka there are mighty medieval castles terrifying and forbidding places that
now provide family weekend outings It was not always so ndash they resonate with a fierce Shogunate tradition
of bloodshed and mayhem and local power in times gone by And for the education of the people they pre-
sent all the fine steel and armaments those times This paraphernalia of medieval re-enactment and warfare
impresses the visitor as much as its terrifying European equivalents
The coastal and fertile areas are massively populated and the great industrial spine of Nippon Incorporated
probably festoons Honshu for a thousand kilometres or more The so-called rural areas seem as densely
populated as our quarter-acre block suburbs Some rural areas with their miniature rice farms seemed to me
as restricted as a suburb like Redfern in Sydney Yet once you get away to the eighty percent of Japan that is
not Nippon Incorporated you come to the aesthetic of the Honshu countryside where of course the ultimate
showpiece is Mt Fuji
Below Fuji is a lake where you can stay at beguiling inns near a spacious and very beautiful lake To the fit
walker who speaks Japanese or who can travel with a Japanese-speaking companion the hiking and touring
in the hills and to the inns for a warm reception is a great experience to be had The Japanese are scrupulous-
ly clean people When first intruded upon in the 16th Century by Portuguese and Dutch traders they were
utterly appalled by the unwashed stinking adventurers who had dared enter their sacred land At that time
Europeans literally didnt wash while Japanese maintained a ritual cleanliness every day
Now for those unaware of the fact Christianity is a subversive religion that teaches a militant ethic of
universalism and church control The Japanese became aware of the fact that Catholics were as loyal to the
Pope as they were to the Shogun (the power before the revival of imperial power in the 19th Century) Their
own Shinto religion revered national heroes nature and the emperor The Japanese elites soon had no time
for the Western religion ndash Buddhism was contemplative and deeply embedded and thus secure In the early
17th Century the feudal lords drove the Christians out with great cruelty often employing crucifixion as a
means of eliminating and terrorising Catholics The Calvinist Dutch traders were allowed to keep trading in
small outposts but the Catholic Portuguese were not
In 1854 the strident new nation of the United States decided to challenge Japanrsquos 250-year isolation
President Millard Fillmore sent Commodore Perry to insist that Japan open its ports to international trade
Perryrsquos sailors marched to a local commander whom they believed (quite wrongly) held the real power The
landed sailors marched in full colours of red white and blue with bands playing lsquoWhen Johnny Comes
Marching Home They were stunned by the fairy tale beauty of the villages and the petite civilised qualities
of everything around The locals were entranced by the colourful new arrivals The sailors were courteously
received and conned but not at first allowed to really understand what was going on Commodore Perry told
his beguiling hosts that he would give them a year or two to think about opening up or face the full weight
of American imperial aggression On his return the Japanese came to some compromise
5
Shortly after in 1860 America became involved in its own civil war over slavery and the preservation of the
Union Meanwhile between 1855 and 1868 a whole new power structure emerged in Japan with the old
Tokugawa Shogunate displaced and an empowered imperial Meiji restoration The process of proceeding
from medieval localisms to a modern centralised state took all of fourteen years The process was not easy
Local revolts were common and assassinations and a civil war of sorts were all part of the picture as Japan
rose from its feudal slumbers But in 1868 the young Meiji then aged fourteen was placed on the newly em-
powered Chrysanthemum Throne and performed as a sober and resolute ruler until his death aged 67 in
1911 He was capably steered and advised by the bureaucratic warriors who supervised his ascension
An underlying theme of the new Meiji rulers was lsquofokuku kyōheirsquo (rich nation strong military) The first aim
of the wily and highly prescient leaders of the new Japan was to avoid the fate of the rest of the world which
was rapidly falling under Western domination The Japanese rulers witnessed the fall of Vietnam to France
the conquest of India and the repeated humiliation of China by British French and Russian intrusions
Although it hurt somewhat they sidestepped an anti-Western narrative lsquoRepel the barbariansrsquo was replaced
by lsquoKnowledge shall be sought throughout the world to invigorate the foundations of imperial rulersquo
As Arnold Toynbee argues societies confronted by enemies with more powerful weapons and technology
must either adapt or perish The Japanese quickly decided to adapt As a proud and superior people with a
rational and committed set of bureaucrats at the top this was possible in Japan more than elsewhere Military
threats from within were also put down The samurai lost their feudal rights and were pensioned off and sent
to Hokkaido Local power elites had their powers removed The readers of Japanese history of the period are
amazed at the systematic progress of Japan from feudalism to some sort of parliamentary government ndash
parliamentary but by no means democratic That did not come until after World War II
The Meiji hired hundreds of Western advisers with expertise in such fields as education mining banking
law military affairs and transportation to remodel Japans institutions Conversely thousands of Japanese
students were sent to universities in the West even as a system of Imperial Universities was established in
the major cities in Japan A Constitution promulgated in 1889 established an elected House of Represent-
atives and an appointed House of Peers However only 2 of the population were eligible to vote any bills
passed by the lower house had to be approved by the upper house and the Cabinet was directly responsible
to the Emperor
The projects to build up the new economic system were costly Powerful feudal families were chosen to
fulfill this destiny ndash the present-day Mitsui and Mitsubishi conglomerates among others had their origins in
Japanese fiefdoms and merchant houses They took over production and manufacturing heavily favoured by
government subsidies and official protectionism Others who supported the Meiji faction in their rise to
power found themselves richly rewarded with government largesse and favours
Despite all the vicissitudes of altered business circumstances and war they were mighty then and remain
mighty today The Japanese government will not allow them to fall despite any setbacks This of course
gives the lie to modern free market advocates who claim as did our PM Tony Abbot lsquono country ever
became great through subsidiesrsquo Well what about Japan
Of course there was a lot more than subsidies that made Japan great A land tax instituted in 1873 was the
main source of government revenue and it fell heavily on the peasants At times the price of rice dropped
and the peasants suffered However the people worked long and hard with all the vitality of an East Asian
people ndash diligent dutiful traditional and loyal to emperor and native land No culture of arrogance religious
triumphalism and foreign exploitation rules the hearts and minds of the Japanese people as it does for
example throughout the Middle East in countries like Saudi Arabia No culture of immigration like that of
the US or Australia was tolerated nor is it tolerated today Multiculturalism has absolutely no place in the
Japanese paradigm
What the Japanese cannot do themselves they generally wonrsquot do They will import resources from all over
the world but they will do the value-added processes themselves They were like this in the early years of the
Meiji Restoration and they are like this today Generally as Japan rose in the late 19th Century the people
worked and often suffered in silence Women of course were particularly exploited Their conditions in the
textile factories could scarcely have been better than those in England at the same time Yet just as in
England the Industrial Revolution started around textiles and progressed to shipbuilding and heavy industries
In an amazingly short time Japan became the only major exporter of manufactured goods in Asia
6
Women however could work as factory fodder farm hands or if they were lucky enter the lowly-paid yet
congenial occupation of primary teaching One exception for women however was in the area of medicine
which they entered in force well before they did in the United States By the 1870s education was made
compulsory for all Japanese children although four years was seen as sufficient and the families of school-
age children were heavily taxed to pay for it The adage lsquono community with an illiterate family nor a
family with an illiterate personrsquo became a guiding principle Suddenly an illiterate people became literate
and educated in all areas Meanwhile the numbers of Japanese increased dramatically from 30 million at the
time of the Meiji Restoration to about 70 million by the time of his death in 1911
Mountainous Japan had never had a road system worthy of the name relying largely on marine transport for
both goods and passengers In conjunction with the steam-powered spinning mills for silk and cotton rail-
ways were also built ndash but in its typical fashion the government insisted that the engines and rolling stock
were built in Japan and that locals were trained by the Western contractors to build and operate them Proper
sealed roads were also built at a similarly impressive rate as the railways were
As the 19th Century came to an end Japanese industry became diversified and sophisticated In the 1870s
when the Japanese decided upon building a navy they relied on two ships imported from Europe in order to
begin By the 1905 they had made their own sophisticated set of ships which under the British-trained and
influenced Admiral Toga were able to sink the pride of the Russian fleet in one swift twenty-four hour battle
in the Strait of Tsushima In the same Russo-Japanese War tens of thousands of troops were able to storm
the great Russian fortress of Port Arthur in Manchuria and drive a sizeable Russian army back into Siberia
In this terrible battle Japan committed 357000 troops and lost 57000 dead The Russians lost 27000
retreating in disarray and disillusion
The Japanese had employed the best of modern armaments copied from American and European weaponry
but largely made by themselves Not bad for a people who just fifty years earlier had been fighting clan
battles with muskets and bows and arrows shielded only by medieval chainmail After this war Japan
effectively gained control over Manchuria Korea the Kurile Islands and the southern half of the large island
of Sakhalin north of Hokkaido The Russians were spared a much worse humiliation when the US President
Theodore Roosevelt mediated a peace treaty in Portsmouth New Hampshire in which Japan dropped its
demand for an indemnity (Roosevelt won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1906 for that achievement)
Ten years before their victories over Russia the Japanese had used their new weapons and European military
practice to defeat China in the First Sino-Japanese War of 1895 This gave them possession of Taiwan
which they ruled for the next 50 years in a liberal and benign fashion with an amazing respect for the indi-
genous peoples of the island The Chinese had not treated them at all well since the island was recovered
from the Dutch in the 18th Century The Japanese even established an Imperial University in Taipei
Ironically Japanrsquos very success in Taiwan was a major cause of its long-term imperial downfall If Taiwan
could be ruled so easily why not China itself After all had not the still extant non-Chinese Manchu dynasty
ruled China comparatively peacefully for a period of 250 years There were only ten million Manchu ruling
forty times as many Chinese Why couldnt the Japanese numbering 60 million enjoy the same imperial
experience The Japanese began to dream big imperial dreams and for this they were to suffer very greatly as
a people fifty years later
So Japan aspired to be a mighty power and it became one The Japanese people were dragged unwillingly
onto the world stage when they had been happy to live in a stable homogenous and very beautiful society
They were forced by American capitalism to join the modern world and a terrible beauty was born
[This concludes Peterrsquos three-part series on Japan based on his trip there in January The earlier parts were
printed in the FebruaryMarch and JuneJuly issues which are archived on the church website
Emperor Meiji whose reign name was Mutsuhito was succeeded by his son Yosihito (1912ndash26) followed
by the latterrsquos son Hirohito (1926ndash89) It is claimed that the Emperors were all members of a single dynasty
that goes back to 660 BCE which makes it the longest-standing ruling family in the world That would still
be true if the first 14 Emperors who are considered legendary are excluded from the total of 125 rulers
Just for the record the Tokugawa Shoganate (1603ndash1868) was a period during which members of that family
acted as military dictators who ostensibly protected the various Emperors]
7
JAPANESE LANDMARKS
Senso-ji Temple Tokyo
Peace Bell Hiroshima
Nakanoshima Park Osaka
Great Buddha Kamakura
Temple City Nara
Botanical Garden Kyoto
[Nara was the capital of Japan in 710ndash794 after which the imperial court moved to nearby Kyoto until 1868
Tokyo (formerly called Edo) was the headquarters of the Tokugawas while Kamakura to the south was the
seat of an earlier Shogunate that ended in 1333 All of these cities are on the main island of Honshu]
8
YOU WENT THE WRONG WAY OLD KING LOUIE
Louis the Sixteenth was the King of France in 1789
He was worse than Louis the Fifteenth
He was worse than Louis the Fourteenth
He was worse than Louis the Thirteenth
He was the worst since Louis the First
King Louis was living like a king but the people were living rotten
So the people they started an uprising which they called the French Revolution
And of course you remember their battle cry which will never be forgotten
You went the wrong way Old King
Louie
You made the population cry
rsquoCause all you did was sit and pet
With Marie Antoinette
In your place at Versailles
And now the countryrsquos gone kablooie
So we are giving you the air
That oughta teach you not to
Spend all your time fooling rsquoround
At the Folies Bergegravere
If you had been a nicer king
We wouldnt do a thing
But you were bad you must admit
Wersquore gonna take you and the Queen
Down to the guillotine
And shorten you a little bit
You came the wrong way Old King
Louie
And now you ainrsquot got far to go
Too bad you wonrsquot be here to see
That great big Eiffel Tower
Or Brigitte Bardot
To you King Louie we say fooey
You disappointed all of France
But then what else could we expect
From a king in silk stockings
And pink satin pants
You filled your stomach with chop suey
And also crecircpe suzettes and steak
And when they told your wife Marie
That nobody had bread she said
ldquoLet rsquoem eat cakerdquo
Wersquore gonna take you and the Queen
Down to the guillotine
Itrsquos somewhere in the heart of town
And when that fellarsquos through
With what hersquos gonna do
Yoursquoll have no place to hang your
crown
You came the wrong way Old King
Louie
Now we must put you on the shelf
Thatrsquos why the people are revolting
rsquocause Louie
Yoursquore pretty revolting yourself
Allan Sherman (1963)
Understandably nothing funny was ever written about the French Wars of Religion so this will have to do
Allan Sherman (1924ndash73) was a famous Jewish-American writer of comic parodies based on existing songs
and even pieces of classical music This song begins with a riff of lsquoLa Marseillesrsquo but the verses are based on
lsquoYou Came a Long Way from St Louisrsquo composed in 1948 by Bob Russell and John Benson Brooks It was
recorded in Shermanrsquos third album My Son the Nut released in 1963
Born Allan Copelon in Chicago Sherman took his motherrsquos maiden name after his parents divorced He
attended the University of Illinois and wrote a humour column for the student newspaper He became a tele-
vision writer and producer of game shows in the 1950s before he turned his hobby of writing parodies to better
use in the 1960s His first album My Son the Folksinger came out in 1962 followed by My Son the
Celebrity but his best-known song was lsquoHello Muddah Hello Faddahrsquo released as a single in 1963
Sydney Keith lsquoBobrsquo Russell (1914ndash70) was a songwriter chiefly a lyricist who started with vaudeville songs
and later wrote musical scores for movies He co-wrote lsquoHe Ainrsquot Heavy Hersquos My Brotherrsquo with Bobby Scott
in 1960 John Benson Brooks (1917ndash99) was a pianist arranger and composer who worked with a number of
jazz and blues songwriters amongst others over his lengthy career
As always these songs need to be heard in order to be fully appreciated ndash just search wwwyoutubecom
9
I HEARD THE BELLS ON CHRISTMAS DAY
I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old familiar carols play
and wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth good-will to men
And thought how as the day had come
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along
The unbroken song
Of peace on earth good-will to men
Till ringing singing on its way
The world revolved from night to day
A voice a chime
A chant sublime
Of peace on earth good-will to men
Then from each black accursed mouth
The cannon thundered in the South
And with the sound
The carols drowned
Of peace on earth good-will to men
It was as if an earthquake rent
The hearth-stones of a continent
And made forlorn
The households born
Of peace on earth good-will to men
And in despair I bowed my head
ldquoThere is no peace on earthrdquo I said
ldquoFor hate is strong
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth good-will to menrdquo
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep
ldquoGod is not dead nor doth He sleep
The Wrong shall fail
The Right prevail
With peace on earth good-will to menrdquo
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1863)
This poem was written on Christmas Day 1863 at the height of the American Civil War Longfellowrsquos son
Charles had enlisted in the Unionist army without his fatherrsquos permission and was severely wounded in battle
in Virginia shortly before that time He eventually recovered but he did not return to military service
For reasons that are unclear the poem was first published in 1865 in a magazine called Our Young Folks It was
first set to music by the English organist John Baptiste Calkin in 1872 and that version has been recorded by
singers as various as Johnny Cash and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir (The verses relating to the Civil War are
usually left out however)
As everyone hopefully knows Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807ndash1882) was a Unitarian born into a family
of left-wing Congregationalists William Ellery Channing was a friend of the family having attend Harvard
with Longfellowrsquos father and he met Ralph Waldo Emerson in later life though his independent theology did
not fully embrace Transcendentalism (See the feature article in the AprilMay 2009 for the full story)
10
ALEXANDER (Part 4)
By Patrick Bernard
In 1966 the first post-scriptum to Alexanderrsquos story was written in a most unexpected place and circum-stances By the end of June of that year Mauricersquos existence had changed dramatically taking a new but not all that unpredictable course Due to a succession of events that may be told in detail later on he had hurled himself into a nomadic lifestyle trekking across Lapland and then having sailed leisurely from lake to lake on an old-fashioned steamer from the north to the south of Finland he ended up in Helsinki Possessed with the freewheeling spirit of those times he then decided without a second thought to hitchhike from the lsquoLand of the Midnight Sunrsquo with reindeer antlers precariously tied to his backpack all the way across Eastern Europe to Constantinople the sublime gate to the Orient Mildly disappointed when he arrived there he found Istanbul instead of Constantinople ndash but the splendour of Byzantium lingered on as the fragrance of mimosa does long after its bloom has faded Stunned and unsure as to whether he was in a dream or in Heaven he sat for hours admiring the Hagia Sophia1 the Byzantine Basilica completed in 537AD which for many centuries had proudly defied gravity with its dome reputedly the largest in the world The Ottomans would then meticulously and methodically vandalise the building a millennium later soon after they had conquered Constantinople on 29 May 1453 To add insult to injury this great historical centre of Christianity was then literally nailed to the ground with four minarets
Cross-section drawing of the Hagia Sophia in 537AD
The Hagia Sophia today
1 Hagia Sophia from the Greek Holy Wisdom was a Greek Orthodox Christian patriarchal basilica in Constantinople (now Istanbul)
11
While admiring this desecrated shrine Maurice met and befriended a young French poet called Philippe
who might have been appropriately dressed for an elegant cocktail party in Northern Europe but not for the
sweltering heat the stench and the dust of Istanbul He was one of those individuals who stubbornly adhere
to specific sartorial standards no matter how incongruous or uncomfortable like those sweaty European ex-
patriate civil servants one used to encounter in various colonial outposts of the tropics Maurice admired
Philippersquos defiant attire but he also found it slightly ridiculous and teased him about it for the next few days
Philippe did not mind as he was clearly accustomed to such jibes and he enjoyed play-acting the fop to a
receptive audience
The world being indeed a very small place this overdressed Alsatian bard was also the scion of a prominent
family of medical practitioners in his hometown of Strasbourg Having similar interests and sensitivities this
pair of drifters became travelling companions for a while although like most misfits they generally preferred
to be alone Philippe was short chubby and eloquent while Maurice was tall skinny and laconic They were a
mismatch but their obvious differences didnrsquot seem to matter to them This odd duo wandered the backstreets
and the bazaars of Istanbul visited the inevitable tourist sites absorbed the sounds and fragrances of the Orient
and ended up in a seedy bar drinking too much Raqi2 while philosophising on the collapse of Byzantium
In truth there were no alternative affordable locations for their libations as all bars in Istanbul appeared
seedy if not sleazy which made these shady dives all the more appealing to two middle class Western
adolescents seeking the frisson of exotic squalor Indeed no serious traveller wants to get sloshed in lsquonice
barsrsquo frequented by lsquonice peoplersquo and besides as we all know lsquonice peoplersquo have a tendency to be much
nastier than they appear For the audacious bourgeois adventurer seediness and sleaze are essential pre-
requisites of all urban explorations
It was in such a drinking hole more reminiscent of an odorous public toilet than a comfortable pub that one
evening in one of those intoxicated moments of youthful recklessness that cements long-lasting friendships
that Maurice and Philippe decided to emulate Lord Byron and swim across the Bosphorus Strait under the
cover of darkness to avoid police detection and certain arrest A couple of young German tourists called
Ursula and Thomas whom they had met in the flea-infested hotel near the Grand Bazaar where they all
stayed at offered to drive them in their Volkswagen minibus to their launching point take care of all their
belongings and wait for them at an agreed spot on the other side of the Bosphorus Strait the Asian side near
the Beylerbeyi Sarayi (Beylerbeyi Palace)
Maurice who had decided to trust them convinced a more circumspect Philippe that even if all their belong-
ings disappeared they could always go to the French Consulate and ask for assistance To use an expression
in vogue at the time one could say that for a generation that sincerely wanted to make the world a better
place ldquoit wouldnrsquot have been cool to rip each other offrdquo although later on many of those well-intended lsquoBaby
Boomersrsquo would get over their romantic idealism and returning to the fold they would prove to be as rapa-
cious as their forefathers To minimise risks and efforts they chose the narrowest section of the strait and
began their journey in front of the Ccedilirağan Surayi (Ccedilirağan Palace) which had been in ruins since 1909 but
would later be restored and converted into yet another ostentatious luxury hotel sometime around 1991
The Ccedilırağan Palace seen from the Bosphorus Strait
2 An alcoholic spirit drink distilled from grain grapes plums and flavoured with aniseed
12
This short aquatic trip from Europe to Asia was perilous if not downright stupid but it was also an adven-
ture neither would ever forget The water on the edge of the Bosphorus was a tepid odorous brew of
effluents and diesel fuel At first our swimmers had to paddle through floating islands of detritus and dead
creatures in various stages of decomposition but soon due to the salubrious effect of water currents things
got more pleasant Away from the shoreline the boys were at last able to pause to admire the stars and the
city lights flickering and sparkling over the dark flapping waves A mighty cruise ship went by with her pro-
pellers stomping and chopping the waters gliding by serenely with utter confidence in her great power
For a few long minutes Maurice and Philippe thought they were going to be drawn into a fatal whirlpool and
minced by this metallic behemoth but on this occasion fate if there is such a thing decided to spare them
Fishermen who spotted them in the glow of their kerosene lamps at first asked if they required some help
but as the boys kept swimming trying to explain that they were fine these Good Samaritans sailed on
joking among themselves puzzled and amused by the absurdity of these wayward Westerners whom they
ended up cursing for disturbing the fish
Being somewhat socially inept Maurice had since early childhood disliked all team sports As a matter of
fact he had disliked all sports in general considering such physical endeavours as complete wastes of time
either as a participant or particularly as a spectator In any case he considered competition to be one of the
most subversive of all human activities This being said he had periodically enjoyed some individual sports
such as tennis or running for any distance over a thousand metres As long as he was on his own being only
responsible to and for himself he found such exercise tolerable if not pleasurable He had for many years en-
joyed swimming long distances and had even hoped that one day he would swim across the English Channel
but that project would never eventuate
Although he had navigated in a sea of uncertainty for most of his young life and was chronically griped by
self-doubt he often wondered on the futility of all his endeavours but on that warm summer night of 1966
swimming between Europe and Asia across that fabled body of water which links the Mediterranean and the
Sea of Marmara to the Black Sea leading to his beloved Russia he had never felt more alive In any case this
was a feat worthy of Uncle Alexander to whom he always liked to compare himself Swimming calmly and
rambling on in one of his usual silent soliloquies he was brought back to more practical considerations by
Philippe who seemed to be paddling away with some difficulty bordering on panic
Maurice lightheartedly convinced his new friend that this was not a race ndash rather they had all the time in the
world to enjoy this wonderful night and he should therefore save his energy if he wanted to make it to the
other side Philippe asked ldquoDonrsquot you have any fearsrdquo Maurice answered between breaststrokes ldquoOf course
I dohellipJust like everyone elsehellipBut if I listened to all my fears I would never do anythingrdquo ldquoToo truerdquo
responded Philippe who was easily convinced by this line of thought
Having both conquered their fears their youthful enthusiasm and health triumphed and at three-thirty in the
morning they landed in Asia near the Beylerbeyi Palace which had been the last place of captivity of the de-
posed Sultan Abdulhamid II from 1912 until his death there in 1918 Unfortunately since 1973 this elegant
historical building has been dwarfed by the Bosphorus Bridge
The Beylerbeyi Sarayi (Beylerbeyi Palace) and the 1973 Bosphorus Bridge linking Europe to Asia
13
Punctual and dependable Ursula and Thomas were already on location walking up and down the embank-
ment genuinely concerned for these two foolhardy Frenchmen although they hardly knew them After all this
was the 1960s when trusting and caring for even complete strangers were highly fashionable sentiments But in
that balmy summer night of 1966 having anxiously feared for the worst Ursula and Thomas were greatly
relieved when the boys emerged from the black waters exhausted but ecstatic For anyone else this could be
considered to have been an insignificant event but for Maurice and Philippe it would remain one of those rare
defining moments in their lives It is the sum of such experiences not the accumulation of lsquostuffrsquo no matter
how splendid that lsquostuffrsquo might be which gives meaning if not purpose to our existence
The four new friends then followed the happy ending with jubilant celebrations in the overgrown gardens
surrounding the Beylerbeyi Palace As Maurice and Philippe dried up they sat all there surrounded by flat-
tened plastic bottles broken glass cigarette butts weeds and thorny bushes but for them on that particular
night this was the Garden of Eden They talked endlessly and drank too much cheap wine waiting for the sun
to arise from beyond the Far East The uninhibited impulse to reveal the secrets of our souls is one of the most
precious treasures of youth With age too many of us deteriorate into poor listeners and crushing mono-
logists Without even noticing it we become cynical guarded and judgmental with a dwindling ability to
enjoy the company of others How much more intoxicating it is to share dreams rather than memories Half a
century later Maurice often wonders ldquoWhere are they all now these ephemeral merry companions who ap-
peared and disappeared from my firmament like shooting starsrdquo
On the edge of a new continent which might as well have been a new planet Maurice and Philippe spent the
next couple of days retelling each other the saga of their swim across the Bosphorus Strait in constantly
evolving details every new version of their story slightly more embellished and heroic than the previous one
which in Philippersquos case truly was lsquopoetic licensersquo Eventually they continued their journey to the excava-
tion site of the Homeric city of Troy which had lain buried for 2500 years During this pilgrimage Philippe
took great pleasure in reading aloud relevant passages of The Iliad but he seemed profoundly fatigued and
felt that it was time for him to go home He farewelled Maurice with an open invitation to visit him in Stras-
bourg whenever he wished and they parted ways on the most amicable terms
Istanbul in 1966
Istanbul now 3
3 In 1966 none of the high-rise buildings that appear in this photo existed and the two suspension bridges that cross the
Bosphorus had not yet been constructed either The Hagia Sophia appears in both photos
14
Freer than he would ever be again Maurice then ventured further and deeper into the Middle East which was a much safer and more welcoming region in those days Like so many adventurers poets and mystics before or since he willingly lost himself in that part of the world in order to lsquofind himselfrsquo Whether he did so or not is irrelevant - only the quest mattered The Middle East was an unparalleled feast for the senses The tumultuous multitudes the noise the music the fragrant foods the apparent vitality and even the still dormant hostility were all mesmerising charms he could not resist He dived into it and disappeared for the next several months as a submarine does beneath the waves much to his parentsrsquo chagrin To follow onersquos whims to live life to the fullest often demands a monstrous indifference to the suffering of those close to us He disappeared simply because one could easily do so in those blessed days before personal computers the internet mobile phones digital cameras and all that electronic gadgetry which has so impoverished our lives and withered our ability to exist in complete symbiosis with the world around us in complete anonymity if we so wish To paraphrase Milan Kundera lsquolife is now always elsewherersquo It is neither Dariusrsquo ghost nor the splendours of Persepolis nor the ruins of Babylon that Maurice remembers most from these peregrinations but a humble present he received from a gentle young woman in Isfahan in the heart of Iran when she farewelled him with three red roses she had carefully wrapped and placed in a small wooden box adorned with intricate Persian miniatures For the last fifty years this treasured gift with its three dried-up flowers has held pride and place in the successive homes he has temporarily occupied in his nomadic life In spite of the dark decades that followed in her turbulent country he often thinks about this young woman of Isfahan and hopes that life has been as kind to her as she was to him A few months later the Middle East exploded into a fire that has not been extinguished to this day4 ___________________________ 4 Ie the Six Day War of June 1967
A GOOD YEAR FOR MATHEMATICIANS In keeping with the article twelve months ago on British chemists born in 1766 this year we have three pro-minent mathematicians who were born in 1667 ndash two on the same day The first was a Frenchman Abraham de Moivre born into a Huguenot family on 26 May and educated at the Protestant Academy of Sedan until it was suppressed in 1682 He went on to study logic at Saumur and physics in Paris but the repression of his denomination by Louis XIV caused him to move to London in 1687 There he met Edmund Halley and Isaac Newton and he was admitted to the Royal Society in 1689 after writ-ing two papers that generalised the latterrsquos theorems Halley then encouraged him to study astronomy which led him to propose a prescient theory affecting elliptical orbits He proceeded to do further work in analytic geometry and wrote four books on probability followed by a fundamental theorem of what is now known as complex analysis (involving the lsquoimaginaryrsquo number i = radicminus1) It is said that he correctly calculated the date of his death on 27 November 1754 Also born on 26 May 1667 and of Huguenot descent was the Swiss mathematician Johann Bernoulli Educa-ted at Basel University with his older brother Jacob he became a professor at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands They both specialised in the new fields of calculus and differential equations which had important applications in physics Amazingly Johann developed a proof of de Moivrersquos proposal affecting elliptical orbits in 1710 amongst many other works The Bernoullis including a third brother were the first of three generations of prominent mathematicians and scientists Johann died in 1748 William Whiston was born in England on 09 December the son of a rector and studied at Cambridge He became a tutor there left to join the ministry and returned to become Sir Isaac Newtonrsquos understudy in 1701 He took the Lucasian Chair of Mathematics the next year when Newton retired but unlike his lsquocloset Unitarianrsquo predecessor he did not conceal his radical religious views Instead he gave lectures published books and even debated the doctrine of the Trinity with two archbishops after which he was expelled from Cambridge in 1710 He went on to a controversial career in both science and religion writing many books on both subjects Despite his unorthodoxy and never having been made a Member he often gave lectures to the Royal Society He co-authored a chart of the Solar System showing the paths of various comets and produced one of the first maps of the Earthrsquos magnetic field over southern England He died in 1752
15
(The Reformation That Failed contrsquod)
The final phase of the wars is known as lsquothe War of the Three Henrysrsquo because it involved King Henry III
Henry of Guise and Henry of Navarre It began when Prince Francis died in 1584 after spending four years
out of the country courting Queen Elizabeth I of England and taking part in William of Orangersquos revolt in the
Spanish Netherlands (present-day Holland and Belgium) As neither he nor Henry III had any children this
made their cousin Henry of Navarre the legal successor to the throne which the Catholic League could not
accept Under pressure from the Guises the king signed an edict in 1585 that suppressed Protestantism and
annulled Henry of Navarrersquos right to the succession in favour of Cardinal Charles de Bourbon
The Catholic League wanted total war against the Huguenots but the king who wanted a settlement insisted
that he had no funds for such a campaign When a Catholic uprising in Paris drove him from the city in 1588
Henry III concluded that the Guises meant to overthrow him His bodyguard assassinated Henry of Guise
and his brother Cardinal Louis de Guise at the Royal Chacircteau de Blois and the king joined forces with his
Protestant cousin However he in turn was assassinated by a Dominican monk in 1589 and Henry of Navarre
became King Henry IV of France
The Catholic League still controlled the north and east of the country but Henry attacked and defeated them in
two battles in Normandy He laid siege to Paris in 1590 until a Spanish army from the Netherlands forced him
back after which the two armies fought until the invaders withdrew at the end of 1592 Henry then realised that
he could never take Paris and rule the whole of France while he was a Protestant so he became a Catholic in
1593 and the Pope revoked his excommunication in exchange for the Churchrsquos supremacy in France
While Henry had committed to reserving all high positions to Catholics he wanted to assure the Huguenots
that he was not a puppet of Spain In 1595 he initiated the Franco-Spanish War in which he also sought to
subdue the few remnants of the Catholic League that refused to recognise his accession This led to another
invasion from the Spanish Netherlands which was stopped at Calais and driven back after which the Peace
of Vervins in 1598 deprived the French rebels of support from Spain Henry then pacified Brittany without
bloodshed and issued the Edict of Nantes which guaranteed the rights of Protestants and ended the wars
In 1599 Henryrsquos childless marriage was annulled and he married Marie dersquo Medici the next year She soon
gave birth to a son who became King Louis XIII when his father was assassinated by a fanatical Catholic in
1610 Marie became his regent until 1617 after which Louis used various means to erode the provisions of
the Edict of Nantes His son Louis XIV was even more hostile to the Huguenots and from 1661 he actively
pressured them to either convert or leave the country Finally his Edict of Fontainebleau in 1865 declared
Protestantism illegal and between 200000 and a million Huguenots emigrated
Some Protestants remained in the mountainous Ceacutevennes region in the southeast where they were largely left
alone In more settled areas many who claimed to have converted practiced their faith in secret suffering
severe penalties if they were detected Ironically religious freedom was restored by Louis XVI in his Edict of
Versailles of 1787 ndash two years before the Revolution and the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen
[This story has a number of interesting historical sidelines starting with the regent queens Catherine and
Marie dersquo Medici Both were scions of the ruling house of Florence which also produced three popes Leo X
who excommunicated Martin Luther Clement VII who granted King Henry VIII of Englandrsquos annulment
and Leo XI who was elected at 69 and died less than a month later
The short-lived King Francis II was married to Mary Stuart Queen of Scots whose mother was the sister of
Francis Duke of Guise She lived in France from the age of five until her husbandrsquos death after which she
returned to rule Scotland Her son James VI succeeded Queen Elizabeth I as King James I of England in
1603 (His great-grandmother Margaret Tudor was King Henry VIIIrsquos sister)
Henry III was the last ruler from the House of Valois whereas Henry IV founded the Bourbon Dynasty His
eldest daughter Elisabeth married King Philip IV of Spain while his youngest Henrietta Maria became the
wife of King Charles I of England Scotland and Ireland Louis XIII died when his elder son was four years
old giving Louis XIV the longest recorded reign (72 years) of any monarch of a sovereign European nation
Known as the lsquoSun Kingrsquo his time was a period of political centralisation economic advancement military
success and empire building in North America India and Africa]
16
MORE ICCU NEWS Just as we go to press the Chalice Lighting for December has arrived
Saat gelap kita terkungkung rasa takut maka nyalakanlah harapan dalam jiwa Saat gelap kita penuh kecurigaan dan prasangka buruk pada sesama maka nyalakanlah kasih dalam hati Saat gelap kita kehilangan sadar mana yang baik dan mana yang jahat maka nyalakanlah hikmat dalam nurani Saat gelap kita merasa bisa berbuat semau kita tanpa ingat Sang Maha Suci dan sesama maka nyalakanlah iman yang dipenuhi kebenaran Gelap ada saat kita abai menyalakan terang Gelap tak bisa diusir dengan marah dan geram sebab gelap akan sirna jika kita menyalakan terang Saat kita menyalakan lentera kita dalam ibadah ini Marilah tak hanya mengundang terang bagi mata jasmani tetapi selalu undang terang bagi mata rohani Yang akan memerdekakan hati serta membawa kebijaksanaan dan kebahagiaan sejati
When it is dark we are surrounded by fear so light hope in your soul When it is dark we are full of distrust and prejudice to the others so light love in your heart When it is dark we lose awareness of good and evil so light wisdom in your conscience When it is dark we feel that we can do whatever we want without remembering The Most Holy One and our neighbors so light faith that is fulfilled with truth Darkness exist when we forget to turn on the light Darkness cannot be expelled with our anger and wrath because darkness will be gone when we turn on the light When we light up our chalice in this worship Let us not only welcoming the light for our physical eyes but always invite the light for our spiritual eyes A light that will free our heart bringing wisdom and real happiness
Submitted by the Unitarian Christian Church of Indonesia Indonesian words (and presumably the English translation) written by its minister Rev Aryanto Nugroho Membership renewals for 2017 are due from 01 January so the best time to pay them will be at the
Christmas Party Those wishing to join our church can use this form by way of application but should
not send payment until their membership is accepted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MEMBERSHIPRENEWAL FORM
I (name) ___________________________________________________ of (address) _________________________________________________ ________________________________ Postcode _________ Phone(s) (home) __________________ (other) ___________________ Email ______________________________________________________ I apply to joinrenew membership in (delete one) the Sydney Unitarian Church and agree to abide by the rules as set down by the Constitution and management of the church Signature ________________________________ Fee enclosed $_____ Cheques should be made payable to Treasurer Sydney Unitarian Church Membership will be valid for the calendar year 2016 Annual membership is $20 and includes the SUN journal subscription to the SUN only is $15
5
Shortly after in 1860 America became involved in its own civil war over slavery and the preservation of the
Union Meanwhile between 1855 and 1868 a whole new power structure emerged in Japan with the old
Tokugawa Shogunate displaced and an empowered imperial Meiji restoration The process of proceeding
from medieval localisms to a modern centralised state took all of fourteen years The process was not easy
Local revolts were common and assassinations and a civil war of sorts were all part of the picture as Japan
rose from its feudal slumbers But in 1868 the young Meiji then aged fourteen was placed on the newly em-
powered Chrysanthemum Throne and performed as a sober and resolute ruler until his death aged 67 in
1911 He was capably steered and advised by the bureaucratic warriors who supervised his ascension
An underlying theme of the new Meiji rulers was lsquofokuku kyōheirsquo (rich nation strong military) The first aim
of the wily and highly prescient leaders of the new Japan was to avoid the fate of the rest of the world which
was rapidly falling under Western domination The Japanese rulers witnessed the fall of Vietnam to France
the conquest of India and the repeated humiliation of China by British French and Russian intrusions
Although it hurt somewhat they sidestepped an anti-Western narrative lsquoRepel the barbariansrsquo was replaced
by lsquoKnowledge shall be sought throughout the world to invigorate the foundations of imperial rulersquo
As Arnold Toynbee argues societies confronted by enemies with more powerful weapons and technology
must either adapt or perish The Japanese quickly decided to adapt As a proud and superior people with a
rational and committed set of bureaucrats at the top this was possible in Japan more than elsewhere Military
threats from within were also put down The samurai lost their feudal rights and were pensioned off and sent
to Hokkaido Local power elites had their powers removed The readers of Japanese history of the period are
amazed at the systematic progress of Japan from feudalism to some sort of parliamentary government ndash
parliamentary but by no means democratic That did not come until after World War II
The Meiji hired hundreds of Western advisers with expertise in such fields as education mining banking
law military affairs and transportation to remodel Japans institutions Conversely thousands of Japanese
students were sent to universities in the West even as a system of Imperial Universities was established in
the major cities in Japan A Constitution promulgated in 1889 established an elected House of Represent-
atives and an appointed House of Peers However only 2 of the population were eligible to vote any bills
passed by the lower house had to be approved by the upper house and the Cabinet was directly responsible
to the Emperor
The projects to build up the new economic system were costly Powerful feudal families were chosen to
fulfill this destiny ndash the present-day Mitsui and Mitsubishi conglomerates among others had their origins in
Japanese fiefdoms and merchant houses They took over production and manufacturing heavily favoured by
government subsidies and official protectionism Others who supported the Meiji faction in their rise to
power found themselves richly rewarded with government largesse and favours
Despite all the vicissitudes of altered business circumstances and war they were mighty then and remain
mighty today The Japanese government will not allow them to fall despite any setbacks This of course
gives the lie to modern free market advocates who claim as did our PM Tony Abbot lsquono country ever
became great through subsidiesrsquo Well what about Japan
Of course there was a lot more than subsidies that made Japan great A land tax instituted in 1873 was the
main source of government revenue and it fell heavily on the peasants At times the price of rice dropped
and the peasants suffered However the people worked long and hard with all the vitality of an East Asian
people ndash diligent dutiful traditional and loyal to emperor and native land No culture of arrogance religious
triumphalism and foreign exploitation rules the hearts and minds of the Japanese people as it does for
example throughout the Middle East in countries like Saudi Arabia No culture of immigration like that of
the US or Australia was tolerated nor is it tolerated today Multiculturalism has absolutely no place in the
Japanese paradigm
What the Japanese cannot do themselves they generally wonrsquot do They will import resources from all over
the world but they will do the value-added processes themselves They were like this in the early years of the
Meiji Restoration and they are like this today Generally as Japan rose in the late 19th Century the people
worked and often suffered in silence Women of course were particularly exploited Their conditions in the
textile factories could scarcely have been better than those in England at the same time Yet just as in
England the Industrial Revolution started around textiles and progressed to shipbuilding and heavy industries
In an amazingly short time Japan became the only major exporter of manufactured goods in Asia
6
Women however could work as factory fodder farm hands or if they were lucky enter the lowly-paid yet
congenial occupation of primary teaching One exception for women however was in the area of medicine
which they entered in force well before they did in the United States By the 1870s education was made
compulsory for all Japanese children although four years was seen as sufficient and the families of school-
age children were heavily taxed to pay for it The adage lsquono community with an illiterate family nor a
family with an illiterate personrsquo became a guiding principle Suddenly an illiterate people became literate
and educated in all areas Meanwhile the numbers of Japanese increased dramatically from 30 million at the
time of the Meiji Restoration to about 70 million by the time of his death in 1911
Mountainous Japan had never had a road system worthy of the name relying largely on marine transport for
both goods and passengers In conjunction with the steam-powered spinning mills for silk and cotton rail-
ways were also built ndash but in its typical fashion the government insisted that the engines and rolling stock
were built in Japan and that locals were trained by the Western contractors to build and operate them Proper
sealed roads were also built at a similarly impressive rate as the railways were
As the 19th Century came to an end Japanese industry became diversified and sophisticated In the 1870s
when the Japanese decided upon building a navy they relied on two ships imported from Europe in order to
begin By the 1905 they had made their own sophisticated set of ships which under the British-trained and
influenced Admiral Toga were able to sink the pride of the Russian fleet in one swift twenty-four hour battle
in the Strait of Tsushima In the same Russo-Japanese War tens of thousands of troops were able to storm
the great Russian fortress of Port Arthur in Manchuria and drive a sizeable Russian army back into Siberia
In this terrible battle Japan committed 357000 troops and lost 57000 dead The Russians lost 27000
retreating in disarray and disillusion
The Japanese had employed the best of modern armaments copied from American and European weaponry
but largely made by themselves Not bad for a people who just fifty years earlier had been fighting clan
battles with muskets and bows and arrows shielded only by medieval chainmail After this war Japan
effectively gained control over Manchuria Korea the Kurile Islands and the southern half of the large island
of Sakhalin north of Hokkaido The Russians were spared a much worse humiliation when the US President
Theodore Roosevelt mediated a peace treaty in Portsmouth New Hampshire in which Japan dropped its
demand for an indemnity (Roosevelt won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1906 for that achievement)
Ten years before their victories over Russia the Japanese had used their new weapons and European military
practice to defeat China in the First Sino-Japanese War of 1895 This gave them possession of Taiwan
which they ruled for the next 50 years in a liberal and benign fashion with an amazing respect for the indi-
genous peoples of the island The Chinese had not treated them at all well since the island was recovered
from the Dutch in the 18th Century The Japanese even established an Imperial University in Taipei
Ironically Japanrsquos very success in Taiwan was a major cause of its long-term imperial downfall If Taiwan
could be ruled so easily why not China itself After all had not the still extant non-Chinese Manchu dynasty
ruled China comparatively peacefully for a period of 250 years There were only ten million Manchu ruling
forty times as many Chinese Why couldnt the Japanese numbering 60 million enjoy the same imperial
experience The Japanese began to dream big imperial dreams and for this they were to suffer very greatly as
a people fifty years later
So Japan aspired to be a mighty power and it became one The Japanese people were dragged unwillingly
onto the world stage when they had been happy to live in a stable homogenous and very beautiful society
They were forced by American capitalism to join the modern world and a terrible beauty was born
[This concludes Peterrsquos three-part series on Japan based on his trip there in January The earlier parts were
printed in the FebruaryMarch and JuneJuly issues which are archived on the church website
Emperor Meiji whose reign name was Mutsuhito was succeeded by his son Yosihito (1912ndash26) followed
by the latterrsquos son Hirohito (1926ndash89) It is claimed that the Emperors were all members of a single dynasty
that goes back to 660 BCE which makes it the longest-standing ruling family in the world That would still
be true if the first 14 Emperors who are considered legendary are excluded from the total of 125 rulers
Just for the record the Tokugawa Shoganate (1603ndash1868) was a period during which members of that family
acted as military dictators who ostensibly protected the various Emperors]
7
JAPANESE LANDMARKS
Senso-ji Temple Tokyo
Peace Bell Hiroshima
Nakanoshima Park Osaka
Great Buddha Kamakura
Temple City Nara
Botanical Garden Kyoto
[Nara was the capital of Japan in 710ndash794 after which the imperial court moved to nearby Kyoto until 1868
Tokyo (formerly called Edo) was the headquarters of the Tokugawas while Kamakura to the south was the
seat of an earlier Shogunate that ended in 1333 All of these cities are on the main island of Honshu]
8
YOU WENT THE WRONG WAY OLD KING LOUIE
Louis the Sixteenth was the King of France in 1789
He was worse than Louis the Fifteenth
He was worse than Louis the Fourteenth
He was worse than Louis the Thirteenth
He was the worst since Louis the First
King Louis was living like a king but the people were living rotten
So the people they started an uprising which they called the French Revolution
And of course you remember their battle cry which will never be forgotten
You went the wrong way Old King
Louie
You made the population cry
rsquoCause all you did was sit and pet
With Marie Antoinette
In your place at Versailles
And now the countryrsquos gone kablooie
So we are giving you the air
That oughta teach you not to
Spend all your time fooling rsquoround
At the Folies Bergegravere
If you had been a nicer king
We wouldnt do a thing
But you were bad you must admit
Wersquore gonna take you and the Queen
Down to the guillotine
And shorten you a little bit
You came the wrong way Old King
Louie
And now you ainrsquot got far to go
Too bad you wonrsquot be here to see
That great big Eiffel Tower
Or Brigitte Bardot
To you King Louie we say fooey
You disappointed all of France
But then what else could we expect
From a king in silk stockings
And pink satin pants
You filled your stomach with chop suey
And also crecircpe suzettes and steak
And when they told your wife Marie
That nobody had bread she said
ldquoLet rsquoem eat cakerdquo
Wersquore gonna take you and the Queen
Down to the guillotine
Itrsquos somewhere in the heart of town
And when that fellarsquos through
With what hersquos gonna do
Yoursquoll have no place to hang your
crown
You came the wrong way Old King
Louie
Now we must put you on the shelf
Thatrsquos why the people are revolting
rsquocause Louie
Yoursquore pretty revolting yourself
Allan Sherman (1963)
Understandably nothing funny was ever written about the French Wars of Religion so this will have to do
Allan Sherman (1924ndash73) was a famous Jewish-American writer of comic parodies based on existing songs
and even pieces of classical music This song begins with a riff of lsquoLa Marseillesrsquo but the verses are based on
lsquoYou Came a Long Way from St Louisrsquo composed in 1948 by Bob Russell and John Benson Brooks It was
recorded in Shermanrsquos third album My Son the Nut released in 1963
Born Allan Copelon in Chicago Sherman took his motherrsquos maiden name after his parents divorced He
attended the University of Illinois and wrote a humour column for the student newspaper He became a tele-
vision writer and producer of game shows in the 1950s before he turned his hobby of writing parodies to better
use in the 1960s His first album My Son the Folksinger came out in 1962 followed by My Son the
Celebrity but his best-known song was lsquoHello Muddah Hello Faddahrsquo released as a single in 1963
Sydney Keith lsquoBobrsquo Russell (1914ndash70) was a songwriter chiefly a lyricist who started with vaudeville songs
and later wrote musical scores for movies He co-wrote lsquoHe Ainrsquot Heavy Hersquos My Brotherrsquo with Bobby Scott
in 1960 John Benson Brooks (1917ndash99) was a pianist arranger and composer who worked with a number of
jazz and blues songwriters amongst others over his lengthy career
As always these songs need to be heard in order to be fully appreciated ndash just search wwwyoutubecom
9
I HEARD THE BELLS ON CHRISTMAS DAY
I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old familiar carols play
and wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth good-will to men
And thought how as the day had come
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along
The unbroken song
Of peace on earth good-will to men
Till ringing singing on its way
The world revolved from night to day
A voice a chime
A chant sublime
Of peace on earth good-will to men
Then from each black accursed mouth
The cannon thundered in the South
And with the sound
The carols drowned
Of peace on earth good-will to men
It was as if an earthquake rent
The hearth-stones of a continent
And made forlorn
The households born
Of peace on earth good-will to men
And in despair I bowed my head
ldquoThere is no peace on earthrdquo I said
ldquoFor hate is strong
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth good-will to menrdquo
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep
ldquoGod is not dead nor doth He sleep
The Wrong shall fail
The Right prevail
With peace on earth good-will to menrdquo
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1863)
This poem was written on Christmas Day 1863 at the height of the American Civil War Longfellowrsquos son
Charles had enlisted in the Unionist army without his fatherrsquos permission and was severely wounded in battle
in Virginia shortly before that time He eventually recovered but he did not return to military service
For reasons that are unclear the poem was first published in 1865 in a magazine called Our Young Folks It was
first set to music by the English organist John Baptiste Calkin in 1872 and that version has been recorded by
singers as various as Johnny Cash and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir (The verses relating to the Civil War are
usually left out however)
As everyone hopefully knows Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807ndash1882) was a Unitarian born into a family
of left-wing Congregationalists William Ellery Channing was a friend of the family having attend Harvard
with Longfellowrsquos father and he met Ralph Waldo Emerson in later life though his independent theology did
not fully embrace Transcendentalism (See the feature article in the AprilMay 2009 for the full story)
10
ALEXANDER (Part 4)
By Patrick Bernard
In 1966 the first post-scriptum to Alexanderrsquos story was written in a most unexpected place and circum-stances By the end of June of that year Mauricersquos existence had changed dramatically taking a new but not all that unpredictable course Due to a succession of events that may be told in detail later on he had hurled himself into a nomadic lifestyle trekking across Lapland and then having sailed leisurely from lake to lake on an old-fashioned steamer from the north to the south of Finland he ended up in Helsinki Possessed with the freewheeling spirit of those times he then decided without a second thought to hitchhike from the lsquoLand of the Midnight Sunrsquo with reindeer antlers precariously tied to his backpack all the way across Eastern Europe to Constantinople the sublime gate to the Orient Mildly disappointed when he arrived there he found Istanbul instead of Constantinople ndash but the splendour of Byzantium lingered on as the fragrance of mimosa does long after its bloom has faded Stunned and unsure as to whether he was in a dream or in Heaven he sat for hours admiring the Hagia Sophia1 the Byzantine Basilica completed in 537AD which for many centuries had proudly defied gravity with its dome reputedly the largest in the world The Ottomans would then meticulously and methodically vandalise the building a millennium later soon after they had conquered Constantinople on 29 May 1453 To add insult to injury this great historical centre of Christianity was then literally nailed to the ground with four minarets
Cross-section drawing of the Hagia Sophia in 537AD
The Hagia Sophia today
1 Hagia Sophia from the Greek Holy Wisdom was a Greek Orthodox Christian patriarchal basilica in Constantinople (now Istanbul)
11
While admiring this desecrated shrine Maurice met and befriended a young French poet called Philippe
who might have been appropriately dressed for an elegant cocktail party in Northern Europe but not for the
sweltering heat the stench and the dust of Istanbul He was one of those individuals who stubbornly adhere
to specific sartorial standards no matter how incongruous or uncomfortable like those sweaty European ex-
patriate civil servants one used to encounter in various colonial outposts of the tropics Maurice admired
Philippersquos defiant attire but he also found it slightly ridiculous and teased him about it for the next few days
Philippe did not mind as he was clearly accustomed to such jibes and he enjoyed play-acting the fop to a
receptive audience
The world being indeed a very small place this overdressed Alsatian bard was also the scion of a prominent
family of medical practitioners in his hometown of Strasbourg Having similar interests and sensitivities this
pair of drifters became travelling companions for a while although like most misfits they generally preferred
to be alone Philippe was short chubby and eloquent while Maurice was tall skinny and laconic They were a
mismatch but their obvious differences didnrsquot seem to matter to them This odd duo wandered the backstreets
and the bazaars of Istanbul visited the inevitable tourist sites absorbed the sounds and fragrances of the Orient
and ended up in a seedy bar drinking too much Raqi2 while philosophising on the collapse of Byzantium
In truth there were no alternative affordable locations for their libations as all bars in Istanbul appeared
seedy if not sleazy which made these shady dives all the more appealing to two middle class Western
adolescents seeking the frisson of exotic squalor Indeed no serious traveller wants to get sloshed in lsquonice
barsrsquo frequented by lsquonice peoplersquo and besides as we all know lsquonice peoplersquo have a tendency to be much
nastier than they appear For the audacious bourgeois adventurer seediness and sleaze are essential pre-
requisites of all urban explorations
It was in such a drinking hole more reminiscent of an odorous public toilet than a comfortable pub that one
evening in one of those intoxicated moments of youthful recklessness that cements long-lasting friendships
that Maurice and Philippe decided to emulate Lord Byron and swim across the Bosphorus Strait under the
cover of darkness to avoid police detection and certain arrest A couple of young German tourists called
Ursula and Thomas whom they had met in the flea-infested hotel near the Grand Bazaar where they all
stayed at offered to drive them in their Volkswagen minibus to their launching point take care of all their
belongings and wait for them at an agreed spot on the other side of the Bosphorus Strait the Asian side near
the Beylerbeyi Sarayi (Beylerbeyi Palace)
Maurice who had decided to trust them convinced a more circumspect Philippe that even if all their belong-
ings disappeared they could always go to the French Consulate and ask for assistance To use an expression
in vogue at the time one could say that for a generation that sincerely wanted to make the world a better
place ldquoit wouldnrsquot have been cool to rip each other offrdquo although later on many of those well-intended lsquoBaby
Boomersrsquo would get over their romantic idealism and returning to the fold they would prove to be as rapa-
cious as their forefathers To minimise risks and efforts they chose the narrowest section of the strait and
began their journey in front of the Ccedilirağan Surayi (Ccedilirağan Palace) which had been in ruins since 1909 but
would later be restored and converted into yet another ostentatious luxury hotel sometime around 1991
The Ccedilırağan Palace seen from the Bosphorus Strait
2 An alcoholic spirit drink distilled from grain grapes plums and flavoured with aniseed
12
This short aquatic trip from Europe to Asia was perilous if not downright stupid but it was also an adven-
ture neither would ever forget The water on the edge of the Bosphorus was a tepid odorous brew of
effluents and diesel fuel At first our swimmers had to paddle through floating islands of detritus and dead
creatures in various stages of decomposition but soon due to the salubrious effect of water currents things
got more pleasant Away from the shoreline the boys were at last able to pause to admire the stars and the
city lights flickering and sparkling over the dark flapping waves A mighty cruise ship went by with her pro-
pellers stomping and chopping the waters gliding by serenely with utter confidence in her great power
For a few long minutes Maurice and Philippe thought they were going to be drawn into a fatal whirlpool and
minced by this metallic behemoth but on this occasion fate if there is such a thing decided to spare them
Fishermen who spotted them in the glow of their kerosene lamps at first asked if they required some help
but as the boys kept swimming trying to explain that they were fine these Good Samaritans sailed on
joking among themselves puzzled and amused by the absurdity of these wayward Westerners whom they
ended up cursing for disturbing the fish
Being somewhat socially inept Maurice had since early childhood disliked all team sports As a matter of
fact he had disliked all sports in general considering such physical endeavours as complete wastes of time
either as a participant or particularly as a spectator In any case he considered competition to be one of the
most subversive of all human activities This being said he had periodically enjoyed some individual sports
such as tennis or running for any distance over a thousand metres As long as he was on his own being only
responsible to and for himself he found such exercise tolerable if not pleasurable He had for many years en-
joyed swimming long distances and had even hoped that one day he would swim across the English Channel
but that project would never eventuate
Although he had navigated in a sea of uncertainty for most of his young life and was chronically griped by
self-doubt he often wondered on the futility of all his endeavours but on that warm summer night of 1966
swimming between Europe and Asia across that fabled body of water which links the Mediterranean and the
Sea of Marmara to the Black Sea leading to his beloved Russia he had never felt more alive In any case this
was a feat worthy of Uncle Alexander to whom he always liked to compare himself Swimming calmly and
rambling on in one of his usual silent soliloquies he was brought back to more practical considerations by
Philippe who seemed to be paddling away with some difficulty bordering on panic
Maurice lightheartedly convinced his new friend that this was not a race ndash rather they had all the time in the
world to enjoy this wonderful night and he should therefore save his energy if he wanted to make it to the
other side Philippe asked ldquoDonrsquot you have any fearsrdquo Maurice answered between breaststrokes ldquoOf course
I dohellipJust like everyone elsehellipBut if I listened to all my fears I would never do anythingrdquo ldquoToo truerdquo
responded Philippe who was easily convinced by this line of thought
Having both conquered their fears their youthful enthusiasm and health triumphed and at three-thirty in the
morning they landed in Asia near the Beylerbeyi Palace which had been the last place of captivity of the de-
posed Sultan Abdulhamid II from 1912 until his death there in 1918 Unfortunately since 1973 this elegant
historical building has been dwarfed by the Bosphorus Bridge
The Beylerbeyi Sarayi (Beylerbeyi Palace) and the 1973 Bosphorus Bridge linking Europe to Asia
13
Punctual and dependable Ursula and Thomas were already on location walking up and down the embank-
ment genuinely concerned for these two foolhardy Frenchmen although they hardly knew them After all this
was the 1960s when trusting and caring for even complete strangers were highly fashionable sentiments But in
that balmy summer night of 1966 having anxiously feared for the worst Ursula and Thomas were greatly
relieved when the boys emerged from the black waters exhausted but ecstatic For anyone else this could be
considered to have been an insignificant event but for Maurice and Philippe it would remain one of those rare
defining moments in their lives It is the sum of such experiences not the accumulation of lsquostuffrsquo no matter
how splendid that lsquostuffrsquo might be which gives meaning if not purpose to our existence
The four new friends then followed the happy ending with jubilant celebrations in the overgrown gardens
surrounding the Beylerbeyi Palace As Maurice and Philippe dried up they sat all there surrounded by flat-
tened plastic bottles broken glass cigarette butts weeds and thorny bushes but for them on that particular
night this was the Garden of Eden They talked endlessly and drank too much cheap wine waiting for the sun
to arise from beyond the Far East The uninhibited impulse to reveal the secrets of our souls is one of the most
precious treasures of youth With age too many of us deteriorate into poor listeners and crushing mono-
logists Without even noticing it we become cynical guarded and judgmental with a dwindling ability to
enjoy the company of others How much more intoxicating it is to share dreams rather than memories Half a
century later Maurice often wonders ldquoWhere are they all now these ephemeral merry companions who ap-
peared and disappeared from my firmament like shooting starsrdquo
On the edge of a new continent which might as well have been a new planet Maurice and Philippe spent the
next couple of days retelling each other the saga of their swim across the Bosphorus Strait in constantly
evolving details every new version of their story slightly more embellished and heroic than the previous one
which in Philippersquos case truly was lsquopoetic licensersquo Eventually they continued their journey to the excava-
tion site of the Homeric city of Troy which had lain buried for 2500 years During this pilgrimage Philippe
took great pleasure in reading aloud relevant passages of The Iliad but he seemed profoundly fatigued and
felt that it was time for him to go home He farewelled Maurice with an open invitation to visit him in Stras-
bourg whenever he wished and they parted ways on the most amicable terms
Istanbul in 1966
Istanbul now 3
3 In 1966 none of the high-rise buildings that appear in this photo existed and the two suspension bridges that cross the
Bosphorus had not yet been constructed either The Hagia Sophia appears in both photos
14
Freer than he would ever be again Maurice then ventured further and deeper into the Middle East which was a much safer and more welcoming region in those days Like so many adventurers poets and mystics before or since he willingly lost himself in that part of the world in order to lsquofind himselfrsquo Whether he did so or not is irrelevant - only the quest mattered The Middle East was an unparalleled feast for the senses The tumultuous multitudes the noise the music the fragrant foods the apparent vitality and even the still dormant hostility were all mesmerising charms he could not resist He dived into it and disappeared for the next several months as a submarine does beneath the waves much to his parentsrsquo chagrin To follow onersquos whims to live life to the fullest often demands a monstrous indifference to the suffering of those close to us He disappeared simply because one could easily do so in those blessed days before personal computers the internet mobile phones digital cameras and all that electronic gadgetry which has so impoverished our lives and withered our ability to exist in complete symbiosis with the world around us in complete anonymity if we so wish To paraphrase Milan Kundera lsquolife is now always elsewherersquo It is neither Dariusrsquo ghost nor the splendours of Persepolis nor the ruins of Babylon that Maurice remembers most from these peregrinations but a humble present he received from a gentle young woman in Isfahan in the heart of Iran when she farewelled him with three red roses she had carefully wrapped and placed in a small wooden box adorned with intricate Persian miniatures For the last fifty years this treasured gift with its three dried-up flowers has held pride and place in the successive homes he has temporarily occupied in his nomadic life In spite of the dark decades that followed in her turbulent country he often thinks about this young woman of Isfahan and hopes that life has been as kind to her as she was to him A few months later the Middle East exploded into a fire that has not been extinguished to this day4 ___________________________ 4 Ie the Six Day War of June 1967
A GOOD YEAR FOR MATHEMATICIANS In keeping with the article twelve months ago on British chemists born in 1766 this year we have three pro-minent mathematicians who were born in 1667 ndash two on the same day The first was a Frenchman Abraham de Moivre born into a Huguenot family on 26 May and educated at the Protestant Academy of Sedan until it was suppressed in 1682 He went on to study logic at Saumur and physics in Paris but the repression of his denomination by Louis XIV caused him to move to London in 1687 There he met Edmund Halley and Isaac Newton and he was admitted to the Royal Society in 1689 after writ-ing two papers that generalised the latterrsquos theorems Halley then encouraged him to study astronomy which led him to propose a prescient theory affecting elliptical orbits He proceeded to do further work in analytic geometry and wrote four books on probability followed by a fundamental theorem of what is now known as complex analysis (involving the lsquoimaginaryrsquo number i = radicminus1) It is said that he correctly calculated the date of his death on 27 November 1754 Also born on 26 May 1667 and of Huguenot descent was the Swiss mathematician Johann Bernoulli Educa-ted at Basel University with his older brother Jacob he became a professor at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands They both specialised in the new fields of calculus and differential equations which had important applications in physics Amazingly Johann developed a proof of de Moivrersquos proposal affecting elliptical orbits in 1710 amongst many other works The Bernoullis including a third brother were the first of three generations of prominent mathematicians and scientists Johann died in 1748 William Whiston was born in England on 09 December the son of a rector and studied at Cambridge He became a tutor there left to join the ministry and returned to become Sir Isaac Newtonrsquos understudy in 1701 He took the Lucasian Chair of Mathematics the next year when Newton retired but unlike his lsquocloset Unitarianrsquo predecessor he did not conceal his radical religious views Instead he gave lectures published books and even debated the doctrine of the Trinity with two archbishops after which he was expelled from Cambridge in 1710 He went on to a controversial career in both science and religion writing many books on both subjects Despite his unorthodoxy and never having been made a Member he often gave lectures to the Royal Society He co-authored a chart of the Solar System showing the paths of various comets and produced one of the first maps of the Earthrsquos magnetic field over southern England He died in 1752
15
(The Reformation That Failed contrsquod)
The final phase of the wars is known as lsquothe War of the Three Henrysrsquo because it involved King Henry III
Henry of Guise and Henry of Navarre It began when Prince Francis died in 1584 after spending four years
out of the country courting Queen Elizabeth I of England and taking part in William of Orangersquos revolt in the
Spanish Netherlands (present-day Holland and Belgium) As neither he nor Henry III had any children this
made their cousin Henry of Navarre the legal successor to the throne which the Catholic League could not
accept Under pressure from the Guises the king signed an edict in 1585 that suppressed Protestantism and
annulled Henry of Navarrersquos right to the succession in favour of Cardinal Charles de Bourbon
The Catholic League wanted total war against the Huguenots but the king who wanted a settlement insisted
that he had no funds for such a campaign When a Catholic uprising in Paris drove him from the city in 1588
Henry III concluded that the Guises meant to overthrow him His bodyguard assassinated Henry of Guise
and his brother Cardinal Louis de Guise at the Royal Chacircteau de Blois and the king joined forces with his
Protestant cousin However he in turn was assassinated by a Dominican monk in 1589 and Henry of Navarre
became King Henry IV of France
The Catholic League still controlled the north and east of the country but Henry attacked and defeated them in
two battles in Normandy He laid siege to Paris in 1590 until a Spanish army from the Netherlands forced him
back after which the two armies fought until the invaders withdrew at the end of 1592 Henry then realised that
he could never take Paris and rule the whole of France while he was a Protestant so he became a Catholic in
1593 and the Pope revoked his excommunication in exchange for the Churchrsquos supremacy in France
While Henry had committed to reserving all high positions to Catholics he wanted to assure the Huguenots
that he was not a puppet of Spain In 1595 he initiated the Franco-Spanish War in which he also sought to
subdue the few remnants of the Catholic League that refused to recognise his accession This led to another
invasion from the Spanish Netherlands which was stopped at Calais and driven back after which the Peace
of Vervins in 1598 deprived the French rebels of support from Spain Henry then pacified Brittany without
bloodshed and issued the Edict of Nantes which guaranteed the rights of Protestants and ended the wars
In 1599 Henryrsquos childless marriage was annulled and he married Marie dersquo Medici the next year She soon
gave birth to a son who became King Louis XIII when his father was assassinated by a fanatical Catholic in
1610 Marie became his regent until 1617 after which Louis used various means to erode the provisions of
the Edict of Nantes His son Louis XIV was even more hostile to the Huguenots and from 1661 he actively
pressured them to either convert or leave the country Finally his Edict of Fontainebleau in 1865 declared
Protestantism illegal and between 200000 and a million Huguenots emigrated
Some Protestants remained in the mountainous Ceacutevennes region in the southeast where they were largely left
alone In more settled areas many who claimed to have converted practiced their faith in secret suffering
severe penalties if they were detected Ironically religious freedom was restored by Louis XVI in his Edict of
Versailles of 1787 ndash two years before the Revolution and the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen
[This story has a number of interesting historical sidelines starting with the regent queens Catherine and
Marie dersquo Medici Both were scions of the ruling house of Florence which also produced three popes Leo X
who excommunicated Martin Luther Clement VII who granted King Henry VIII of Englandrsquos annulment
and Leo XI who was elected at 69 and died less than a month later
The short-lived King Francis II was married to Mary Stuart Queen of Scots whose mother was the sister of
Francis Duke of Guise She lived in France from the age of five until her husbandrsquos death after which she
returned to rule Scotland Her son James VI succeeded Queen Elizabeth I as King James I of England in
1603 (His great-grandmother Margaret Tudor was King Henry VIIIrsquos sister)
Henry III was the last ruler from the House of Valois whereas Henry IV founded the Bourbon Dynasty His
eldest daughter Elisabeth married King Philip IV of Spain while his youngest Henrietta Maria became the
wife of King Charles I of England Scotland and Ireland Louis XIII died when his elder son was four years
old giving Louis XIV the longest recorded reign (72 years) of any monarch of a sovereign European nation
Known as the lsquoSun Kingrsquo his time was a period of political centralisation economic advancement military
success and empire building in North America India and Africa]
16
MORE ICCU NEWS Just as we go to press the Chalice Lighting for December has arrived
Saat gelap kita terkungkung rasa takut maka nyalakanlah harapan dalam jiwa Saat gelap kita penuh kecurigaan dan prasangka buruk pada sesama maka nyalakanlah kasih dalam hati Saat gelap kita kehilangan sadar mana yang baik dan mana yang jahat maka nyalakanlah hikmat dalam nurani Saat gelap kita merasa bisa berbuat semau kita tanpa ingat Sang Maha Suci dan sesama maka nyalakanlah iman yang dipenuhi kebenaran Gelap ada saat kita abai menyalakan terang Gelap tak bisa diusir dengan marah dan geram sebab gelap akan sirna jika kita menyalakan terang Saat kita menyalakan lentera kita dalam ibadah ini Marilah tak hanya mengundang terang bagi mata jasmani tetapi selalu undang terang bagi mata rohani Yang akan memerdekakan hati serta membawa kebijaksanaan dan kebahagiaan sejati
When it is dark we are surrounded by fear so light hope in your soul When it is dark we are full of distrust and prejudice to the others so light love in your heart When it is dark we lose awareness of good and evil so light wisdom in your conscience When it is dark we feel that we can do whatever we want without remembering The Most Holy One and our neighbors so light faith that is fulfilled with truth Darkness exist when we forget to turn on the light Darkness cannot be expelled with our anger and wrath because darkness will be gone when we turn on the light When we light up our chalice in this worship Let us not only welcoming the light for our physical eyes but always invite the light for our spiritual eyes A light that will free our heart bringing wisdom and real happiness
Submitted by the Unitarian Christian Church of Indonesia Indonesian words (and presumably the English translation) written by its minister Rev Aryanto Nugroho Membership renewals for 2017 are due from 01 January so the best time to pay them will be at the
Christmas Party Those wishing to join our church can use this form by way of application but should
not send payment until their membership is accepted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MEMBERSHIPRENEWAL FORM
I (name) ___________________________________________________ of (address) _________________________________________________ ________________________________ Postcode _________ Phone(s) (home) __________________ (other) ___________________ Email ______________________________________________________ I apply to joinrenew membership in (delete one) the Sydney Unitarian Church and agree to abide by the rules as set down by the Constitution and management of the church Signature ________________________________ Fee enclosed $_____ Cheques should be made payable to Treasurer Sydney Unitarian Church Membership will be valid for the calendar year 2016 Annual membership is $20 and includes the SUN journal subscription to the SUN only is $15
6
Women however could work as factory fodder farm hands or if they were lucky enter the lowly-paid yet
congenial occupation of primary teaching One exception for women however was in the area of medicine
which they entered in force well before they did in the United States By the 1870s education was made
compulsory for all Japanese children although four years was seen as sufficient and the families of school-
age children were heavily taxed to pay for it The adage lsquono community with an illiterate family nor a
family with an illiterate personrsquo became a guiding principle Suddenly an illiterate people became literate
and educated in all areas Meanwhile the numbers of Japanese increased dramatically from 30 million at the
time of the Meiji Restoration to about 70 million by the time of his death in 1911
Mountainous Japan had never had a road system worthy of the name relying largely on marine transport for
both goods and passengers In conjunction with the steam-powered spinning mills for silk and cotton rail-
ways were also built ndash but in its typical fashion the government insisted that the engines and rolling stock
were built in Japan and that locals were trained by the Western contractors to build and operate them Proper
sealed roads were also built at a similarly impressive rate as the railways were
As the 19th Century came to an end Japanese industry became diversified and sophisticated In the 1870s
when the Japanese decided upon building a navy they relied on two ships imported from Europe in order to
begin By the 1905 they had made their own sophisticated set of ships which under the British-trained and
influenced Admiral Toga were able to sink the pride of the Russian fleet in one swift twenty-four hour battle
in the Strait of Tsushima In the same Russo-Japanese War tens of thousands of troops were able to storm
the great Russian fortress of Port Arthur in Manchuria and drive a sizeable Russian army back into Siberia
In this terrible battle Japan committed 357000 troops and lost 57000 dead The Russians lost 27000
retreating in disarray and disillusion
The Japanese had employed the best of modern armaments copied from American and European weaponry
but largely made by themselves Not bad for a people who just fifty years earlier had been fighting clan
battles with muskets and bows and arrows shielded only by medieval chainmail After this war Japan
effectively gained control over Manchuria Korea the Kurile Islands and the southern half of the large island
of Sakhalin north of Hokkaido The Russians were spared a much worse humiliation when the US President
Theodore Roosevelt mediated a peace treaty in Portsmouth New Hampshire in which Japan dropped its
demand for an indemnity (Roosevelt won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1906 for that achievement)
Ten years before their victories over Russia the Japanese had used their new weapons and European military
practice to defeat China in the First Sino-Japanese War of 1895 This gave them possession of Taiwan
which they ruled for the next 50 years in a liberal and benign fashion with an amazing respect for the indi-
genous peoples of the island The Chinese had not treated them at all well since the island was recovered
from the Dutch in the 18th Century The Japanese even established an Imperial University in Taipei
Ironically Japanrsquos very success in Taiwan was a major cause of its long-term imperial downfall If Taiwan
could be ruled so easily why not China itself After all had not the still extant non-Chinese Manchu dynasty
ruled China comparatively peacefully for a period of 250 years There were only ten million Manchu ruling
forty times as many Chinese Why couldnt the Japanese numbering 60 million enjoy the same imperial
experience The Japanese began to dream big imperial dreams and for this they were to suffer very greatly as
a people fifty years later
So Japan aspired to be a mighty power and it became one The Japanese people were dragged unwillingly
onto the world stage when they had been happy to live in a stable homogenous and very beautiful society
They were forced by American capitalism to join the modern world and a terrible beauty was born
[This concludes Peterrsquos three-part series on Japan based on his trip there in January The earlier parts were
printed in the FebruaryMarch and JuneJuly issues which are archived on the church website
Emperor Meiji whose reign name was Mutsuhito was succeeded by his son Yosihito (1912ndash26) followed
by the latterrsquos son Hirohito (1926ndash89) It is claimed that the Emperors were all members of a single dynasty
that goes back to 660 BCE which makes it the longest-standing ruling family in the world That would still
be true if the first 14 Emperors who are considered legendary are excluded from the total of 125 rulers
Just for the record the Tokugawa Shoganate (1603ndash1868) was a period during which members of that family
acted as military dictators who ostensibly protected the various Emperors]
7
JAPANESE LANDMARKS
Senso-ji Temple Tokyo
Peace Bell Hiroshima
Nakanoshima Park Osaka
Great Buddha Kamakura
Temple City Nara
Botanical Garden Kyoto
[Nara was the capital of Japan in 710ndash794 after which the imperial court moved to nearby Kyoto until 1868
Tokyo (formerly called Edo) was the headquarters of the Tokugawas while Kamakura to the south was the
seat of an earlier Shogunate that ended in 1333 All of these cities are on the main island of Honshu]
8
YOU WENT THE WRONG WAY OLD KING LOUIE
Louis the Sixteenth was the King of France in 1789
He was worse than Louis the Fifteenth
He was worse than Louis the Fourteenth
He was worse than Louis the Thirteenth
He was the worst since Louis the First
King Louis was living like a king but the people were living rotten
So the people they started an uprising which they called the French Revolution
And of course you remember their battle cry which will never be forgotten
You went the wrong way Old King
Louie
You made the population cry
rsquoCause all you did was sit and pet
With Marie Antoinette
In your place at Versailles
And now the countryrsquos gone kablooie
So we are giving you the air
That oughta teach you not to
Spend all your time fooling rsquoround
At the Folies Bergegravere
If you had been a nicer king
We wouldnt do a thing
But you were bad you must admit
Wersquore gonna take you and the Queen
Down to the guillotine
And shorten you a little bit
You came the wrong way Old King
Louie
And now you ainrsquot got far to go
Too bad you wonrsquot be here to see
That great big Eiffel Tower
Or Brigitte Bardot
To you King Louie we say fooey
You disappointed all of France
But then what else could we expect
From a king in silk stockings
And pink satin pants
You filled your stomach with chop suey
And also crecircpe suzettes and steak
And when they told your wife Marie
That nobody had bread she said
ldquoLet rsquoem eat cakerdquo
Wersquore gonna take you and the Queen
Down to the guillotine
Itrsquos somewhere in the heart of town
And when that fellarsquos through
With what hersquos gonna do
Yoursquoll have no place to hang your
crown
You came the wrong way Old King
Louie
Now we must put you on the shelf
Thatrsquos why the people are revolting
rsquocause Louie
Yoursquore pretty revolting yourself
Allan Sherman (1963)
Understandably nothing funny was ever written about the French Wars of Religion so this will have to do
Allan Sherman (1924ndash73) was a famous Jewish-American writer of comic parodies based on existing songs
and even pieces of classical music This song begins with a riff of lsquoLa Marseillesrsquo but the verses are based on
lsquoYou Came a Long Way from St Louisrsquo composed in 1948 by Bob Russell and John Benson Brooks It was
recorded in Shermanrsquos third album My Son the Nut released in 1963
Born Allan Copelon in Chicago Sherman took his motherrsquos maiden name after his parents divorced He
attended the University of Illinois and wrote a humour column for the student newspaper He became a tele-
vision writer and producer of game shows in the 1950s before he turned his hobby of writing parodies to better
use in the 1960s His first album My Son the Folksinger came out in 1962 followed by My Son the
Celebrity but his best-known song was lsquoHello Muddah Hello Faddahrsquo released as a single in 1963
Sydney Keith lsquoBobrsquo Russell (1914ndash70) was a songwriter chiefly a lyricist who started with vaudeville songs
and later wrote musical scores for movies He co-wrote lsquoHe Ainrsquot Heavy Hersquos My Brotherrsquo with Bobby Scott
in 1960 John Benson Brooks (1917ndash99) was a pianist arranger and composer who worked with a number of
jazz and blues songwriters amongst others over his lengthy career
As always these songs need to be heard in order to be fully appreciated ndash just search wwwyoutubecom
9
I HEARD THE BELLS ON CHRISTMAS DAY
I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old familiar carols play
and wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth good-will to men
And thought how as the day had come
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along
The unbroken song
Of peace on earth good-will to men
Till ringing singing on its way
The world revolved from night to day
A voice a chime
A chant sublime
Of peace on earth good-will to men
Then from each black accursed mouth
The cannon thundered in the South
And with the sound
The carols drowned
Of peace on earth good-will to men
It was as if an earthquake rent
The hearth-stones of a continent
And made forlorn
The households born
Of peace on earth good-will to men
And in despair I bowed my head
ldquoThere is no peace on earthrdquo I said
ldquoFor hate is strong
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth good-will to menrdquo
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep
ldquoGod is not dead nor doth He sleep
The Wrong shall fail
The Right prevail
With peace on earth good-will to menrdquo
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1863)
This poem was written on Christmas Day 1863 at the height of the American Civil War Longfellowrsquos son
Charles had enlisted in the Unionist army without his fatherrsquos permission and was severely wounded in battle
in Virginia shortly before that time He eventually recovered but he did not return to military service
For reasons that are unclear the poem was first published in 1865 in a magazine called Our Young Folks It was
first set to music by the English organist John Baptiste Calkin in 1872 and that version has been recorded by
singers as various as Johnny Cash and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir (The verses relating to the Civil War are
usually left out however)
As everyone hopefully knows Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807ndash1882) was a Unitarian born into a family
of left-wing Congregationalists William Ellery Channing was a friend of the family having attend Harvard
with Longfellowrsquos father and he met Ralph Waldo Emerson in later life though his independent theology did
not fully embrace Transcendentalism (See the feature article in the AprilMay 2009 for the full story)
10
ALEXANDER (Part 4)
By Patrick Bernard
In 1966 the first post-scriptum to Alexanderrsquos story was written in a most unexpected place and circum-stances By the end of June of that year Mauricersquos existence had changed dramatically taking a new but not all that unpredictable course Due to a succession of events that may be told in detail later on he had hurled himself into a nomadic lifestyle trekking across Lapland and then having sailed leisurely from lake to lake on an old-fashioned steamer from the north to the south of Finland he ended up in Helsinki Possessed with the freewheeling spirit of those times he then decided without a second thought to hitchhike from the lsquoLand of the Midnight Sunrsquo with reindeer antlers precariously tied to his backpack all the way across Eastern Europe to Constantinople the sublime gate to the Orient Mildly disappointed when he arrived there he found Istanbul instead of Constantinople ndash but the splendour of Byzantium lingered on as the fragrance of mimosa does long after its bloom has faded Stunned and unsure as to whether he was in a dream or in Heaven he sat for hours admiring the Hagia Sophia1 the Byzantine Basilica completed in 537AD which for many centuries had proudly defied gravity with its dome reputedly the largest in the world The Ottomans would then meticulously and methodically vandalise the building a millennium later soon after they had conquered Constantinople on 29 May 1453 To add insult to injury this great historical centre of Christianity was then literally nailed to the ground with four minarets
Cross-section drawing of the Hagia Sophia in 537AD
The Hagia Sophia today
1 Hagia Sophia from the Greek Holy Wisdom was a Greek Orthodox Christian patriarchal basilica in Constantinople (now Istanbul)
11
While admiring this desecrated shrine Maurice met and befriended a young French poet called Philippe
who might have been appropriately dressed for an elegant cocktail party in Northern Europe but not for the
sweltering heat the stench and the dust of Istanbul He was one of those individuals who stubbornly adhere
to specific sartorial standards no matter how incongruous or uncomfortable like those sweaty European ex-
patriate civil servants one used to encounter in various colonial outposts of the tropics Maurice admired
Philippersquos defiant attire but he also found it slightly ridiculous and teased him about it for the next few days
Philippe did not mind as he was clearly accustomed to such jibes and he enjoyed play-acting the fop to a
receptive audience
The world being indeed a very small place this overdressed Alsatian bard was also the scion of a prominent
family of medical practitioners in his hometown of Strasbourg Having similar interests and sensitivities this
pair of drifters became travelling companions for a while although like most misfits they generally preferred
to be alone Philippe was short chubby and eloquent while Maurice was tall skinny and laconic They were a
mismatch but their obvious differences didnrsquot seem to matter to them This odd duo wandered the backstreets
and the bazaars of Istanbul visited the inevitable tourist sites absorbed the sounds and fragrances of the Orient
and ended up in a seedy bar drinking too much Raqi2 while philosophising on the collapse of Byzantium
In truth there were no alternative affordable locations for their libations as all bars in Istanbul appeared
seedy if not sleazy which made these shady dives all the more appealing to two middle class Western
adolescents seeking the frisson of exotic squalor Indeed no serious traveller wants to get sloshed in lsquonice
barsrsquo frequented by lsquonice peoplersquo and besides as we all know lsquonice peoplersquo have a tendency to be much
nastier than they appear For the audacious bourgeois adventurer seediness and sleaze are essential pre-
requisites of all urban explorations
It was in such a drinking hole more reminiscent of an odorous public toilet than a comfortable pub that one
evening in one of those intoxicated moments of youthful recklessness that cements long-lasting friendships
that Maurice and Philippe decided to emulate Lord Byron and swim across the Bosphorus Strait under the
cover of darkness to avoid police detection and certain arrest A couple of young German tourists called
Ursula and Thomas whom they had met in the flea-infested hotel near the Grand Bazaar where they all
stayed at offered to drive them in their Volkswagen minibus to their launching point take care of all their
belongings and wait for them at an agreed spot on the other side of the Bosphorus Strait the Asian side near
the Beylerbeyi Sarayi (Beylerbeyi Palace)
Maurice who had decided to trust them convinced a more circumspect Philippe that even if all their belong-
ings disappeared they could always go to the French Consulate and ask for assistance To use an expression
in vogue at the time one could say that for a generation that sincerely wanted to make the world a better
place ldquoit wouldnrsquot have been cool to rip each other offrdquo although later on many of those well-intended lsquoBaby
Boomersrsquo would get over their romantic idealism and returning to the fold they would prove to be as rapa-
cious as their forefathers To minimise risks and efforts they chose the narrowest section of the strait and
began their journey in front of the Ccedilirağan Surayi (Ccedilirağan Palace) which had been in ruins since 1909 but
would later be restored and converted into yet another ostentatious luxury hotel sometime around 1991
The Ccedilırağan Palace seen from the Bosphorus Strait
2 An alcoholic spirit drink distilled from grain grapes plums and flavoured with aniseed
12
This short aquatic trip from Europe to Asia was perilous if not downright stupid but it was also an adven-
ture neither would ever forget The water on the edge of the Bosphorus was a tepid odorous brew of
effluents and diesel fuel At first our swimmers had to paddle through floating islands of detritus and dead
creatures in various stages of decomposition but soon due to the salubrious effect of water currents things
got more pleasant Away from the shoreline the boys were at last able to pause to admire the stars and the
city lights flickering and sparkling over the dark flapping waves A mighty cruise ship went by with her pro-
pellers stomping and chopping the waters gliding by serenely with utter confidence in her great power
For a few long minutes Maurice and Philippe thought they were going to be drawn into a fatal whirlpool and
minced by this metallic behemoth but on this occasion fate if there is such a thing decided to spare them
Fishermen who spotted them in the glow of their kerosene lamps at first asked if they required some help
but as the boys kept swimming trying to explain that they were fine these Good Samaritans sailed on
joking among themselves puzzled and amused by the absurdity of these wayward Westerners whom they
ended up cursing for disturbing the fish
Being somewhat socially inept Maurice had since early childhood disliked all team sports As a matter of
fact he had disliked all sports in general considering such physical endeavours as complete wastes of time
either as a participant or particularly as a spectator In any case he considered competition to be one of the
most subversive of all human activities This being said he had periodically enjoyed some individual sports
such as tennis or running for any distance over a thousand metres As long as he was on his own being only
responsible to and for himself he found such exercise tolerable if not pleasurable He had for many years en-
joyed swimming long distances and had even hoped that one day he would swim across the English Channel
but that project would never eventuate
Although he had navigated in a sea of uncertainty for most of his young life and was chronically griped by
self-doubt he often wondered on the futility of all his endeavours but on that warm summer night of 1966
swimming between Europe and Asia across that fabled body of water which links the Mediterranean and the
Sea of Marmara to the Black Sea leading to his beloved Russia he had never felt more alive In any case this
was a feat worthy of Uncle Alexander to whom he always liked to compare himself Swimming calmly and
rambling on in one of his usual silent soliloquies he was brought back to more practical considerations by
Philippe who seemed to be paddling away with some difficulty bordering on panic
Maurice lightheartedly convinced his new friend that this was not a race ndash rather they had all the time in the
world to enjoy this wonderful night and he should therefore save his energy if he wanted to make it to the
other side Philippe asked ldquoDonrsquot you have any fearsrdquo Maurice answered between breaststrokes ldquoOf course
I dohellipJust like everyone elsehellipBut if I listened to all my fears I would never do anythingrdquo ldquoToo truerdquo
responded Philippe who was easily convinced by this line of thought
Having both conquered their fears their youthful enthusiasm and health triumphed and at three-thirty in the
morning they landed in Asia near the Beylerbeyi Palace which had been the last place of captivity of the de-
posed Sultan Abdulhamid II from 1912 until his death there in 1918 Unfortunately since 1973 this elegant
historical building has been dwarfed by the Bosphorus Bridge
The Beylerbeyi Sarayi (Beylerbeyi Palace) and the 1973 Bosphorus Bridge linking Europe to Asia
13
Punctual and dependable Ursula and Thomas were already on location walking up and down the embank-
ment genuinely concerned for these two foolhardy Frenchmen although they hardly knew them After all this
was the 1960s when trusting and caring for even complete strangers were highly fashionable sentiments But in
that balmy summer night of 1966 having anxiously feared for the worst Ursula and Thomas were greatly
relieved when the boys emerged from the black waters exhausted but ecstatic For anyone else this could be
considered to have been an insignificant event but for Maurice and Philippe it would remain one of those rare
defining moments in their lives It is the sum of such experiences not the accumulation of lsquostuffrsquo no matter
how splendid that lsquostuffrsquo might be which gives meaning if not purpose to our existence
The four new friends then followed the happy ending with jubilant celebrations in the overgrown gardens
surrounding the Beylerbeyi Palace As Maurice and Philippe dried up they sat all there surrounded by flat-
tened plastic bottles broken glass cigarette butts weeds and thorny bushes but for them on that particular
night this was the Garden of Eden They talked endlessly and drank too much cheap wine waiting for the sun
to arise from beyond the Far East The uninhibited impulse to reveal the secrets of our souls is one of the most
precious treasures of youth With age too many of us deteriorate into poor listeners and crushing mono-
logists Without even noticing it we become cynical guarded and judgmental with a dwindling ability to
enjoy the company of others How much more intoxicating it is to share dreams rather than memories Half a
century later Maurice often wonders ldquoWhere are they all now these ephemeral merry companions who ap-
peared and disappeared from my firmament like shooting starsrdquo
On the edge of a new continent which might as well have been a new planet Maurice and Philippe spent the
next couple of days retelling each other the saga of their swim across the Bosphorus Strait in constantly
evolving details every new version of their story slightly more embellished and heroic than the previous one
which in Philippersquos case truly was lsquopoetic licensersquo Eventually they continued their journey to the excava-
tion site of the Homeric city of Troy which had lain buried for 2500 years During this pilgrimage Philippe
took great pleasure in reading aloud relevant passages of The Iliad but he seemed profoundly fatigued and
felt that it was time for him to go home He farewelled Maurice with an open invitation to visit him in Stras-
bourg whenever he wished and they parted ways on the most amicable terms
Istanbul in 1966
Istanbul now 3
3 In 1966 none of the high-rise buildings that appear in this photo existed and the two suspension bridges that cross the
Bosphorus had not yet been constructed either The Hagia Sophia appears in both photos
14
Freer than he would ever be again Maurice then ventured further and deeper into the Middle East which was a much safer and more welcoming region in those days Like so many adventurers poets and mystics before or since he willingly lost himself in that part of the world in order to lsquofind himselfrsquo Whether he did so or not is irrelevant - only the quest mattered The Middle East was an unparalleled feast for the senses The tumultuous multitudes the noise the music the fragrant foods the apparent vitality and even the still dormant hostility were all mesmerising charms he could not resist He dived into it and disappeared for the next several months as a submarine does beneath the waves much to his parentsrsquo chagrin To follow onersquos whims to live life to the fullest often demands a monstrous indifference to the suffering of those close to us He disappeared simply because one could easily do so in those blessed days before personal computers the internet mobile phones digital cameras and all that electronic gadgetry which has so impoverished our lives and withered our ability to exist in complete symbiosis with the world around us in complete anonymity if we so wish To paraphrase Milan Kundera lsquolife is now always elsewherersquo It is neither Dariusrsquo ghost nor the splendours of Persepolis nor the ruins of Babylon that Maurice remembers most from these peregrinations but a humble present he received from a gentle young woman in Isfahan in the heart of Iran when she farewelled him with three red roses she had carefully wrapped and placed in a small wooden box adorned with intricate Persian miniatures For the last fifty years this treasured gift with its three dried-up flowers has held pride and place in the successive homes he has temporarily occupied in his nomadic life In spite of the dark decades that followed in her turbulent country he often thinks about this young woman of Isfahan and hopes that life has been as kind to her as she was to him A few months later the Middle East exploded into a fire that has not been extinguished to this day4 ___________________________ 4 Ie the Six Day War of June 1967
A GOOD YEAR FOR MATHEMATICIANS In keeping with the article twelve months ago on British chemists born in 1766 this year we have three pro-minent mathematicians who were born in 1667 ndash two on the same day The first was a Frenchman Abraham de Moivre born into a Huguenot family on 26 May and educated at the Protestant Academy of Sedan until it was suppressed in 1682 He went on to study logic at Saumur and physics in Paris but the repression of his denomination by Louis XIV caused him to move to London in 1687 There he met Edmund Halley and Isaac Newton and he was admitted to the Royal Society in 1689 after writ-ing two papers that generalised the latterrsquos theorems Halley then encouraged him to study astronomy which led him to propose a prescient theory affecting elliptical orbits He proceeded to do further work in analytic geometry and wrote four books on probability followed by a fundamental theorem of what is now known as complex analysis (involving the lsquoimaginaryrsquo number i = radicminus1) It is said that he correctly calculated the date of his death on 27 November 1754 Also born on 26 May 1667 and of Huguenot descent was the Swiss mathematician Johann Bernoulli Educa-ted at Basel University with his older brother Jacob he became a professor at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands They both specialised in the new fields of calculus and differential equations which had important applications in physics Amazingly Johann developed a proof of de Moivrersquos proposal affecting elliptical orbits in 1710 amongst many other works The Bernoullis including a third brother were the first of three generations of prominent mathematicians and scientists Johann died in 1748 William Whiston was born in England on 09 December the son of a rector and studied at Cambridge He became a tutor there left to join the ministry and returned to become Sir Isaac Newtonrsquos understudy in 1701 He took the Lucasian Chair of Mathematics the next year when Newton retired but unlike his lsquocloset Unitarianrsquo predecessor he did not conceal his radical religious views Instead he gave lectures published books and even debated the doctrine of the Trinity with two archbishops after which he was expelled from Cambridge in 1710 He went on to a controversial career in both science and religion writing many books on both subjects Despite his unorthodoxy and never having been made a Member he often gave lectures to the Royal Society He co-authored a chart of the Solar System showing the paths of various comets and produced one of the first maps of the Earthrsquos magnetic field over southern England He died in 1752
15
(The Reformation That Failed contrsquod)
The final phase of the wars is known as lsquothe War of the Three Henrysrsquo because it involved King Henry III
Henry of Guise and Henry of Navarre It began when Prince Francis died in 1584 after spending four years
out of the country courting Queen Elizabeth I of England and taking part in William of Orangersquos revolt in the
Spanish Netherlands (present-day Holland and Belgium) As neither he nor Henry III had any children this
made their cousin Henry of Navarre the legal successor to the throne which the Catholic League could not
accept Under pressure from the Guises the king signed an edict in 1585 that suppressed Protestantism and
annulled Henry of Navarrersquos right to the succession in favour of Cardinal Charles de Bourbon
The Catholic League wanted total war against the Huguenots but the king who wanted a settlement insisted
that he had no funds for such a campaign When a Catholic uprising in Paris drove him from the city in 1588
Henry III concluded that the Guises meant to overthrow him His bodyguard assassinated Henry of Guise
and his brother Cardinal Louis de Guise at the Royal Chacircteau de Blois and the king joined forces with his
Protestant cousin However he in turn was assassinated by a Dominican monk in 1589 and Henry of Navarre
became King Henry IV of France
The Catholic League still controlled the north and east of the country but Henry attacked and defeated them in
two battles in Normandy He laid siege to Paris in 1590 until a Spanish army from the Netherlands forced him
back after which the two armies fought until the invaders withdrew at the end of 1592 Henry then realised that
he could never take Paris and rule the whole of France while he was a Protestant so he became a Catholic in
1593 and the Pope revoked his excommunication in exchange for the Churchrsquos supremacy in France
While Henry had committed to reserving all high positions to Catholics he wanted to assure the Huguenots
that he was not a puppet of Spain In 1595 he initiated the Franco-Spanish War in which he also sought to
subdue the few remnants of the Catholic League that refused to recognise his accession This led to another
invasion from the Spanish Netherlands which was stopped at Calais and driven back after which the Peace
of Vervins in 1598 deprived the French rebels of support from Spain Henry then pacified Brittany without
bloodshed and issued the Edict of Nantes which guaranteed the rights of Protestants and ended the wars
In 1599 Henryrsquos childless marriage was annulled and he married Marie dersquo Medici the next year She soon
gave birth to a son who became King Louis XIII when his father was assassinated by a fanatical Catholic in
1610 Marie became his regent until 1617 after which Louis used various means to erode the provisions of
the Edict of Nantes His son Louis XIV was even more hostile to the Huguenots and from 1661 he actively
pressured them to either convert or leave the country Finally his Edict of Fontainebleau in 1865 declared
Protestantism illegal and between 200000 and a million Huguenots emigrated
Some Protestants remained in the mountainous Ceacutevennes region in the southeast where they were largely left
alone In more settled areas many who claimed to have converted practiced their faith in secret suffering
severe penalties if they were detected Ironically religious freedom was restored by Louis XVI in his Edict of
Versailles of 1787 ndash two years before the Revolution and the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen
[This story has a number of interesting historical sidelines starting with the regent queens Catherine and
Marie dersquo Medici Both were scions of the ruling house of Florence which also produced three popes Leo X
who excommunicated Martin Luther Clement VII who granted King Henry VIII of Englandrsquos annulment
and Leo XI who was elected at 69 and died less than a month later
The short-lived King Francis II was married to Mary Stuart Queen of Scots whose mother was the sister of
Francis Duke of Guise She lived in France from the age of five until her husbandrsquos death after which she
returned to rule Scotland Her son James VI succeeded Queen Elizabeth I as King James I of England in
1603 (His great-grandmother Margaret Tudor was King Henry VIIIrsquos sister)
Henry III was the last ruler from the House of Valois whereas Henry IV founded the Bourbon Dynasty His
eldest daughter Elisabeth married King Philip IV of Spain while his youngest Henrietta Maria became the
wife of King Charles I of England Scotland and Ireland Louis XIII died when his elder son was four years
old giving Louis XIV the longest recorded reign (72 years) of any monarch of a sovereign European nation
Known as the lsquoSun Kingrsquo his time was a period of political centralisation economic advancement military
success and empire building in North America India and Africa]
16
MORE ICCU NEWS Just as we go to press the Chalice Lighting for December has arrived
Saat gelap kita terkungkung rasa takut maka nyalakanlah harapan dalam jiwa Saat gelap kita penuh kecurigaan dan prasangka buruk pada sesama maka nyalakanlah kasih dalam hati Saat gelap kita kehilangan sadar mana yang baik dan mana yang jahat maka nyalakanlah hikmat dalam nurani Saat gelap kita merasa bisa berbuat semau kita tanpa ingat Sang Maha Suci dan sesama maka nyalakanlah iman yang dipenuhi kebenaran Gelap ada saat kita abai menyalakan terang Gelap tak bisa diusir dengan marah dan geram sebab gelap akan sirna jika kita menyalakan terang Saat kita menyalakan lentera kita dalam ibadah ini Marilah tak hanya mengundang terang bagi mata jasmani tetapi selalu undang terang bagi mata rohani Yang akan memerdekakan hati serta membawa kebijaksanaan dan kebahagiaan sejati
When it is dark we are surrounded by fear so light hope in your soul When it is dark we are full of distrust and prejudice to the others so light love in your heart When it is dark we lose awareness of good and evil so light wisdom in your conscience When it is dark we feel that we can do whatever we want without remembering The Most Holy One and our neighbors so light faith that is fulfilled with truth Darkness exist when we forget to turn on the light Darkness cannot be expelled with our anger and wrath because darkness will be gone when we turn on the light When we light up our chalice in this worship Let us not only welcoming the light for our physical eyes but always invite the light for our spiritual eyes A light that will free our heart bringing wisdom and real happiness
Submitted by the Unitarian Christian Church of Indonesia Indonesian words (and presumably the English translation) written by its minister Rev Aryanto Nugroho Membership renewals for 2017 are due from 01 January so the best time to pay them will be at the
Christmas Party Those wishing to join our church can use this form by way of application but should
not send payment until their membership is accepted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MEMBERSHIPRENEWAL FORM
I (name) ___________________________________________________ of (address) _________________________________________________ ________________________________ Postcode _________ Phone(s) (home) __________________ (other) ___________________ Email ______________________________________________________ I apply to joinrenew membership in (delete one) the Sydney Unitarian Church and agree to abide by the rules as set down by the Constitution and management of the church Signature ________________________________ Fee enclosed $_____ Cheques should be made payable to Treasurer Sydney Unitarian Church Membership will be valid for the calendar year 2016 Annual membership is $20 and includes the SUN journal subscription to the SUN only is $15
7
JAPANESE LANDMARKS
Senso-ji Temple Tokyo
Peace Bell Hiroshima
Nakanoshima Park Osaka
Great Buddha Kamakura
Temple City Nara
Botanical Garden Kyoto
[Nara was the capital of Japan in 710ndash794 after which the imperial court moved to nearby Kyoto until 1868
Tokyo (formerly called Edo) was the headquarters of the Tokugawas while Kamakura to the south was the
seat of an earlier Shogunate that ended in 1333 All of these cities are on the main island of Honshu]
8
YOU WENT THE WRONG WAY OLD KING LOUIE
Louis the Sixteenth was the King of France in 1789
He was worse than Louis the Fifteenth
He was worse than Louis the Fourteenth
He was worse than Louis the Thirteenth
He was the worst since Louis the First
King Louis was living like a king but the people were living rotten
So the people they started an uprising which they called the French Revolution
And of course you remember their battle cry which will never be forgotten
You went the wrong way Old King
Louie
You made the population cry
rsquoCause all you did was sit and pet
With Marie Antoinette
In your place at Versailles
And now the countryrsquos gone kablooie
So we are giving you the air
That oughta teach you not to
Spend all your time fooling rsquoround
At the Folies Bergegravere
If you had been a nicer king
We wouldnt do a thing
But you were bad you must admit
Wersquore gonna take you and the Queen
Down to the guillotine
And shorten you a little bit
You came the wrong way Old King
Louie
And now you ainrsquot got far to go
Too bad you wonrsquot be here to see
That great big Eiffel Tower
Or Brigitte Bardot
To you King Louie we say fooey
You disappointed all of France
But then what else could we expect
From a king in silk stockings
And pink satin pants
You filled your stomach with chop suey
And also crecircpe suzettes and steak
And when they told your wife Marie
That nobody had bread she said
ldquoLet rsquoem eat cakerdquo
Wersquore gonna take you and the Queen
Down to the guillotine
Itrsquos somewhere in the heart of town
And when that fellarsquos through
With what hersquos gonna do
Yoursquoll have no place to hang your
crown
You came the wrong way Old King
Louie
Now we must put you on the shelf
Thatrsquos why the people are revolting
rsquocause Louie
Yoursquore pretty revolting yourself
Allan Sherman (1963)
Understandably nothing funny was ever written about the French Wars of Religion so this will have to do
Allan Sherman (1924ndash73) was a famous Jewish-American writer of comic parodies based on existing songs
and even pieces of classical music This song begins with a riff of lsquoLa Marseillesrsquo but the verses are based on
lsquoYou Came a Long Way from St Louisrsquo composed in 1948 by Bob Russell and John Benson Brooks It was
recorded in Shermanrsquos third album My Son the Nut released in 1963
Born Allan Copelon in Chicago Sherman took his motherrsquos maiden name after his parents divorced He
attended the University of Illinois and wrote a humour column for the student newspaper He became a tele-
vision writer and producer of game shows in the 1950s before he turned his hobby of writing parodies to better
use in the 1960s His first album My Son the Folksinger came out in 1962 followed by My Son the
Celebrity but his best-known song was lsquoHello Muddah Hello Faddahrsquo released as a single in 1963
Sydney Keith lsquoBobrsquo Russell (1914ndash70) was a songwriter chiefly a lyricist who started with vaudeville songs
and later wrote musical scores for movies He co-wrote lsquoHe Ainrsquot Heavy Hersquos My Brotherrsquo with Bobby Scott
in 1960 John Benson Brooks (1917ndash99) was a pianist arranger and composer who worked with a number of
jazz and blues songwriters amongst others over his lengthy career
As always these songs need to be heard in order to be fully appreciated ndash just search wwwyoutubecom
9
I HEARD THE BELLS ON CHRISTMAS DAY
I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old familiar carols play
and wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth good-will to men
And thought how as the day had come
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along
The unbroken song
Of peace on earth good-will to men
Till ringing singing on its way
The world revolved from night to day
A voice a chime
A chant sublime
Of peace on earth good-will to men
Then from each black accursed mouth
The cannon thundered in the South
And with the sound
The carols drowned
Of peace on earth good-will to men
It was as if an earthquake rent
The hearth-stones of a continent
And made forlorn
The households born
Of peace on earth good-will to men
And in despair I bowed my head
ldquoThere is no peace on earthrdquo I said
ldquoFor hate is strong
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth good-will to menrdquo
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep
ldquoGod is not dead nor doth He sleep
The Wrong shall fail
The Right prevail
With peace on earth good-will to menrdquo
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1863)
This poem was written on Christmas Day 1863 at the height of the American Civil War Longfellowrsquos son
Charles had enlisted in the Unionist army without his fatherrsquos permission and was severely wounded in battle
in Virginia shortly before that time He eventually recovered but he did not return to military service
For reasons that are unclear the poem was first published in 1865 in a magazine called Our Young Folks It was
first set to music by the English organist John Baptiste Calkin in 1872 and that version has been recorded by
singers as various as Johnny Cash and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir (The verses relating to the Civil War are
usually left out however)
As everyone hopefully knows Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807ndash1882) was a Unitarian born into a family
of left-wing Congregationalists William Ellery Channing was a friend of the family having attend Harvard
with Longfellowrsquos father and he met Ralph Waldo Emerson in later life though his independent theology did
not fully embrace Transcendentalism (See the feature article in the AprilMay 2009 for the full story)
10
ALEXANDER (Part 4)
By Patrick Bernard
In 1966 the first post-scriptum to Alexanderrsquos story was written in a most unexpected place and circum-stances By the end of June of that year Mauricersquos existence had changed dramatically taking a new but not all that unpredictable course Due to a succession of events that may be told in detail later on he had hurled himself into a nomadic lifestyle trekking across Lapland and then having sailed leisurely from lake to lake on an old-fashioned steamer from the north to the south of Finland he ended up in Helsinki Possessed with the freewheeling spirit of those times he then decided without a second thought to hitchhike from the lsquoLand of the Midnight Sunrsquo with reindeer antlers precariously tied to his backpack all the way across Eastern Europe to Constantinople the sublime gate to the Orient Mildly disappointed when he arrived there he found Istanbul instead of Constantinople ndash but the splendour of Byzantium lingered on as the fragrance of mimosa does long after its bloom has faded Stunned and unsure as to whether he was in a dream or in Heaven he sat for hours admiring the Hagia Sophia1 the Byzantine Basilica completed in 537AD which for many centuries had proudly defied gravity with its dome reputedly the largest in the world The Ottomans would then meticulously and methodically vandalise the building a millennium later soon after they had conquered Constantinople on 29 May 1453 To add insult to injury this great historical centre of Christianity was then literally nailed to the ground with four minarets
Cross-section drawing of the Hagia Sophia in 537AD
The Hagia Sophia today
1 Hagia Sophia from the Greek Holy Wisdom was a Greek Orthodox Christian patriarchal basilica in Constantinople (now Istanbul)
11
While admiring this desecrated shrine Maurice met and befriended a young French poet called Philippe
who might have been appropriately dressed for an elegant cocktail party in Northern Europe but not for the
sweltering heat the stench and the dust of Istanbul He was one of those individuals who stubbornly adhere
to specific sartorial standards no matter how incongruous or uncomfortable like those sweaty European ex-
patriate civil servants one used to encounter in various colonial outposts of the tropics Maurice admired
Philippersquos defiant attire but he also found it slightly ridiculous and teased him about it for the next few days
Philippe did not mind as he was clearly accustomed to such jibes and he enjoyed play-acting the fop to a
receptive audience
The world being indeed a very small place this overdressed Alsatian bard was also the scion of a prominent
family of medical practitioners in his hometown of Strasbourg Having similar interests and sensitivities this
pair of drifters became travelling companions for a while although like most misfits they generally preferred
to be alone Philippe was short chubby and eloquent while Maurice was tall skinny and laconic They were a
mismatch but their obvious differences didnrsquot seem to matter to them This odd duo wandered the backstreets
and the bazaars of Istanbul visited the inevitable tourist sites absorbed the sounds and fragrances of the Orient
and ended up in a seedy bar drinking too much Raqi2 while philosophising on the collapse of Byzantium
In truth there were no alternative affordable locations for their libations as all bars in Istanbul appeared
seedy if not sleazy which made these shady dives all the more appealing to two middle class Western
adolescents seeking the frisson of exotic squalor Indeed no serious traveller wants to get sloshed in lsquonice
barsrsquo frequented by lsquonice peoplersquo and besides as we all know lsquonice peoplersquo have a tendency to be much
nastier than they appear For the audacious bourgeois adventurer seediness and sleaze are essential pre-
requisites of all urban explorations
It was in such a drinking hole more reminiscent of an odorous public toilet than a comfortable pub that one
evening in one of those intoxicated moments of youthful recklessness that cements long-lasting friendships
that Maurice and Philippe decided to emulate Lord Byron and swim across the Bosphorus Strait under the
cover of darkness to avoid police detection and certain arrest A couple of young German tourists called
Ursula and Thomas whom they had met in the flea-infested hotel near the Grand Bazaar where they all
stayed at offered to drive them in their Volkswagen minibus to their launching point take care of all their
belongings and wait for them at an agreed spot on the other side of the Bosphorus Strait the Asian side near
the Beylerbeyi Sarayi (Beylerbeyi Palace)
Maurice who had decided to trust them convinced a more circumspect Philippe that even if all their belong-
ings disappeared they could always go to the French Consulate and ask for assistance To use an expression
in vogue at the time one could say that for a generation that sincerely wanted to make the world a better
place ldquoit wouldnrsquot have been cool to rip each other offrdquo although later on many of those well-intended lsquoBaby
Boomersrsquo would get over their romantic idealism and returning to the fold they would prove to be as rapa-
cious as their forefathers To minimise risks and efforts they chose the narrowest section of the strait and
began their journey in front of the Ccedilirağan Surayi (Ccedilirağan Palace) which had been in ruins since 1909 but
would later be restored and converted into yet another ostentatious luxury hotel sometime around 1991
The Ccedilırağan Palace seen from the Bosphorus Strait
2 An alcoholic spirit drink distilled from grain grapes plums and flavoured with aniseed
12
This short aquatic trip from Europe to Asia was perilous if not downright stupid but it was also an adven-
ture neither would ever forget The water on the edge of the Bosphorus was a tepid odorous brew of
effluents and diesel fuel At first our swimmers had to paddle through floating islands of detritus and dead
creatures in various stages of decomposition but soon due to the salubrious effect of water currents things
got more pleasant Away from the shoreline the boys were at last able to pause to admire the stars and the
city lights flickering and sparkling over the dark flapping waves A mighty cruise ship went by with her pro-
pellers stomping and chopping the waters gliding by serenely with utter confidence in her great power
For a few long minutes Maurice and Philippe thought they were going to be drawn into a fatal whirlpool and
minced by this metallic behemoth but on this occasion fate if there is such a thing decided to spare them
Fishermen who spotted them in the glow of their kerosene lamps at first asked if they required some help
but as the boys kept swimming trying to explain that they were fine these Good Samaritans sailed on
joking among themselves puzzled and amused by the absurdity of these wayward Westerners whom they
ended up cursing for disturbing the fish
Being somewhat socially inept Maurice had since early childhood disliked all team sports As a matter of
fact he had disliked all sports in general considering such physical endeavours as complete wastes of time
either as a participant or particularly as a spectator In any case he considered competition to be one of the
most subversive of all human activities This being said he had periodically enjoyed some individual sports
such as tennis or running for any distance over a thousand metres As long as he was on his own being only
responsible to and for himself he found such exercise tolerable if not pleasurable He had for many years en-
joyed swimming long distances and had even hoped that one day he would swim across the English Channel
but that project would never eventuate
Although he had navigated in a sea of uncertainty for most of his young life and was chronically griped by
self-doubt he often wondered on the futility of all his endeavours but on that warm summer night of 1966
swimming between Europe and Asia across that fabled body of water which links the Mediterranean and the
Sea of Marmara to the Black Sea leading to his beloved Russia he had never felt more alive In any case this
was a feat worthy of Uncle Alexander to whom he always liked to compare himself Swimming calmly and
rambling on in one of his usual silent soliloquies he was brought back to more practical considerations by
Philippe who seemed to be paddling away with some difficulty bordering on panic
Maurice lightheartedly convinced his new friend that this was not a race ndash rather they had all the time in the
world to enjoy this wonderful night and he should therefore save his energy if he wanted to make it to the
other side Philippe asked ldquoDonrsquot you have any fearsrdquo Maurice answered between breaststrokes ldquoOf course
I dohellipJust like everyone elsehellipBut if I listened to all my fears I would never do anythingrdquo ldquoToo truerdquo
responded Philippe who was easily convinced by this line of thought
Having both conquered their fears their youthful enthusiasm and health triumphed and at three-thirty in the
morning they landed in Asia near the Beylerbeyi Palace which had been the last place of captivity of the de-
posed Sultan Abdulhamid II from 1912 until his death there in 1918 Unfortunately since 1973 this elegant
historical building has been dwarfed by the Bosphorus Bridge
The Beylerbeyi Sarayi (Beylerbeyi Palace) and the 1973 Bosphorus Bridge linking Europe to Asia
13
Punctual and dependable Ursula and Thomas were already on location walking up and down the embank-
ment genuinely concerned for these two foolhardy Frenchmen although they hardly knew them After all this
was the 1960s when trusting and caring for even complete strangers were highly fashionable sentiments But in
that balmy summer night of 1966 having anxiously feared for the worst Ursula and Thomas were greatly
relieved when the boys emerged from the black waters exhausted but ecstatic For anyone else this could be
considered to have been an insignificant event but for Maurice and Philippe it would remain one of those rare
defining moments in their lives It is the sum of such experiences not the accumulation of lsquostuffrsquo no matter
how splendid that lsquostuffrsquo might be which gives meaning if not purpose to our existence
The four new friends then followed the happy ending with jubilant celebrations in the overgrown gardens
surrounding the Beylerbeyi Palace As Maurice and Philippe dried up they sat all there surrounded by flat-
tened plastic bottles broken glass cigarette butts weeds and thorny bushes but for them on that particular
night this was the Garden of Eden They talked endlessly and drank too much cheap wine waiting for the sun
to arise from beyond the Far East The uninhibited impulse to reveal the secrets of our souls is one of the most
precious treasures of youth With age too many of us deteriorate into poor listeners and crushing mono-
logists Without even noticing it we become cynical guarded and judgmental with a dwindling ability to
enjoy the company of others How much more intoxicating it is to share dreams rather than memories Half a
century later Maurice often wonders ldquoWhere are they all now these ephemeral merry companions who ap-
peared and disappeared from my firmament like shooting starsrdquo
On the edge of a new continent which might as well have been a new planet Maurice and Philippe spent the
next couple of days retelling each other the saga of their swim across the Bosphorus Strait in constantly
evolving details every new version of their story slightly more embellished and heroic than the previous one
which in Philippersquos case truly was lsquopoetic licensersquo Eventually they continued their journey to the excava-
tion site of the Homeric city of Troy which had lain buried for 2500 years During this pilgrimage Philippe
took great pleasure in reading aloud relevant passages of The Iliad but he seemed profoundly fatigued and
felt that it was time for him to go home He farewelled Maurice with an open invitation to visit him in Stras-
bourg whenever he wished and they parted ways on the most amicable terms
Istanbul in 1966
Istanbul now 3
3 In 1966 none of the high-rise buildings that appear in this photo existed and the two suspension bridges that cross the
Bosphorus had not yet been constructed either The Hagia Sophia appears in both photos
14
Freer than he would ever be again Maurice then ventured further and deeper into the Middle East which was a much safer and more welcoming region in those days Like so many adventurers poets and mystics before or since he willingly lost himself in that part of the world in order to lsquofind himselfrsquo Whether he did so or not is irrelevant - only the quest mattered The Middle East was an unparalleled feast for the senses The tumultuous multitudes the noise the music the fragrant foods the apparent vitality and even the still dormant hostility were all mesmerising charms he could not resist He dived into it and disappeared for the next several months as a submarine does beneath the waves much to his parentsrsquo chagrin To follow onersquos whims to live life to the fullest often demands a monstrous indifference to the suffering of those close to us He disappeared simply because one could easily do so in those blessed days before personal computers the internet mobile phones digital cameras and all that electronic gadgetry which has so impoverished our lives and withered our ability to exist in complete symbiosis with the world around us in complete anonymity if we so wish To paraphrase Milan Kundera lsquolife is now always elsewherersquo It is neither Dariusrsquo ghost nor the splendours of Persepolis nor the ruins of Babylon that Maurice remembers most from these peregrinations but a humble present he received from a gentle young woman in Isfahan in the heart of Iran when she farewelled him with three red roses she had carefully wrapped and placed in a small wooden box adorned with intricate Persian miniatures For the last fifty years this treasured gift with its three dried-up flowers has held pride and place in the successive homes he has temporarily occupied in his nomadic life In spite of the dark decades that followed in her turbulent country he often thinks about this young woman of Isfahan and hopes that life has been as kind to her as she was to him A few months later the Middle East exploded into a fire that has not been extinguished to this day4 ___________________________ 4 Ie the Six Day War of June 1967
A GOOD YEAR FOR MATHEMATICIANS In keeping with the article twelve months ago on British chemists born in 1766 this year we have three pro-minent mathematicians who were born in 1667 ndash two on the same day The first was a Frenchman Abraham de Moivre born into a Huguenot family on 26 May and educated at the Protestant Academy of Sedan until it was suppressed in 1682 He went on to study logic at Saumur and physics in Paris but the repression of his denomination by Louis XIV caused him to move to London in 1687 There he met Edmund Halley and Isaac Newton and he was admitted to the Royal Society in 1689 after writ-ing two papers that generalised the latterrsquos theorems Halley then encouraged him to study astronomy which led him to propose a prescient theory affecting elliptical orbits He proceeded to do further work in analytic geometry and wrote four books on probability followed by a fundamental theorem of what is now known as complex analysis (involving the lsquoimaginaryrsquo number i = radicminus1) It is said that he correctly calculated the date of his death on 27 November 1754 Also born on 26 May 1667 and of Huguenot descent was the Swiss mathematician Johann Bernoulli Educa-ted at Basel University with his older brother Jacob he became a professor at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands They both specialised in the new fields of calculus and differential equations which had important applications in physics Amazingly Johann developed a proof of de Moivrersquos proposal affecting elliptical orbits in 1710 amongst many other works The Bernoullis including a third brother were the first of three generations of prominent mathematicians and scientists Johann died in 1748 William Whiston was born in England on 09 December the son of a rector and studied at Cambridge He became a tutor there left to join the ministry and returned to become Sir Isaac Newtonrsquos understudy in 1701 He took the Lucasian Chair of Mathematics the next year when Newton retired but unlike his lsquocloset Unitarianrsquo predecessor he did not conceal his radical religious views Instead he gave lectures published books and even debated the doctrine of the Trinity with two archbishops after which he was expelled from Cambridge in 1710 He went on to a controversial career in both science and religion writing many books on both subjects Despite his unorthodoxy and never having been made a Member he often gave lectures to the Royal Society He co-authored a chart of the Solar System showing the paths of various comets and produced one of the first maps of the Earthrsquos magnetic field over southern England He died in 1752
15
(The Reformation That Failed contrsquod)
The final phase of the wars is known as lsquothe War of the Three Henrysrsquo because it involved King Henry III
Henry of Guise and Henry of Navarre It began when Prince Francis died in 1584 after spending four years
out of the country courting Queen Elizabeth I of England and taking part in William of Orangersquos revolt in the
Spanish Netherlands (present-day Holland and Belgium) As neither he nor Henry III had any children this
made their cousin Henry of Navarre the legal successor to the throne which the Catholic League could not
accept Under pressure from the Guises the king signed an edict in 1585 that suppressed Protestantism and
annulled Henry of Navarrersquos right to the succession in favour of Cardinal Charles de Bourbon
The Catholic League wanted total war against the Huguenots but the king who wanted a settlement insisted
that he had no funds for such a campaign When a Catholic uprising in Paris drove him from the city in 1588
Henry III concluded that the Guises meant to overthrow him His bodyguard assassinated Henry of Guise
and his brother Cardinal Louis de Guise at the Royal Chacircteau de Blois and the king joined forces with his
Protestant cousin However he in turn was assassinated by a Dominican monk in 1589 and Henry of Navarre
became King Henry IV of France
The Catholic League still controlled the north and east of the country but Henry attacked and defeated them in
two battles in Normandy He laid siege to Paris in 1590 until a Spanish army from the Netherlands forced him
back after which the two armies fought until the invaders withdrew at the end of 1592 Henry then realised that
he could never take Paris and rule the whole of France while he was a Protestant so he became a Catholic in
1593 and the Pope revoked his excommunication in exchange for the Churchrsquos supremacy in France
While Henry had committed to reserving all high positions to Catholics he wanted to assure the Huguenots
that he was not a puppet of Spain In 1595 he initiated the Franco-Spanish War in which he also sought to
subdue the few remnants of the Catholic League that refused to recognise his accession This led to another
invasion from the Spanish Netherlands which was stopped at Calais and driven back after which the Peace
of Vervins in 1598 deprived the French rebels of support from Spain Henry then pacified Brittany without
bloodshed and issued the Edict of Nantes which guaranteed the rights of Protestants and ended the wars
In 1599 Henryrsquos childless marriage was annulled and he married Marie dersquo Medici the next year She soon
gave birth to a son who became King Louis XIII when his father was assassinated by a fanatical Catholic in
1610 Marie became his regent until 1617 after which Louis used various means to erode the provisions of
the Edict of Nantes His son Louis XIV was even more hostile to the Huguenots and from 1661 he actively
pressured them to either convert or leave the country Finally his Edict of Fontainebleau in 1865 declared
Protestantism illegal and between 200000 and a million Huguenots emigrated
Some Protestants remained in the mountainous Ceacutevennes region in the southeast where they were largely left
alone In more settled areas many who claimed to have converted practiced their faith in secret suffering
severe penalties if they were detected Ironically religious freedom was restored by Louis XVI in his Edict of
Versailles of 1787 ndash two years before the Revolution and the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen
[This story has a number of interesting historical sidelines starting with the regent queens Catherine and
Marie dersquo Medici Both were scions of the ruling house of Florence which also produced three popes Leo X
who excommunicated Martin Luther Clement VII who granted King Henry VIII of Englandrsquos annulment
and Leo XI who was elected at 69 and died less than a month later
The short-lived King Francis II was married to Mary Stuart Queen of Scots whose mother was the sister of
Francis Duke of Guise She lived in France from the age of five until her husbandrsquos death after which she
returned to rule Scotland Her son James VI succeeded Queen Elizabeth I as King James I of England in
1603 (His great-grandmother Margaret Tudor was King Henry VIIIrsquos sister)
Henry III was the last ruler from the House of Valois whereas Henry IV founded the Bourbon Dynasty His
eldest daughter Elisabeth married King Philip IV of Spain while his youngest Henrietta Maria became the
wife of King Charles I of England Scotland and Ireland Louis XIII died when his elder son was four years
old giving Louis XIV the longest recorded reign (72 years) of any monarch of a sovereign European nation
Known as the lsquoSun Kingrsquo his time was a period of political centralisation economic advancement military
success and empire building in North America India and Africa]
16
MORE ICCU NEWS Just as we go to press the Chalice Lighting for December has arrived
Saat gelap kita terkungkung rasa takut maka nyalakanlah harapan dalam jiwa Saat gelap kita penuh kecurigaan dan prasangka buruk pada sesama maka nyalakanlah kasih dalam hati Saat gelap kita kehilangan sadar mana yang baik dan mana yang jahat maka nyalakanlah hikmat dalam nurani Saat gelap kita merasa bisa berbuat semau kita tanpa ingat Sang Maha Suci dan sesama maka nyalakanlah iman yang dipenuhi kebenaran Gelap ada saat kita abai menyalakan terang Gelap tak bisa diusir dengan marah dan geram sebab gelap akan sirna jika kita menyalakan terang Saat kita menyalakan lentera kita dalam ibadah ini Marilah tak hanya mengundang terang bagi mata jasmani tetapi selalu undang terang bagi mata rohani Yang akan memerdekakan hati serta membawa kebijaksanaan dan kebahagiaan sejati
When it is dark we are surrounded by fear so light hope in your soul When it is dark we are full of distrust and prejudice to the others so light love in your heart When it is dark we lose awareness of good and evil so light wisdom in your conscience When it is dark we feel that we can do whatever we want without remembering The Most Holy One and our neighbors so light faith that is fulfilled with truth Darkness exist when we forget to turn on the light Darkness cannot be expelled with our anger and wrath because darkness will be gone when we turn on the light When we light up our chalice in this worship Let us not only welcoming the light for our physical eyes but always invite the light for our spiritual eyes A light that will free our heart bringing wisdom and real happiness
Submitted by the Unitarian Christian Church of Indonesia Indonesian words (and presumably the English translation) written by its minister Rev Aryanto Nugroho Membership renewals for 2017 are due from 01 January so the best time to pay them will be at the
Christmas Party Those wishing to join our church can use this form by way of application but should
not send payment until their membership is accepted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MEMBERSHIPRENEWAL FORM
I (name) ___________________________________________________ of (address) _________________________________________________ ________________________________ Postcode _________ Phone(s) (home) __________________ (other) ___________________ Email ______________________________________________________ I apply to joinrenew membership in (delete one) the Sydney Unitarian Church and agree to abide by the rules as set down by the Constitution and management of the church Signature ________________________________ Fee enclosed $_____ Cheques should be made payable to Treasurer Sydney Unitarian Church Membership will be valid for the calendar year 2016 Annual membership is $20 and includes the SUN journal subscription to the SUN only is $15
8
YOU WENT THE WRONG WAY OLD KING LOUIE
Louis the Sixteenth was the King of France in 1789
He was worse than Louis the Fifteenth
He was worse than Louis the Fourteenth
He was worse than Louis the Thirteenth
He was the worst since Louis the First
King Louis was living like a king but the people were living rotten
So the people they started an uprising which they called the French Revolution
And of course you remember their battle cry which will never be forgotten
You went the wrong way Old King
Louie
You made the population cry
rsquoCause all you did was sit and pet
With Marie Antoinette
In your place at Versailles
And now the countryrsquos gone kablooie
So we are giving you the air
That oughta teach you not to
Spend all your time fooling rsquoround
At the Folies Bergegravere
If you had been a nicer king
We wouldnt do a thing
But you were bad you must admit
Wersquore gonna take you and the Queen
Down to the guillotine
And shorten you a little bit
You came the wrong way Old King
Louie
And now you ainrsquot got far to go
Too bad you wonrsquot be here to see
That great big Eiffel Tower
Or Brigitte Bardot
To you King Louie we say fooey
You disappointed all of France
But then what else could we expect
From a king in silk stockings
And pink satin pants
You filled your stomach with chop suey
And also crecircpe suzettes and steak
And when they told your wife Marie
That nobody had bread she said
ldquoLet rsquoem eat cakerdquo
Wersquore gonna take you and the Queen
Down to the guillotine
Itrsquos somewhere in the heart of town
And when that fellarsquos through
With what hersquos gonna do
Yoursquoll have no place to hang your
crown
You came the wrong way Old King
Louie
Now we must put you on the shelf
Thatrsquos why the people are revolting
rsquocause Louie
Yoursquore pretty revolting yourself
Allan Sherman (1963)
Understandably nothing funny was ever written about the French Wars of Religion so this will have to do
Allan Sherman (1924ndash73) was a famous Jewish-American writer of comic parodies based on existing songs
and even pieces of classical music This song begins with a riff of lsquoLa Marseillesrsquo but the verses are based on
lsquoYou Came a Long Way from St Louisrsquo composed in 1948 by Bob Russell and John Benson Brooks It was
recorded in Shermanrsquos third album My Son the Nut released in 1963
Born Allan Copelon in Chicago Sherman took his motherrsquos maiden name after his parents divorced He
attended the University of Illinois and wrote a humour column for the student newspaper He became a tele-
vision writer and producer of game shows in the 1950s before he turned his hobby of writing parodies to better
use in the 1960s His first album My Son the Folksinger came out in 1962 followed by My Son the
Celebrity but his best-known song was lsquoHello Muddah Hello Faddahrsquo released as a single in 1963
Sydney Keith lsquoBobrsquo Russell (1914ndash70) was a songwriter chiefly a lyricist who started with vaudeville songs
and later wrote musical scores for movies He co-wrote lsquoHe Ainrsquot Heavy Hersquos My Brotherrsquo with Bobby Scott
in 1960 John Benson Brooks (1917ndash99) was a pianist arranger and composer who worked with a number of
jazz and blues songwriters amongst others over his lengthy career
As always these songs need to be heard in order to be fully appreciated ndash just search wwwyoutubecom
9
I HEARD THE BELLS ON CHRISTMAS DAY
I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old familiar carols play
and wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth good-will to men
And thought how as the day had come
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along
The unbroken song
Of peace on earth good-will to men
Till ringing singing on its way
The world revolved from night to day
A voice a chime
A chant sublime
Of peace on earth good-will to men
Then from each black accursed mouth
The cannon thundered in the South
And with the sound
The carols drowned
Of peace on earth good-will to men
It was as if an earthquake rent
The hearth-stones of a continent
And made forlorn
The households born
Of peace on earth good-will to men
And in despair I bowed my head
ldquoThere is no peace on earthrdquo I said
ldquoFor hate is strong
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth good-will to menrdquo
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep
ldquoGod is not dead nor doth He sleep
The Wrong shall fail
The Right prevail
With peace on earth good-will to menrdquo
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1863)
This poem was written on Christmas Day 1863 at the height of the American Civil War Longfellowrsquos son
Charles had enlisted in the Unionist army without his fatherrsquos permission and was severely wounded in battle
in Virginia shortly before that time He eventually recovered but he did not return to military service
For reasons that are unclear the poem was first published in 1865 in a magazine called Our Young Folks It was
first set to music by the English organist John Baptiste Calkin in 1872 and that version has been recorded by
singers as various as Johnny Cash and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir (The verses relating to the Civil War are
usually left out however)
As everyone hopefully knows Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807ndash1882) was a Unitarian born into a family
of left-wing Congregationalists William Ellery Channing was a friend of the family having attend Harvard
with Longfellowrsquos father and he met Ralph Waldo Emerson in later life though his independent theology did
not fully embrace Transcendentalism (See the feature article in the AprilMay 2009 for the full story)
10
ALEXANDER (Part 4)
By Patrick Bernard
In 1966 the first post-scriptum to Alexanderrsquos story was written in a most unexpected place and circum-stances By the end of June of that year Mauricersquos existence had changed dramatically taking a new but not all that unpredictable course Due to a succession of events that may be told in detail later on he had hurled himself into a nomadic lifestyle trekking across Lapland and then having sailed leisurely from lake to lake on an old-fashioned steamer from the north to the south of Finland he ended up in Helsinki Possessed with the freewheeling spirit of those times he then decided without a second thought to hitchhike from the lsquoLand of the Midnight Sunrsquo with reindeer antlers precariously tied to his backpack all the way across Eastern Europe to Constantinople the sublime gate to the Orient Mildly disappointed when he arrived there he found Istanbul instead of Constantinople ndash but the splendour of Byzantium lingered on as the fragrance of mimosa does long after its bloom has faded Stunned and unsure as to whether he was in a dream or in Heaven he sat for hours admiring the Hagia Sophia1 the Byzantine Basilica completed in 537AD which for many centuries had proudly defied gravity with its dome reputedly the largest in the world The Ottomans would then meticulously and methodically vandalise the building a millennium later soon after they had conquered Constantinople on 29 May 1453 To add insult to injury this great historical centre of Christianity was then literally nailed to the ground with four minarets
Cross-section drawing of the Hagia Sophia in 537AD
The Hagia Sophia today
1 Hagia Sophia from the Greek Holy Wisdom was a Greek Orthodox Christian patriarchal basilica in Constantinople (now Istanbul)
11
While admiring this desecrated shrine Maurice met and befriended a young French poet called Philippe
who might have been appropriately dressed for an elegant cocktail party in Northern Europe but not for the
sweltering heat the stench and the dust of Istanbul He was one of those individuals who stubbornly adhere
to specific sartorial standards no matter how incongruous or uncomfortable like those sweaty European ex-
patriate civil servants one used to encounter in various colonial outposts of the tropics Maurice admired
Philippersquos defiant attire but he also found it slightly ridiculous and teased him about it for the next few days
Philippe did not mind as he was clearly accustomed to such jibes and he enjoyed play-acting the fop to a
receptive audience
The world being indeed a very small place this overdressed Alsatian bard was also the scion of a prominent
family of medical practitioners in his hometown of Strasbourg Having similar interests and sensitivities this
pair of drifters became travelling companions for a while although like most misfits they generally preferred
to be alone Philippe was short chubby and eloquent while Maurice was tall skinny and laconic They were a
mismatch but their obvious differences didnrsquot seem to matter to them This odd duo wandered the backstreets
and the bazaars of Istanbul visited the inevitable tourist sites absorbed the sounds and fragrances of the Orient
and ended up in a seedy bar drinking too much Raqi2 while philosophising on the collapse of Byzantium
In truth there were no alternative affordable locations for their libations as all bars in Istanbul appeared
seedy if not sleazy which made these shady dives all the more appealing to two middle class Western
adolescents seeking the frisson of exotic squalor Indeed no serious traveller wants to get sloshed in lsquonice
barsrsquo frequented by lsquonice peoplersquo and besides as we all know lsquonice peoplersquo have a tendency to be much
nastier than they appear For the audacious bourgeois adventurer seediness and sleaze are essential pre-
requisites of all urban explorations
It was in such a drinking hole more reminiscent of an odorous public toilet than a comfortable pub that one
evening in one of those intoxicated moments of youthful recklessness that cements long-lasting friendships
that Maurice and Philippe decided to emulate Lord Byron and swim across the Bosphorus Strait under the
cover of darkness to avoid police detection and certain arrest A couple of young German tourists called
Ursula and Thomas whom they had met in the flea-infested hotel near the Grand Bazaar where they all
stayed at offered to drive them in their Volkswagen minibus to their launching point take care of all their
belongings and wait for them at an agreed spot on the other side of the Bosphorus Strait the Asian side near
the Beylerbeyi Sarayi (Beylerbeyi Palace)
Maurice who had decided to trust them convinced a more circumspect Philippe that even if all their belong-
ings disappeared they could always go to the French Consulate and ask for assistance To use an expression
in vogue at the time one could say that for a generation that sincerely wanted to make the world a better
place ldquoit wouldnrsquot have been cool to rip each other offrdquo although later on many of those well-intended lsquoBaby
Boomersrsquo would get over their romantic idealism and returning to the fold they would prove to be as rapa-
cious as their forefathers To minimise risks and efforts they chose the narrowest section of the strait and
began their journey in front of the Ccedilirağan Surayi (Ccedilirağan Palace) which had been in ruins since 1909 but
would later be restored and converted into yet another ostentatious luxury hotel sometime around 1991
The Ccedilırağan Palace seen from the Bosphorus Strait
2 An alcoholic spirit drink distilled from grain grapes plums and flavoured with aniseed
12
This short aquatic trip from Europe to Asia was perilous if not downright stupid but it was also an adven-
ture neither would ever forget The water on the edge of the Bosphorus was a tepid odorous brew of
effluents and diesel fuel At first our swimmers had to paddle through floating islands of detritus and dead
creatures in various stages of decomposition but soon due to the salubrious effect of water currents things
got more pleasant Away from the shoreline the boys were at last able to pause to admire the stars and the
city lights flickering and sparkling over the dark flapping waves A mighty cruise ship went by with her pro-
pellers stomping and chopping the waters gliding by serenely with utter confidence in her great power
For a few long minutes Maurice and Philippe thought they were going to be drawn into a fatal whirlpool and
minced by this metallic behemoth but on this occasion fate if there is such a thing decided to spare them
Fishermen who spotted them in the glow of their kerosene lamps at first asked if they required some help
but as the boys kept swimming trying to explain that they were fine these Good Samaritans sailed on
joking among themselves puzzled and amused by the absurdity of these wayward Westerners whom they
ended up cursing for disturbing the fish
Being somewhat socially inept Maurice had since early childhood disliked all team sports As a matter of
fact he had disliked all sports in general considering such physical endeavours as complete wastes of time
either as a participant or particularly as a spectator In any case he considered competition to be one of the
most subversive of all human activities This being said he had periodically enjoyed some individual sports
such as tennis or running for any distance over a thousand metres As long as he was on his own being only
responsible to and for himself he found such exercise tolerable if not pleasurable He had for many years en-
joyed swimming long distances and had even hoped that one day he would swim across the English Channel
but that project would never eventuate
Although he had navigated in a sea of uncertainty for most of his young life and was chronically griped by
self-doubt he often wondered on the futility of all his endeavours but on that warm summer night of 1966
swimming between Europe and Asia across that fabled body of water which links the Mediterranean and the
Sea of Marmara to the Black Sea leading to his beloved Russia he had never felt more alive In any case this
was a feat worthy of Uncle Alexander to whom he always liked to compare himself Swimming calmly and
rambling on in one of his usual silent soliloquies he was brought back to more practical considerations by
Philippe who seemed to be paddling away with some difficulty bordering on panic
Maurice lightheartedly convinced his new friend that this was not a race ndash rather they had all the time in the
world to enjoy this wonderful night and he should therefore save his energy if he wanted to make it to the
other side Philippe asked ldquoDonrsquot you have any fearsrdquo Maurice answered between breaststrokes ldquoOf course
I dohellipJust like everyone elsehellipBut if I listened to all my fears I would never do anythingrdquo ldquoToo truerdquo
responded Philippe who was easily convinced by this line of thought
Having both conquered their fears their youthful enthusiasm and health triumphed and at three-thirty in the
morning they landed in Asia near the Beylerbeyi Palace which had been the last place of captivity of the de-
posed Sultan Abdulhamid II from 1912 until his death there in 1918 Unfortunately since 1973 this elegant
historical building has been dwarfed by the Bosphorus Bridge
The Beylerbeyi Sarayi (Beylerbeyi Palace) and the 1973 Bosphorus Bridge linking Europe to Asia
13
Punctual and dependable Ursula and Thomas were already on location walking up and down the embank-
ment genuinely concerned for these two foolhardy Frenchmen although they hardly knew them After all this
was the 1960s when trusting and caring for even complete strangers were highly fashionable sentiments But in
that balmy summer night of 1966 having anxiously feared for the worst Ursula and Thomas were greatly
relieved when the boys emerged from the black waters exhausted but ecstatic For anyone else this could be
considered to have been an insignificant event but for Maurice and Philippe it would remain one of those rare
defining moments in their lives It is the sum of such experiences not the accumulation of lsquostuffrsquo no matter
how splendid that lsquostuffrsquo might be which gives meaning if not purpose to our existence
The four new friends then followed the happy ending with jubilant celebrations in the overgrown gardens
surrounding the Beylerbeyi Palace As Maurice and Philippe dried up they sat all there surrounded by flat-
tened plastic bottles broken glass cigarette butts weeds and thorny bushes but for them on that particular
night this was the Garden of Eden They talked endlessly and drank too much cheap wine waiting for the sun
to arise from beyond the Far East The uninhibited impulse to reveal the secrets of our souls is one of the most
precious treasures of youth With age too many of us deteriorate into poor listeners and crushing mono-
logists Without even noticing it we become cynical guarded and judgmental with a dwindling ability to
enjoy the company of others How much more intoxicating it is to share dreams rather than memories Half a
century later Maurice often wonders ldquoWhere are they all now these ephemeral merry companions who ap-
peared and disappeared from my firmament like shooting starsrdquo
On the edge of a new continent which might as well have been a new planet Maurice and Philippe spent the
next couple of days retelling each other the saga of their swim across the Bosphorus Strait in constantly
evolving details every new version of their story slightly more embellished and heroic than the previous one
which in Philippersquos case truly was lsquopoetic licensersquo Eventually they continued their journey to the excava-
tion site of the Homeric city of Troy which had lain buried for 2500 years During this pilgrimage Philippe
took great pleasure in reading aloud relevant passages of The Iliad but he seemed profoundly fatigued and
felt that it was time for him to go home He farewelled Maurice with an open invitation to visit him in Stras-
bourg whenever he wished and they parted ways on the most amicable terms
Istanbul in 1966
Istanbul now 3
3 In 1966 none of the high-rise buildings that appear in this photo existed and the two suspension bridges that cross the
Bosphorus had not yet been constructed either The Hagia Sophia appears in both photos
14
Freer than he would ever be again Maurice then ventured further and deeper into the Middle East which was a much safer and more welcoming region in those days Like so many adventurers poets and mystics before or since he willingly lost himself in that part of the world in order to lsquofind himselfrsquo Whether he did so or not is irrelevant - only the quest mattered The Middle East was an unparalleled feast for the senses The tumultuous multitudes the noise the music the fragrant foods the apparent vitality and even the still dormant hostility were all mesmerising charms he could not resist He dived into it and disappeared for the next several months as a submarine does beneath the waves much to his parentsrsquo chagrin To follow onersquos whims to live life to the fullest often demands a monstrous indifference to the suffering of those close to us He disappeared simply because one could easily do so in those blessed days before personal computers the internet mobile phones digital cameras and all that electronic gadgetry which has so impoverished our lives and withered our ability to exist in complete symbiosis with the world around us in complete anonymity if we so wish To paraphrase Milan Kundera lsquolife is now always elsewherersquo It is neither Dariusrsquo ghost nor the splendours of Persepolis nor the ruins of Babylon that Maurice remembers most from these peregrinations but a humble present he received from a gentle young woman in Isfahan in the heart of Iran when she farewelled him with three red roses she had carefully wrapped and placed in a small wooden box adorned with intricate Persian miniatures For the last fifty years this treasured gift with its three dried-up flowers has held pride and place in the successive homes he has temporarily occupied in his nomadic life In spite of the dark decades that followed in her turbulent country he often thinks about this young woman of Isfahan and hopes that life has been as kind to her as she was to him A few months later the Middle East exploded into a fire that has not been extinguished to this day4 ___________________________ 4 Ie the Six Day War of June 1967
A GOOD YEAR FOR MATHEMATICIANS In keeping with the article twelve months ago on British chemists born in 1766 this year we have three pro-minent mathematicians who were born in 1667 ndash two on the same day The first was a Frenchman Abraham de Moivre born into a Huguenot family on 26 May and educated at the Protestant Academy of Sedan until it was suppressed in 1682 He went on to study logic at Saumur and physics in Paris but the repression of his denomination by Louis XIV caused him to move to London in 1687 There he met Edmund Halley and Isaac Newton and he was admitted to the Royal Society in 1689 after writ-ing two papers that generalised the latterrsquos theorems Halley then encouraged him to study astronomy which led him to propose a prescient theory affecting elliptical orbits He proceeded to do further work in analytic geometry and wrote four books on probability followed by a fundamental theorem of what is now known as complex analysis (involving the lsquoimaginaryrsquo number i = radicminus1) It is said that he correctly calculated the date of his death on 27 November 1754 Also born on 26 May 1667 and of Huguenot descent was the Swiss mathematician Johann Bernoulli Educa-ted at Basel University with his older brother Jacob he became a professor at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands They both specialised in the new fields of calculus and differential equations which had important applications in physics Amazingly Johann developed a proof of de Moivrersquos proposal affecting elliptical orbits in 1710 amongst many other works The Bernoullis including a third brother were the first of three generations of prominent mathematicians and scientists Johann died in 1748 William Whiston was born in England on 09 December the son of a rector and studied at Cambridge He became a tutor there left to join the ministry and returned to become Sir Isaac Newtonrsquos understudy in 1701 He took the Lucasian Chair of Mathematics the next year when Newton retired but unlike his lsquocloset Unitarianrsquo predecessor he did not conceal his radical religious views Instead he gave lectures published books and even debated the doctrine of the Trinity with two archbishops after which he was expelled from Cambridge in 1710 He went on to a controversial career in both science and religion writing many books on both subjects Despite his unorthodoxy and never having been made a Member he often gave lectures to the Royal Society He co-authored a chart of the Solar System showing the paths of various comets and produced one of the first maps of the Earthrsquos magnetic field over southern England He died in 1752
15
(The Reformation That Failed contrsquod)
The final phase of the wars is known as lsquothe War of the Three Henrysrsquo because it involved King Henry III
Henry of Guise and Henry of Navarre It began when Prince Francis died in 1584 after spending four years
out of the country courting Queen Elizabeth I of England and taking part in William of Orangersquos revolt in the
Spanish Netherlands (present-day Holland and Belgium) As neither he nor Henry III had any children this
made their cousin Henry of Navarre the legal successor to the throne which the Catholic League could not
accept Under pressure from the Guises the king signed an edict in 1585 that suppressed Protestantism and
annulled Henry of Navarrersquos right to the succession in favour of Cardinal Charles de Bourbon
The Catholic League wanted total war against the Huguenots but the king who wanted a settlement insisted
that he had no funds for such a campaign When a Catholic uprising in Paris drove him from the city in 1588
Henry III concluded that the Guises meant to overthrow him His bodyguard assassinated Henry of Guise
and his brother Cardinal Louis de Guise at the Royal Chacircteau de Blois and the king joined forces with his
Protestant cousin However he in turn was assassinated by a Dominican monk in 1589 and Henry of Navarre
became King Henry IV of France
The Catholic League still controlled the north and east of the country but Henry attacked and defeated them in
two battles in Normandy He laid siege to Paris in 1590 until a Spanish army from the Netherlands forced him
back after which the two armies fought until the invaders withdrew at the end of 1592 Henry then realised that
he could never take Paris and rule the whole of France while he was a Protestant so he became a Catholic in
1593 and the Pope revoked his excommunication in exchange for the Churchrsquos supremacy in France
While Henry had committed to reserving all high positions to Catholics he wanted to assure the Huguenots
that he was not a puppet of Spain In 1595 he initiated the Franco-Spanish War in which he also sought to
subdue the few remnants of the Catholic League that refused to recognise his accession This led to another
invasion from the Spanish Netherlands which was stopped at Calais and driven back after which the Peace
of Vervins in 1598 deprived the French rebels of support from Spain Henry then pacified Brittany without
bloodshed and issued the Edict of Nantes which guaranteed the rights of Protestants and ended the wars
In 1599 Henryrsquos childless marriage was annulled and he married Marie dersquo Medici the next year She soon
gave birth to a son who became King Louis XIII when his father was assassinated by a fanatical Catholic in
1610 Marie became his regent until 1617 after which Louis used various means to erode the provisions of
the Edict of Nantes His son Louis XIV was even more hostile to the Huguenots and from 1661 he actively
pressured them to either convert or leave the country Finally his Edict of Fontainebleau in 1865 declared
Protestantism illegal and between 200000 and a million Huguenots emigrated
Some Protestants remained in the mountainous Ceacutevennes region in the southeast where they were largely left
alone In more settled areas many who claimed to have converted practiced their faith in secret suffering
severe penalties if they were detected Ironically religious freedom was restored by Louis XVI in his Edict of
Versailles of 1787 ndash two years before the Revolution and the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen
[This story has a number of interesting historical sidelines starting with the regent queens Catherine and
Marie dersquo Medici Both were scions of the ruling house of Florence which also produced three popes Leo X
who excommunicated Martin Luther Clement VII who granted King Henry VIII of Englandrsquos annulment
and Leo XI who was elected at 69 and died less than a month later
The short-lived King Francis II was married to Mary Stuart Queen of Scots whose mother was the sister of
Francis Duke of Guise She lived in France from the age of five until her husbandrsquos death after which she
returned to rule Scotland Her son James VI succeeded Queen Elizabeth I as King James I of England in
1603 (His great-grandmother Margaret Tudor was King Henry VIIIrsquos sister)
Henry III was the last ruler from the House of Valois whereas Henry IV founded the Bourbon Dynasty His
eldest daughter Elisabeth married King Philip IV of Spain while his youngest Henrietta Maria became the
wife of King Charles I of England Scotland and Ireland Louis XIII died when his elder son was four years
old giving Louis XIV the longest recorded reign (72 years) of any monarch of a sovereign European nation
Known as the lsquoSun Kingrsquo his time was a period of political centralisation economic advancement military
success and empire building in North America India and Africa]
16
MORE ICCU NEWS Just as we go to press the Chalice Lighting for December has arrived
Saat gelap kita terkungkung rasa takut maka nyalakanlah harapan dalam jiwa Saat gelap kita penuh kecurigaan dan prasangka buruk pada sesama maka nyalakanlah kasih dalam hati Saat gelap kita kehilangan sadar mana yang baik dan mana yang jahat maka nyalakanlah hikmat dalam nurani Saat gelap kita merasa bisa berbuat semau kita tanpa ingat Sang Maha Suci dan sesama maka nyalakanlah iman yang dipenuhi kebenaran Gelap ada saat kita abai menyalakan terang Gelap tak bisa diusir dengan marah dan geram sebab gelap akan sirna jika kita menyalakan terang Saat kita menyalakan lentera kita dalam ibadah ini Marilah tak hanya mengundang terang bagi mata jasmani tetapi selalu undang terang bagi mata rohani Yang akan memerdekakan hati serta membawa kebijaksanaan dan kebahagiaan sejati
When it is dark we are surrounded by fear so light hope in your soul When it is dark we are full of distrust and prejudice to the others so light love in your heart When it is dark we lose awareness of good and evil so light wisdom in your conscience When it is dark we feel that we can do whatever we want without remembering The Most Holy One and our neighbors so light faith that is fulfilled with truth Darkness exist when we forget to turn on the light Darkness cannot be expelled with our anger and wrath because darkness will be gone when we turn on the light When we light up our chalice in this worship Let us not only welcoming the light for our physical eyes but always invite the light for our spiritual eyes A light that will free our heart bringing wisdom and real happiness
Submitted by the Unitarian Christian Church of Indonesia Indonesian words (and presumably the English translation) written by its minister Rev Aryanto Nugroho Membership renewals for 2017 are due from 01 January so the best time to pay them will be at the
Christmas Party Those wishing to join our church can use this form by way of application but should
not send payment until their membership is accepted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MEMBERSHIPRENEWAL FORM
I (name) ___________________________________________________ of (address) _________________________________________________ ________________________________ Postcode _________ Phone(s) (home) __________________ (other) ___________________ Email ______________________________________________________ I apply to joinrenew membership in (delete one) the Sydney Unitarian Church and agree to abide by the rules as set down by the Constitution and management of the church Signature ________________________________ Fee enclosed $_____ Cheques should be made payable to Treasurer Sydney Unitarian Church Membership will be valid for the calendar year 2016 Annual membership is $20 and includes the SUN journal subscription to the SUN only is $15
9
I HEARD THE BELLS ON CHRISTMAS DAY
I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old familiar carols play
and wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth good-will to men
And thought how as the day had come
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along
The unbroken song
Of peace on earth good-will to men
Till ringing singing on its way
The world revolved from night to day
A voice a chime
A chant sublime
Of peace on earth good-will to men
Then from each black accursed mouth
The cannon thundered in the South
And with the sound
The carols drowned
Of peace on earth good-will to men
It was as if an earthquake rent
The hearth-stones of a continent
And made forlorn
The households born
Of peace on earth good-will to men
And in despair I bowed my head
ldquoThere is no peace on earthrdquo I said
ldquoFor hate is strong
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth good-will to menrdquo
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep
ldquoGod is not dead nor doth He sleep
The Wrong shall fail
The Right prevail
With peace on earth good-will to menrdquo
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1863)
This poem was written on Christmas Day 1863 at the height of the American Civil War Longfellowrsquos son
Charles had enlisted in the Unionist army without his fatherrsquos permission and was severely wounded in battle
in Virginia shortly before that time He eventually recovered but he did not return to military service
For reasons that are unclear the poem was first published in 1865 in a magazine called Our Young Folks It was
first set to music by the English organist John Baptiste Calkin in 1872 and that version has been recorded by
singers as various as Johnny Cash and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir (The verses relating to the Civil War are
usually left out however)
As everyone hopefully knows Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807ndash1882) was a Unitarian born into a family
of left-wing Congregationalists William Ellery Channing was a friend of the family having attend Harvard
with Longfellowrsquos father and he met Ralph Waldo Emerson in later life though his independent theology did
not fully embrace Transcendentalism (See the feature article in the AprilMay 2009 for the full story)
10
ALEXANDER (Part 4)
By Patrick Bernard
In 1966 the first post-scriptum to Alexanderrsquos story was written in a most unexpected place and circum-stances By the end of June of that year Mauricersquos existence had changed dramatically taking a new but not all that unpredictable course Due to a succession of events that may be told in detail later on he had hurled himself into a nomadic lifestyle trekking across Lapland and then having sailed leisurely from lake to lake on an old-fashioned steamer from the north to the south of Finland he ended up in Helsinki Possessed with the freewheeling spirit of those times he then decided without a second thought to hitchhike from the lsquoLand of the Midnight Sunrsquo with reindeer antlers precariously tied to his backpack all the way across Eastern Europe to Constantinople the sublime gate to the Orient Mildly disappointed when he arrived there he found Istanbul instead of Constantinople ndash but the splendour of Byzantium lingered on as the fragrance of mimosa does long after its bloom has faded Stunned and unsure as to whether he was in a dream or in Heaven he sat for hours admiring the Hagia Sophia1 the Byzantine Basilica completed in 537AD which for many centuries had proudly defied gravity with its dome reputedly the largest in the world The Ottomans would then meticulously and methodically vandalise the building a millennium later soon after they had conquered Constantinople on 29 May 1453 To add insult to injury this great historical centre of Christianity was then literally nailed to the ground with four minarets
Cross-section drawing of the Hagia Sophia in 537AD
The Hagia Sophia today
1 Hagia Sophia from the Greek Holy Wisdom was a Greek Orthodox Christian patriarchal basilica in Constantinople (now Istanbul)
11
While admiring this desecrated shrine Maurice met and befriended a young French poet called Philippe
who might have been appropriately dressed for an elegant cocktail party in Northern Europe but not for the
sweltering heat the stench and the dust of Istanbul He was one of those individuals who stubbornly adhere
to specific sartorial standards no matter how incongruous or uncomfortable like those sweaty European ex-
patriate civil servants one used to encounter in various colonial outposts of the tropics Maurice admired
Philippersquos defiant attire but he also found it slightly ridiculous and teased him about it for the next few days
Philippe did not mind as he was clearly accustomed to such jibes and he enjoyed play-acting the fop to a
receptive audience
The world being indeed a very small place this overdressed Alsatian bard was also the scion of a prominent
family of medical practitioners in his hometown of Strasbourg Having similar interests and sensitivities this
pair of drifters became travelling companions for a while although like most misfits they generally preferred
to be alone Philippe was short chubby and eloquent while Maurice was tall skinny and laconic They were a
mismatch but their obvious differences didnrsquot seem to matter to them This odd duo wandered the backstreets
and the bazaars of Istanbul visited the inevitable tourist sites absorbed the sounds and fragrances of the Orient
and ended up in a seedy bar drinking too much Raqi2 while philosophising on the collapse of Byzantium
In truth there were no alternative affordable locations for their libations as all bars in Istanbul appeared
seedy if not sleazy which made these shady dives all the more appealing to two middle class Western
adolescents seeking the frisson of exotic squalor Indeed no serious traveller wants to get sloshed in lsquonice
barsrsquo frequented by lsquonice peoplersquo and besides as we all know lsquonice peoplersquo have a tendency to be much
nastier than they appear For the audacious bourgeois adventurer seediness and sleaze are essential pre-
requisites of all urban explorations
It was in such a drinking hole more reminiscent of an odorous public toilet than a comfortable pub that one
evening in one of those intoxicated moments of youthful recklessness that cements long-lasting friendships
that Maurice and Philippe decided to emulate Lord Byron and swim across the Bosphorus Strait under the
cover of darkness to avoid police detection and certain arrest A couple of young German tourists called
Ursula and Thomas whom they had met in the flea-infested hotel near the Grand Bazaar where they all
stayed at offered to drive them in their Volkswagen minibus to their launching point take care of all their
belongings and wait for them at an agreed spot on the other side of the Bosphorus Strait the Asian side near
the Beylerbeyi Sarayi (Beylerbeyi Palace)
Maurice who had decided to trust them convinced a more circumspect Philippe that even if all their belong-
ings disappeared they could always go to the French Consulate and ask for assistance To use an expression
in vogue at the time one could say that for a generation that sincerely wanted to make the world a better
place ldquoit wouldnrsquot have been cool to rip each other offrdquo although later on many of those well-intended lsquoBaby
Boomersrsquo would get over their romantic idealism and returning to the fold they would prove to be as rapa-
cious as their forefathers To minimise risks and efforts they chose the narrowest section of the strait and
began their journey in front of the Ccedilirağan Surayi (Ccedilirağan Palace) which had been in ruins since 1909 but
would later be restored and converted into yet another ostentatious luxury hotel sometime around 1991
The Ccedilırağan Palace seen from the Bosphorus Strait
2 An alcoholic spirit drink distilled from grain grapes plums and flavoured with aniseed
12
This short aquatic trip from Europe to Asia was perilous if not downright stupid but it was also an adven-
ture neither would ever forget The water on the edge of the Bosphorus was a tepid odorous brew of
effluents and diesel fuel At first our swimmers had to paddle through floating islands of detritus and dead
creatures in various stages of decomposition but soon due to the salubrious effect of water currents things
got more pleasant Away from the shoreline the boys were at last able to pause to admire the stars and the
city lights flickering and sparkling over the dark flapping waves A mighty cruise ship went by with her pro-
pellers stomping and chopping the waters gliding by serenely with utter confidence in her great power
For a few long minutes Maurice and Philippe thought they were going to be drawn into a fatal whirlpool and
minced by this metallic behemoth but on this occasion fate if there is such a thing decided to spare them
Fishermen who spotted them in the glow of their kerosene lamps at first asked if they required some help
but as the boys kept swimming trying to explain that they were fine these Good Samaritans sailed on
joking among themselves puzzled and amused by the absurdity of these wayward Westerners whom they
ended up cursing for disturbing the fish
Being somewhat socially inept Maurice had since early childhood disliked all team sports As a matter of
fact he had disliked all sports in general considering such physical endeavours as complete wastes of time
either as a participant or particularly as a spectator In any case he considered competition to be one of the
most subversive of all human activities This being said he had periodically enjoyed some individual sports
such as tennis or running for any distance over a thousand metres As long as he was on his own being only
responsible to and for himself he found such exercise tolerable if not pleasurable He had for many years en-
joyed swimming long distances and had even hoped that one day he would swim across the English Channel
but that project would never eventuate
Although he had navigated in a sea of uncertainty for most of his young life and was chronically griped by
self-doubt he often wondered on the futility of all his endeavours but on that warm summer night of 1966
swimming between Europe and Asia across that fabled body of water which links the Mediterranean and the
Sea of Marmara to the Black Sea leading to his beloved Russia he had never felt more alive In any case this
was a feat worthy of Uncle Alexander to whom he always liked to compare himself Swimming calmly and
rambling on in one of his usual silent soliloquies he was brought back to more practical considerations by
Philippe who seemed to be paddling away with some difficulty bordering on panic
Maurice lightheartedly convinced his new friend that this was not a race ndash rather they had all the time in the
world to enjoy this wonderful night and he should therefore save his energy if he wanted to make it to the
other side Philippe asked ldquoDonrsquot you have any fearsrdquo Maurice answered between breaststrokes ldquoOf course
I dohellipJust like everyone elsehellipBut if I listened to all my fears I would never do anythingrdquo ldquoToo truerdquo
responded Philippe who was easily convinced by this line of thought
Having both conquered their fears their youthful enthusiasm and health triumphed and at three-thirty in the
morning they landed in Asia near the Beylerbeyi Palace which had been the last place of captivity of the de-
posed Sultan Abdulhamid II from 1912 until his death there in 1918 Unfortunately since 1973 this elegant
historical building has been dwarfed by the Bosphorus Bridge
The Beylerbeyi Sarayi (Beylerbeyi Palace) and the 1973 Bosphorus Bridge linking Europe to Asia
13
Punctual and dependable Ursula and Thomas were already on location walking up and down the embank-
ment genuinely concerned for these two foolhardy Frenchmen although they hardly knew them After all this
was the 1960s when trusting and caring for even complete strangers were highly fashionable sentiments But in
that balmy summer night of 1966 having anxiously feared for the worst Ursula and Thomas were greatly
relieved when the boys emerged from the black waters exhausted but ecstatic For anyone else this could be
considered to have been an insignificant event but for Maurice and Philippe it would remain one of those rare
defining moments in their lives It is the sum of such experiences not the accumulation of lsquostuffrsquo no matter
how splendid that lsquostuffrsquo might be which gives meaning if not purpose to our existence
The four new friends then followed the happy ending with jubilant celebrations in the overgrown gardens
surrounding the Beylerbeyi Palace As Maurice and Philippe dried up they sat all there surrounded by flat-
tened plastic bottles broken glass cigarette butts weeds and thorny bushes but for them on that particular
night this was the Garden of Eden They talked endlessly and drank too much cheap wine waiting for the sun
to arise from beyond the Far East The uninhibited impulse to reveal the secrets of our souls is one of the most
precious treasures of youth With age too many of us deteriorate into poor listeners and crushing mono-
logists Without even noticing it we become cynical guarded and judgmental with a dwindling ability to
enjoy the company of others How much more intoxicating it is to share dreams rather than memories Half a
century later Maurice often wonders ldquoWhere are they all now these ephemeral merry companions who ap-
peared and disappeared from my firmament like shooting starsrdquo
On the edge of a new continent which might as well have been a new planet Maurice and Philippe spent the
next couple of days retelling each other the saga of their swim across the Bosphorus Strait in constantly
evolving details every new version of their story slightly more embellished and heroic than the previous one
which in Philippersquos case truly was lsquopoetic licensersquo Eventually they continued their journey to the excava-
tion site of the Homeric city of Troy which had lain buried for 2500 years During this pilgrimage Philippe
took great pleasure in reading aloud relevant passages of The Iliad but he seemed profoundly fatigued and
felt that it was time for him to go home He farewelled Maurice with an open invitation to visit him in Stras-
bourg whenever he wished and they parted ways on the most amicable terms
Istanbul in 1966
Istanbul now 3
3 In 1966 none of the high-rise buildings that appear in this photo existed and the two suspension bridges that cross the
Bosphorus had not yet been constructed either The Hagia Sophia appears in both photos
14
Freer than he would ever be again Maurice then ventured further and deeper into the Middle East which was a much safer and more welcoming region in those days Like so many adventurers poets and mystics before or since he willingly lost himself in that part of the world in order to lsquofind himselfrsquo Whether he did so or not is irrelevant - only the quest mattered The Middle East was an unparalleled feast for the senses The tumultuous multitudes the noise the music the fragrant foods the apparent vitality and even the still dormant hostility were all mesmerising charms he could not resist He dived into it and disappeared for the next several months as a submarine does beneath the waves much to his parentsrsquo chagrin To follow onersquos whims to live life to the fullest often demands a monstrous indifference to the suffering of those close to us He disappeared simply because one could easily do so in those blessed days before personal computers the internet mobile phones digital cameras and all that electronic gadgetry which has so impoverished our lives and withered our ability to exist in complete symbiosis with the world around us in complete anonymity if we so wish To paraphrase Milan Kundera lsquolife is now always elsewherersquo It is neither Dariusrsquo ghost nor the splendours of Persepolis nor the ruins of Babylon that Maurice remembers most from these peregrinations but a humble present he received from a gentle young woman in Isfahan in the heart of Iran when she farewelled him with three red roses she had carefully wrapped and placed in a small wooden box adorned with intricate Persian miniatures For the last fifty years this treasured gift with its three dried-up flowers has held pride and place in the successive homes he has temporarily occupied in his nomadic life In spite of the dark decades that followed in her turbulent country he often thinks about this young woman of Isfahan and hopes that life has been as kind to her as she was to him A few months later the Middle East exploded into a fire that has not been extinguished to this day4 ___________________________ 4 Ie the Six Day War of June 1967
A GOOD YEAR FOR MATHEMATICIANS In keeping with the article twelve months ago on British chemists born in 1766 this year we have three pro-minent mathematicians who were born in 1667 ndash two on the same day The first was a Frenchman Abraham de Moivre born into a Huguenot family on 26 May and educated at the Protestant Academy of Sedan until it was suppressed in 1682 He went on to study logic at Saumur and physics in Paris but the repression of his denomination by Louis XIV caused him to move to London in 1687 There he met Edmund Halley and Isaac Newton and he was admitted to the Royal Society in 1689 after writ-ing two papers that generalised the latterrsquos theorems Halley then encouraged him to study astronomy which led him to propose a prescient theory affecting elliptical orbits He proceeded to do further work in analytic geometry and wrote four books on probability followed by a fundamental theorem of what is now known as complex analysis (involving the lsquoimaginaryrsquo number i = radicminus1) It is said that he correctly calculated the date of his death on 27 November 1754 Also born on 26 May 1667 and of Huguenot descent was the Swiss mathematician Johann Bernoulli Educa-ted at Basel University with his older brother Jacob he became a professor at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands They both specialised in the new fields of calculus and differential equations which had important applications in physics Amazingly Johann developed a proof of de Moivrersquos proposal affecting elliptical orbits in 1710 amongst many other works The Bernoullis including a third brother were the first of three generations of prominent mathematicians and scientists Johann died in 1748 William Whiston was born in England on 09 December the son of a rector and studied at Cambridge He became a tutor there left to join the ministry and returned to become Sir Isaac Newtonrsquos understudy in 1701 He took the Lucasian Chair of Mathematics the next year when Newton retired but unlike his lsquocloset Unitarianrsquo predecessor he did not conceal his radical religious views Instead he gave lectures published books and even debated the doctrine of the Trinity with two archbishops after which he was expelled from Cambridge in 1710 He went on to a controversial career in both science and religion writing many books on both subjects Despite his unorthodoxy and never having been made a Member he often gave lectures to the Royal Society He co-authored a chart of the Solar System showing the paths of various comets and produced one of the first maps of the Earthrsquos magnetic field over southern England He died in 1752
15
(The Reformation That Failed contrsquod)
The final phase of the wars is known as lsquothe War of the Three Henrysrsquo because it involved King Henry III
Henry of Guise and Henry of Navarre It began when Prince Francis died in 1584 after spending four years
out of the country courting Queen Elizabeth I of England and taking part in William of Orangersquos revolt in the
Spanish Netherlands (present-day Holland and Belgium) As neither he nor Henry III had any children this
made their cousin Henry of Navarre the legal successor to the throne which the Catholic League could not
accept Under pressure from the Guises the king signed an edict in 1585 that suppressed Protestantism and
annulled Henry of Navarrersquos right to the succession in favour of Cardinal Charles de Bourbon
The Catholic League wanted total war against the Huguenots but the king who wanted a settlement insisted
that he had no funds for such a campaign When a Catholic uprising in Paris drove him from the city in 1588
Henry III concluded that the Guises meant to overthrow him His bodyguard assassinated Henry of Guise
and his brother Cardinal Louis de Guise at the Royal Chacircteau de Blois and the king joined forces with his
Protestant cousin However he in turn was assassinated by a Dominican monk in 1589 and Henry of Navarre
became King Henry IV of France
The Catholic League still controlled the north and east of the country but Henry attacked and defeated them in
two battles in Normandy He laid siege to Paris in 1590 until a Spanish army from the Netherlands forced him
back after which the two armies fought until the invaders withdrew at the end of 1592 Henry then realised that
he could never take Paris and rule the whole of France while he was a Protestant so he became a Catholic in
1593 and the Pope revoked his excommunication in exchange for the Churchrsquos supremacy in France
While Henry had committed to reserving all high positions to Catholics he wanted to assure the Huguenots
that he was not a puppet of Spain In 1595 he initiated the Franco-Spanish War in which he also sought to
subdue the few remnants of the Catholic League that refused to recognise his accession This led to another
invasion from the Spanish Netherlands which was stopped at Calais and driven back after which the Peace
of Vervins in 1598 deprived the French rebels of support from Spain Henry then pacified Brittany without
bloodshed and issued the Edict of Nantes which guaranteed the rights of Protestants and ended the wars
In 1599 Henryrsquos childless marriage was annulled and he married Marie dersquo Medici the next year She soon
gave birth to a son who became King Louis XIII when his father was assassinated by a fanatical Catholic in
1610 Marie became his regent until 1617 after which Louis used various means to erode the provisions of
the Edict of Nantes His son Louis XIV was even more hostile to the Huguenots and from 1661 he actively
pressured them to either convert or leave the country Finally his Edict of Fontainebleau in 1865 declared
Protestantism illegal and between 200000 and a million Huguenots emigrated
Some Protestants remained in the mountainous Ceacutevennes region in the southeast where they were largely left
alone In more settled areas many who claimed to have converted practiced their faith in secret suffering
severe penalties if they were detected Ironically religious freedom was restored by Louis XVI in his Edict of
Versailles of 1787 ndash two years before the Revolution and the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen
[This story has a number of interesting historical sidelines starting with the regent queens Catherine and
Marie dersquo Medici Both were scions of the ruling house of Florence which also produced three popes Leo X
who excommunicated Martin Luther Clement VII who granted King Henry VIII of Englandrsquos annulment
and Leo XI who was elected at 69 and died less than a month later
The short-lived King Francis II was married to Mary Stuart Queen of Scots whose mother was the sister of
Francis Duke of Guise She lived in France from the age of five until her husbandrsquos death after which she
returned to rule Scotland Her son James VI succeeded Queen Elizabeth I as King James I of England in
1603 (His great-grandmother Margaret Tudor was King Henry VIIIrsquos sister)
Henry III was the last ruler from the House of Valois whereas Henry IV founded the Bourbon Dynasty His
eldest daughter Elisabeth married King Philip IV of Spain while his youngest Henrietta Maria became the
wife of King Charles I of England Scotland and Ireland Louis XIII died when his elder son was four years
old giving Louis XIV the longest recorded reign (72 years) of any monarch of a sovereign European nation
Known as the lsquoSun Kingrsquo his time was a period of political centralisation economic advancement military
success and empire building in North America India and Africa]
16
MORE ICCU NEWS Just as we go to press the Chalice Lighting for December has arrived
Saat gelap kita terkungkung rasa takut maka nyalakanlah harapan dalam jiwa Saat gelap kita penuh kecurigaan dan prasangka buruk pada sesama maka nyalakanlah kasih dalam hati Saat gelap kita kehilangan sadar mana yang baik dan mana yang jahat maka nyalakanlah hikmat dalam nurani Saat gelap kita merasa bisa berbuat semau kita tanpa ingat Sang Maha Suci dan sesama maka nyalakanlah iman yang dipenuhi kebenaran Gelap ada saat kita abai menyalakan terang Gelap tak bisa diusir dengan marah dan geram sebab gelap akan sirna jika kita menyalakan terang Saat kita menyalakan lentera kita dalam ibadah ini Marilah tak hanya mengundang terang bagi mata jasmani tetapi selalu undang terang bagi mata rohani Yang akan memerdekakan hati serta membawa kebijaksanaan dan kebahagiaan sejati
When it is dark we are surrounded by fear so light hope in your soul When it is dark we are full of distrust and prejudice to the others so light love in your heart When it is dark we lose awareness of good and evil so light wisdom in your conscience When it is dark we feel that we can do whatever we want without remembering The Most Holy One and our neighbors so light faith that is fulfilled with truth Darkness exist when we forget to turn on the light Darkness cannot be expelled with our anger and wrath because darkness will be gone when we turn on the light When we light up our chalice in this worship Let us not only welcoming the light for our physical eyes but always invite the light for our spiritual eyes A light that will free our heart bringing wisdom and real happiness
Submitted by the Unitarian Christian Church of Indonesia Indonesian words (and presumably the English translation) written by its minister Rev Aryanto Nugroho Membership renewals for 2017 are due from 01 January so the best time to pay them will be at the
Christmas Party Those wishing to join our church can use this form by way of application but should
not send payment until their membership is accepted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MEMBERSHIPRENEWAL FORM
I (name) ___________________________________________________ of (address) _________________________________________________ ________________________________ Postcode _________ Phone(s) (home) __________________ (other) ___________________ Email ______________________________________________________ I apply to joinrenew membership in (delete one) the Sydney Unitarian Church and agree to abide by the rules as set down by the Constitution and management of the church Signature ________________________________ Fee enclosed $_____ Cheques should be made payable to Treasurer Sydney Unitarian Church Membership will be valid for the calendar year 2016 Annual membership is $20 and includes the SUN journal subscription to the SUN only is $15
10
ALEXANDER (Part 4)
By Patrick Bernard
In 1966 the first post-scriptum to Alexanderrsquos story was written in a most unexpected place and circum-stances By the end of June of that year Mauricersquos existence had changed dramatically taking a new but not all that unpredictable course Due to a succession of events that may be told in detail later on he had hurled himself into a nomadic lifestyle trekking across Lapland and then having sailed leisurely from lake to lake on an old-fashioned steamer from the north to the south of Finland he ended up in Helsinki Possessed with the freewheeling spirit of those times he then decided without a second thought to hitchhike from the lsquoLand of the Midnight Sunrsquo with reindeer antlers precariously tied to his backpack all the way across Eastern Europe to Constantinople the sublime gate to the Orient Mildly disappointed when he arrived there he found Istanbul instead of Constantinople ndash but the splendour of Byzantium lingered on as the fragrance of mimosa does long after its bloom has faded Stunned and unsure as to whether he was in a dream or in Heaven he sat for hours admiring the Hagia Sophia1 the Byzantine Basilica completed in 537AD which for many centuries had proudly defied gravity with its dome reputedly the largest in the world The Ottomans would then meticulously and methodically vandalise the building a millennium later soon after they had conquered Constantinople on 29 May 1453 To add insult to injury this great historical centre of Christianity was then literally nailed to the ground with four minarets
Cross-section drawing of the Hagia Sophia in 537AD
The Hagia Sophia today
1 Hagia Sophia from the Greek Holy Wisdom was a Greek Orthodox Christian patriarchal basilica in Constantinople (now Istanbul)
11
While admiring this desecrated shrine Maurice met and befriended a young French poet called Philippe
who might have been appropriately dressed for an elegant cocktail party in Northern Europe but not for the
sweltering heat the stench and the dust of Istanbul He was one of those individuals who stubbornly adhere
to specific sartorial standards no matter how incongruous or uncomfortable like those sweaty European ex-
patriate civil servants one used to encounter in various colonial outposts of the tropics Maurice admired
Philippersquos defiant attire but he also found it slightly ridiculous and teased him about it for the next few days
Philippe did not mind as he was clearly accustomed to such jibes and he enjoyed play-acting the fop to a
receptive audience
The world being indeed a very small place this overdressed Alsatian bard was also the scion of a prominent
family of medical practitioners in his hometown of Strasbourg Having similar interests and sensitivities this
pair of drifters became travelling companions for a while although like most misfits they generally preferred
to be alone Philippe was short chubby and eloquent while Maurice was tall skinny and laconic They were a
mismatch but their obvious differences didnrsquot seem to matter to them This odd duo wandered the backstreets
and the bazaars of Istanbul visited the inevitable tourist sites absorbed the sounds and fragrances of the Orient
and ended up in a seedy bar drinking too much Raqi2 while philosophising on the collapse of Byzantium
In truth there were no alternative affordable locations for their libations as all bars in Istanbul appeared
seedy if not sleazy which made these shady dives all the more appealing to two middle class Western
adolescents seeking the frisson of exotic squalor Indeed no serious traveller wants to get sloshed in lsquonice
barsrsquo frequented by lsquonice peoplersquo and besides as we all know lsquonice peoplersquo have a tendency to be much
nastier than they appear For the audacious bourgeois adventurer seediness and sleaze are essential pre-
requisites of all urban explorations
It was in such a drinking hole more reminiscent of an odorous public toilet than a comfortable pub that one
evening in one of those intoxicated moments of youthful recklessness that cements long-lasting friendships
that Maurice and Philippe decided to emulate Lord Byron and swim across the Bosphorus Strait under the
cover of darkness to avoid police detection and certain arrest A couple of young German tourists called
Ursula and Thomas whom they had met in the flea-infested hotel near the Grand Bazaar where they all
stayed at offered to drive them in their Volkswagen minibus to their launching point take care of all their
belongings and wait for them at an agreed spot on the other side of the Bosphorus Strait the Asian side near
the Beylerbeyi Sarayi (Beylerbeyi Palace)
Maurice who had decided to trust them convinced a more circumspect Philippe that even if all their belong-
ings disappeared they could always go to the French Consulate and ask for assistance To use an expression
in vogue at the time one could say that for a generation that sincerely wanted to make the world a better
place ldquoit wouldnrsquot have been cool to rip each other offrdquo although later on many of those well-intended lsquoBaby
Boomersrsquo would get over their romantic idealism and returning to the fold they would prove to be as rapa-
cious as their forefathers To minimise risks and efforts they chose the narrowest section of the strait and
began their journey in front of the Ccedilirağan Surayi (Ccedilirağan Palace) which had been in ruins since 1909 but
would later be restored and converted into yet another ostentatious luxury hotel sometime around 1991
The Ccedilırağan Palace seen from the Bosphorus Strait
2 An alcoholic spirit drink distilled from grain grapes plums and flavoured with aniseed
12
This short aquatic trip from Europe to Asia was perilous if not downright stupid but it was also an adven-
ture neither would ever forget The water on the edge of the Bosphorus was a tepid odorous brew of
effluents and diesel fuel At first our swimmers had to paddle through floating islands of detritus and dead
creatures in various stages of decomposition but soon due to the salubrious effect of water currents things
got more pleasant Away from the shoreline the boys were at last able to pause to admire the stars and the
city lights flickering and sparkling over the dark flapping waves A mighty cruise ship went by with her pro-
pellers stomping and chopping the waters gliding by serenely with utter confidence in her great power
For a few long minutes Maurice and Philippe thought they were going to be drawn into a fatal whirlpool and
minced by this metallic behemoth but on this occasion fate if there is such a thing decided to spare them
Fishermen who spotted them in the glow of their kerosene lamps at first asked if they required some help
but as the boys kept swimming trying to explain that they were fine these Good Samaritans sailed on
joking among themselves puzzled and amused by the absurdity of these wayward Westerners whom they
ended up cursing for disturbing the fish
Being somewhat socially inept Maurice had since early childhood disliked all team sports As a matter of
fact he had disliked all sports in general considering such physical endeavours as complete wastes of time
either as a participant or particularly as a spectator In any case he considered competition to be one of the
most subversive of all human activities This being said he had periodically enjoyed some individual sports
such as tennis or running for any distance over a thousand metres As long as he was on his own being only
responsible to and for himself he found such exercise tolerable if not pleasurable He had for many years en-
joyed swimming long distances and had even hoped that one day he would swim across the English Channel
but that project would never eventuate
Although he had navigated in a sea of uncertainty for most of his young life and was chronically griped by
self-doubt he often wondered on the futility of all his endeavours but on that warm summer night of 1966
swimming between Europe and Asia across that fabled body of water which links the Mediterranean and the
Sea of Marmara to the Black Sea leading to his beloved Russia he had never felt more alive In any case this
was a feat worthy of Uncle Alexander to whom he always liked to compare himself Swimming calmly and
rambling on in one of his usual silent soliloquies he was brought back to more practical considerations by
Philippe who seemed to be paddling away with some difficulty bordering on panic
Maurice lightheartedly convinced his new friend that this was not a race ndash rather they had all the time in the
world to enjoy this wonderful night and he should therefore save his energy if he wanted to make it to the
other side Philippe asked ldquoDonrsquot you have any fearsrdquo Maurice answered between breaststrokes ldquoOf course
I dohellipJust like everyone elsehellipBut if I listened to all my fears I would never do anythingrdquo ldquoToo truerdquo
responded Philippe who was easily convinced by this line of thought
Having both conquered their fears their youthful enthusiasm and health triumphed and at three-thirty in the
morning they landed in Asia near the Beylerbeyi Palace which had been the last place of captivity of the de-
posed Sultan Abdulhamid II from 1912 until his death there in 1918 Unfortunately since 1973 this elegant
historical building has been dwarfed by the Bosphorus Bridge
The Beylerbeyi Sarayi (Beylerbeyi Palace) and the 1973 Bosphorus Bridge linking Europe to Asia
13
Punctual and dependable Ursula and Thomas were already on location walking up and down the embank-
ment genuinely concerned for these two foolhardy Frenchmen although they hardly knew them After all this
was the 1960s when trusting and caring for even complete strangers were highly fashionable sentiments But in
that balmy summer night of 1966 having anxiously feared for the worst Ursula and Thomas were greatly
relieved when the boys emerged from the black waters exhausted but ecstatic For anyone else this could be
considered to have been an insignificant event but for Maurice and Philippe it would remain one of those rare
defining moments in their lives It is the sum of such experiences not the accumulation of lsquostuffrsquo no matter
how splendid that lsquostuffrsquo might be which gives meaning if not purpose to our existence
The four new friends then followed the happy ending with jubilant celebrations in the overgrown gardens
surrounding the Beylerbeyi Palace As Maurice and Philippe dried up they sat all there surrounded by flat-
tened plastic bottles broken glass cigarette butts weeds and thorny bushes but for them on that particular
night this was the Garden of Eden They talked endlessly and drank too much cheap wine waiting for the sun
to arise from beyond the Far East The uninhibited impulse to reveal the secrets of our souls is one of the most
precious treasures of youth With age too many of us deteriorate into poor listeners and crushing mono-
logists Without even noticing it we become cynical guarded and judgmental with a dwindling ability to
enjoy the company of others How much more intoxicating it is to share dreams rather than memories Half a
century later Maurice often wonders ldquoWhere are they all now these ephemeral merry companions who ap-
peared and disappeared from my firmament like shooting starsrdquo
On the edge of a new continent which might as well have been a new planet Maurice and Philippe spent the
next couple of days retelling each other the saga of their swim across the Bosphorus Strait in constantly
evolving details every new version of their story slightly more embellished and heroic than the previous one
which in Philippersquos case truly was lsquopoetic licensersquo Eventually they continued their journey to the excava-
tion site of the Homeric city of Troy which had lain buried for 2500 years During this pilgrimage Philippe
took great pleasure in reading aloud relevant passages of The Iliad but he seemed profoundly fatigued and
felt that it was time for him to go home He farewelled Maurice with an open invitation to visit him in Stras-
bourg whenever he wished and they parted ways on the most amicable terms
Istanbul in 1966
Istanbul now 3
3 In 1966 none of the high-rise buildings that appear in this photo existed and the two suspension bridges that cross the
Bosphorus had not yet been constructed either The Hagia Sophia appears in both photos
14
Freer than he would ever be again Maurice then ventured further and deeper into the Middle East which was a much safer and more welcoming region in those days Like so many adventurers poets and mystics before or since he willingly lost himself in that part of the world in order to lsquofind himselfrsquo Whether he did so or not is irrelevant - only the quest mattered The Middle East was an unparalleled feast for the senses The tumultuous multitudes the noise the music the fragrant foods the apparent vitality and even the still dormant hostility were all mesmerising charms he could not resist He dived into it and disappeared for the next several months as a submarine does beneath the waves much to his parentsrsquo chagrin To follow onersquos whims to live life to the fullest often demands a monstrous indifference to the suffering of those close to us He disappeared simply because one could easily do so in those blessed days before personal computers the internet mobile phones digital cameras and all that electronic gadgetry which has so impoverished our lives and withered our ability to exist in complete symbiosis with the world around us in complete anonymity if we so wish To paraphrase Milan Kundera lsquolife is now always elsewherersquo It is neither Dariusrsquo ghost nor the splendours of Persepolis nor the ruins of Babylon that Maurice remembers most from these peregrinations but a humble present he received from a gentle young woman in Isfahan in the heart of Iran when she farewelled him with three red roses she had carefully wrapped and placed in a small wooden box adorned with intricate Persian miniatures For the last fifty years this treasured gift with its three dried-up flowers has held pride and place in the successive homes he has temporarily occupied in his nomadic life In spite of the dark decades that followed in her turbulent country he often thinks about this young woman of Isfahan and hopes that life has been as kind to her as she was to him A few months later the Middle East exploded into a fire that has not been extinguished to this day4 ___________________________ 4 Ie the Six Day War of June 1967
A GOOD YEAR FOR MATHEMATICIANS In keeping with the article twelve months ago on British chemists born in 1766 this year we have three pro-minent mathematicians who were born in 1667 ndash two on the same day The first was a Frenchman Abraham de Moivre born into a Huguenot family on 26 May and educated at the Protestant Academy of Sedan until it was suppressed in 1682 He went on to study logic at Saumur and physics in Paris but the repression of his denomination by Louis XIV caused him to move to London in 1687 There he met Edmund Halley and Isaac Newton and he was admitted to the Royal Society in 1689 after writ-ing two papers that generalised the latterrsquos theorems Halley then encouraged him to study astronomy which led him to propose a prescient theory affecting elliptical orbits He proceeded to do further work in analytic geometry and wrote four books on probability followed by a fundamental theorem of what is now known as complex analysis (involving the lsquoimaginaryrsquo number i = radicminus1) It is said that he correctly calculated the date of his death on 27 November 1754 Also born on 26 May 1667 and of Huguenot descent was the Swiss mathematician Johann Bernoulli Educa-ted at Basel University with his older brother Jacob he became a professor at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands They both specialised in the new fields of calculus and differential equations which had important applications in physics Amazingly Johann developed a proof of de Moivrersquos proposal affecting elliptical orbits in 1710 amongst many other works The Bernoullis including a third brother were the first of three generations of prominent mathematicians and scientists Johann died in 1748 William Whiston was born in England on 09 December the son of a rector and studied at Cambridge He became a tutor there left to join the ministry and returned to become Sir Isaac Newtonrsquos understudy in 1701 He took the Lucasian Chair of Mathematics the next year when Newton retired but unlike his lsquocloset Unitarianrsquo predecessor he did not conceal his radical religious views Instead he gave lectures published books and even debated the doctrine of the Trinity with two archbishops after which he was expelled from Cambridge in 1710 He went on to a controversial career in both science and religion writing many books on both subjects Despite his unorthodoxy and never having been made a Member he often gave lectures to the Royal Society He co-authored a chart of the Solar System showing the paths of various comets and produced one of the first maps of the Earthrsquos magnetic field over southern England He died in 1752
15
(The Reformation That Failed contrsquod)
The final phase of the wars is known as lsquothe War of the Three Henrysrsquo because it involved King Henry III
Henry of Guise and Henry of Navarre It began when Prince Francis died in 1584 after spending four years
out of the country courting Queen Elizabeth I of England and taking part in William of Orangersquos revolt in the
Spanish Netherlands (present-day Holland and Belgium) As neither he nor Henry III had any children this
made their cousin Henry of Navarre the legal successor to the throne which the Catholic League could not
accept Under pressure from the Guises the king signed an edict in 1585 that suppressed Protestantism and
annulled Henry of Navarrersquos right to the succession in favour of Cardinal Charles de Bourbon
The Catholic League wanted total war against the Huguenots but the king who wanted a settlement insisted
that he had no funds for such a campaign When a Catholic uprising in Paris drove him from the city in 1588
Henry III concluded that the Guises meant to overthrow him His bodyguard assassinated Henry of Guise
and his brother Cardinal Louis de Guise at the Royal Chacircteau de Blois and the king joined forces with his
Protestant cousin However he in turn was assassinated by a Dominican monk in 1589 and Henry of Navarre
became King Henry IV of France
The Catholic League still controlled the north and east of the country but Henry attacked and defeated them in
two battles in Normandy He laid siege to Paris in 1590 until a Spanish army from the Netherlands forced him
back after which the two armies fought until the invaders withdrew at the end of 1592 Henry then realised that
he could never take Paris and rule the whole of France while he was a Protestant so he became a Catholic in
1593 and the Pope revoked his excommunication in exchange for the Churchrsquos supremacy in France
While Henry had committed to reserving all high positions to Catholics he wanted to assure the Huguenots
that he was not a puppet of Spain In 1595 he initiated the Franco-Spanish War in which he also sought to
subdue the few remnants of the Catholic League that refused to recognise his accession This led to another
invasion from the Spanish Netherlands which was stopped at Calais and driven back after which the Peace
of Vervins in 1598 deprived the French rebels of support from Spain Henry then pacified Brittany without
bloodshed and issued the Edict of Nantes which guaranteed the rights of Protestants and ended the wars
In 1599 Henryrsquos childless marriage was annulled and he married Marie dersquo Medici the next year She soon
gave birth to a son who became King Louis XIII when his father was assassinated by a fanatical Catholic in
1610 Marie became his regent until 1617 after which Louis used various means to erode the provisions of
the Edict of Nantes His son Louis XIV was even more hostile to the Huguenots and from 1661 he actively
pressured them to either convert or leave the country Finally his Edict of Fontainebleau in 1865 declared
Protestantism illegal and between 200000 and a million Huguenots emigrated
Some Protestants remained in the mountainous Ceacutevennes region in the southeast where they were largely left
alone In more settled areas many who claimed to have converted practiced their faith in secret suffering
severe penalties if they were detected Ironically religious freedom was restored by Louis XVI in his Edict of
Versailles of 1787 ndash two years before the Revolution and the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen
[This story has a number of interesting historical sidelines starting with the regent queens Catherine and
Marie dersquo Medici Both were scions of the ruling house of Florence which also produced three popes Leo X
who excommunicated Martin Luther Clement VII who granted King Henry VIII of Englandrsquos annulment
and Leo XI who was elected at 69 and died less than a month later
The short-lived King Francis II was married to Mary Stuart Queen of Scots whose mother was the sister of
Francis Duke of Guise She lived in France from the age of five until her husbandrsquos death after which she
returned to rule Scotland Her son James VI succeeded Queen Elizabeth I as King James I of England in
1603 (His great-grandmother Margaret Tudor was King Henry VIIIrsquos sister)
Henry III was the last ruler from the House of Valois whereas Henry IV founded the Bourbon Dynasty His
eldest daughter Elisabeth married King Philip IV of Spain while his youngest Henrietta Maria became the
wife of King Charles I of England Scotland and Ireland Louis XIII died when his elder son was four years
old giving Louis XIV the longest recorded reign (72 years) of any monarch of a sovereign European nation
Known as the lsquoSun Kingrsquo his time was a period of political centralisation economic advancement military
success and empire building in North America India and Africa]
16
MORE ICCU NEWS Just as we go to press the Chalice Lighting for December has arrived
Saat gelap kita terkungkung rasa takut maka nyalakanlah harapan dalam jiwa Saat gelap kita penuh kecurigaan dan prasangka buruk pada sesama maka nyalakanlah kasih dalam hati Saat gelap kita kehilangan sadar mana yang baik dan mana yang jahat maka nyalakanlah hikmat dalam nurani Saat gelap kita merasa bisa berbuat semau kita tanpa ingat Sang Maha Suci dan sesama maka nyalakanlah iman yang dipenuhi kebenaran Gelap ada saat kita abai menyalakan terang Gelap tak bisa diusir dengan marah dan geram sebab gelap akan sirna jika kita menyalakan terang Saat kita menyalakan lentera kita dalam ibadah ini Marilah tak hanya mengundang terang bagi mata jasmani tetapi selalu undang terang bagi mata rohani Yang akan memerdekakan hati serta membawa kebijaksanaan dan kebahagiaan sejati
When it is dark we are surrounded by fear so light hope in your soul When it is dark we are full of distrust and prejudice to the others so light love in your heart When it is dark we lose awareness of good and evil so light wisdom in your conscience When it is dark we feel that we can do whatever we want without remembering The Most Holy One and our neighbors so light faith that is fulfilled with truth Darkness exist when we forget to turn on the light Darkness cannot be expelled with our anger and wrath because darkness will be gone when we turn on the light When we light up our chalice in this worship Let us not only welcoming the light for our physical eyes but always invite the light for our spiritual eyes A light that will free our heart bringing wisdom and real happiness
Submitted by the Unitarian Christian Church of Indonesia Indonesian words (and presumably the English translation) written by its minister Rev Aryanto Nugroho Membership renewals for 2017 are due from 01 January so the best time to pay them will be at the
Christmas Party Those wishing to join our church can use this form by way of application but should
not send payment until their membership is accepted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MEMBERSHIPRENEWAL FORM
I (name) ___________________________________________________ of (address) _________________________________________________ ________________________________ Postcode _________ Phone(s) (home) __________________ (other) ___________________ Email ______________________________________________________ I apply to joinrenew membership in (delete one) the Sydney Unitarian Church and agree to abide by the rules as set down by the Constitution and management of the church Signature ________________________________ Fee enclosed $_____ Cheques should be made payable to Treasurer Sydney Unitarian Church Membership will be valid for the calendar year 2016 Annual membership is $20 and includes the SUN journal subscription to the SUN only is $15
11
While admiring this desecrated shrine Maurice met and befriended a young French poet called Philippe
who might have been appropriately dressed for an elegant cocktail party in Northern Europe but not for the
sweltering heat the stench and the dust of Istanbul He was one of those individuals who stubbornly adhere
to specific sartorial standards no matter how incongruous or uncomfortable like those sweaty European ex-
patriate civil servants one used to encounter in various colonial outposts of the tropics Maurice admired
Philippersquos defiant attire but he also found it slightly ridiculous and teased him about it for the next few days
Philippe did not mind as he was clearly accustomed to such jibes and he enjoyed play-acting the fop to a
receptive audience
The world being indeed a very small place this overdressed Alsatian bard was also the scion of a prominent
family of medical practitioners in his hometown of Strasbourg Having similar interests and sensitivities this
pair of drifters became travelling companions for a while although like most misfits they generally preferred
to be alone Philippe was short chubby and eloquent while Maurice was tall skinny and laconic They were a
mismatch but their obvious differences didnrsquot seem to matter to them This odd duo wandered the backstreets
and the bazaars of Istanbul visited the inevitable tourist sites absorbed the sounds and fragrances of the Orient
and ended up in a seedy bar drinking too much Raqi2 while philosophising on the collapse of Byzantium
In truth there were no alternative affordable locations for their libations as all bars in Istanbul appeared
seedy if not sleazy which made these shady dives all the more appealing to two middle class Western
adolescents seeking the frisson of exotic squalor Indeed no serious traveller wants to get sloshed in lsquonice
barsrsquo frequented by lsquonice peoplersquo and besides as we all know lsquonice peoplersquo have a tendency to be much
nastier than they appear For the audacious bourgeois adventurer seediness and sleaze are essential pre-
requisites of all urban explorations
It was in such a drinking hole more reminiscent of an odorous public toilet than a comfortable pub that one
evening in one of those intoxicated moments of youthful recklessness that cements long-lasting friendships
that Maurice and Philippe decided to emulate Lord Byron and swim across the Bosphorus Strait under the
cover of darkness to avoid police detection and certain arrest A couple of young German tourists called
Ursula and Thomas whom they had met in the flea-infested hotel near the Grand Bazaar where they all
stayed at offered to drive them in their Volkswagen minibus to their launching point take care of all their
belongings and wait for them at an agreed spot on the other side of the Bosphorus Strait the Asian side near
the Beylerbeyi Sarayi (Beylerbeyi Palace)
Maurice who had decided to trust them convinced a more circumspect Philippe that even if all their belong-
ings disappeared they could always go to the French Consulate and ask for assistance To use an expression
in vogue at the time one could say that for a generation that sincerely wanted to make the world a better
place ldquoit wouldnrsquot have been cool to rip each other offrdquo although later on many of those well-intended lsquoBaby
Boomersrsquo would get over their romantic idealism and returning to the fold they would prove to be as rapa-
cious as their forefathers To minimise risks and efforts they chose the narrowest section of the strait and
began their journey in front of the Ccedilirağan Surayi (Ccedilirağan Palace) which had been in ruins since 1909 but
would later be restored and converted into yet another ostentatious luxury hotel sometime around 1991
The Ccedilırağan Palace seen from the Bosphorus Strait
2 An alcoholic spirit drink distilled from grain grapes plums and flavoured with aniseed
12
This short aquatic trip from Europe to Asia was perilous if not downright stupid but it was also an adven-
ture neither would ever forget The water on the edge of the Bosphorus was a tepid odorous brew of
effluents and diesel fuel At first our swimmers had to paddle through floating islands of detritus and dead
creatures in various stages of decomposition but soon due to the salubrious effect of water currents things
got more pleasant Away from the shoreline the boys were at last able to pause to admire the stars and the
city lights flickering and sparkling over the dark flapping waves A mighty cruise ship went by with her pro-
pellers stomping and chopping the waters gliding by serenely with utter confidence in her great power
For a few long minutes Maurice and Philippe thought they were going to be drawn into a fatal whirlpool and
minced by this metallic behemoth but on this occasion fate if there is such a thing decided to spare them
Fishermen who spotted them in the glow of their kerosene lamps at first asked if they required some help
but as the boys kept swimming trying to explain that they were fine these Good Samaritans sailed on
joking among themselves puzzled and amused by the absurdity of these wayward Westerners whom they
ended up cursing for disturbing the fish
Being somewhat socially inept Maurice had since early childhood disliked all team sports As a matter of
fact he had disliked all sports in general considering such physical endeavours as complete wastes of time
either as a participant or particularly as a spectator In any case he considered competition to be one of the
most subversive of all human activities This being said he had periodically enjoyed some individual sports
such as tennis or running for any distance over a thousand metres As long as he was on his own being only
responsible to and for himself he found such exercise tolerable if not pleasurable He had for many years en-
joyed swimming long distances and had even hoped that one day he would swim across the English Channel
but that project would never eventuate
Although he had navigated in a sea of uncertainty for most of his young life and was chronically griped by
self-doubt he often wondered on the futility of all his endeavours but on that warm summer night of 1966
swimming between Europe and Asia across that fabled body of water which links the Mediterranean and the
Sea of Marmara to the Black Sea leading to his beloved Russia he had never felt more alive In any case this
was a feat worthy of Uncle Alexander to whom he always liked to compare himself Swimming calmly and
rambling on in one of his usual silent soliloquies he was brought back to more practical considerations by
Philippe who seemed to be paddling away with some difficulty bordering on panic
Maurice lightheartedly convinced his new friend that this was not a race ndash rather they had all the time in the
world to enjoy this wonderful night and he should therefore save his energy if he wanted to make it to the
other side Philippe asked ldquoDonrsquot you have any fearsrdquo Maurice answered between breaststrokes ldquoOf course
I dohellipJust like everyone elsehellipBut if I listened to all my fears I would never do anythingrdquo ldquoToo truerdquo
responded Philippe who was easily convinced by this line of thought
Having both conquered their fears their youthful enthusiasm and health triumphed and at three-thirty in the
morning they landed in Asia near the Beylerbeyi Palace which had been the last place of captivity of the de-
posed Sultan Abdulhamid II from 1912 until his death there in 1918 Unfortunately since 1973 this elegant
historical building has been dwarfed by the Bosphorus Bridge
The Beylerbeyi Sarayi (Beylerbeyi Palace) and the 1973 Bosphorus Bridge linking Europe to Asia
13
Punctual and dependable Ursula and Thomas were already on location walking up and down the embank-
ment genuinely concerned for these two foolhardy Frenchmen although they hardly knew them After all this
was the 1960s when trusting and caring for even complete strangers were highly fashionable sentiments But in
that balmy summer night of 1966 having anxiously feared for the worst Ursula and Thomas were greatly
relieved when the boys emerged from the black waters exhausted but ecstatic For anyone else this could be
considered to have been an insignificant event but for Maurice and Philippe it would remain one of those rare
defining moments in their lives It is the sum of such experiences not the accumulation of lsquostuffrsquo no matter
how splendid that lsquostuffrsquo might be which gives meaning if not purpose to our existence
The four new friends then followed the happy ending with jubilant celebrations in the overgrown gardens
surrounding the Beylerbeyi Palace As Maurice and Philippe dried up they sat all there surrounded by flat-
tened plastic bottles broken glass cigarette butts weeds and thorny bushes but for them on that particular
night this was the Garden of Eden They talked endlessly and drank too much cheap wine waiting for the sun
to arise from beyond the Far East The uninhibited impulse to reveal the secrets of our souls is one of the most
precious treasures of youth With age too many of us deteriorate into poor listeners and crushing mono-
logists Without even noticing it we become cynical guarded and judgmental with a dwindling ability to
enjoy the company of others How much more intoxicating it is to share dreams rather than memories Half a
century later Maurice often wonders ldquoWhere are they all now these ephemeral merry companions who ap-
peared and disappeared from my firmament like shooting starsrdquo
On the edge of a new continent which might as well have been a new planet Maurice and Philippe spent the
next couple of days retelling each other the saga of their swim across the Bosphorus Strait in constantly
evolving details every new version of their story slightly more embellished and heroic than the previous one
which in Philippersquos case truly was lsquopoetic licensersquo Eventually they continued their journey to the excava-
tion site of the Homeric city of Troy which had lain buried for 2500 years During this pilgrimage Philippe
took great pleasure in reading aloud relevant passages of The Iliad but he seemed profoundly fatigued and
felt that it was time for him to go home He farewelled Maurice with an open invitation to visit him in Stras-
bourg whenever he wished and they parted ways on the most amicable terms
Istanbul in 1966
Istanbul now 3
3 In 1966 none of the high-rise buildings that appear in this photo existed and the two suspension bridges that cross the
Bosphorus had not yet been constructed either The Hagia Sophia appears in both photos
14
Freer than he would ever be again Maurice then ventured further and deeper into the Middle East which was a much safer and more welcoming region in those days Like so many adventurers poets and mystics before or since he willingly lost himself in that part of the world in order to lsquofind himselfrsquo Whether he did so or not is irrelevant - only the quest mattered The Middle East was an unparalleled feast for the senses The tumultuous multitudes the noise the music the fragrant foods the apparent vitality and even the still dormant hostility were all mesmerising charms he could not resist He dived into it and disappeared for the next several months as a submarine does beneath the waves much to his parentsrsquo chagrin To follow onersquos whims to live life to the fullest often demands a monstrous indifference to the suffering of those close to us He disappeared simply because one could easily do so in those blessed days before personal computers the internet mobile phones digital cameras and all that electronic gadgetry which has so impoverished our lives and withered our ability to exist in complete symbiosis with the world around us in complete anonymity if we so wish To paraphrase Milan Kundera lsquolife is now always elsewherersquo It is neither Dariusrsquo ghost nor the splendours of Persepolis nor the ruins of Babylon that Maurice remembers most from these peregrinations but a humble present he received from a gentle young woman in Isfahan in the heart of Iran when she farewelled him with three red roses she had carefully wrapped and placed in a small wooden box adorned with intricate Persian miniatures For the last fifty years this treasured gift with its three dried-up flowers has held pride and place in the successive homes he has temporarily occupied in his nomadic life In spite of the dark decades that followed in her turbulent country he often thinks about this young woman of Isfahan and hopes that life has been as kind to her as she was to him A few months later the Middle East exploded into a fire that has not been extinguished to this day4 ___________________________ 4 Ie the Six Day War of June 1967
A GOOD YEAR FOR MATHEMATICIANS In keeping with the article twelve months ago on British chemists born in 1766 this year we have three pro-minent mathematicians who were born in 1667 ndash two on the same day The first was a Frenchman Abraham de Moivre born into a Huguenot family on 26 May and educated at the Protestant Academy of Sedan until it was suppressed in 1682 He went on to study logic at Saumur and physics in Paris but the repression of his denomination by Louis XIV caused him to move to London in 1687 There he met Edmund Halley and Isaac Newton and he was admitted to the Royal Society in 1689 after writ-ing two papers that generalised the latterrsquos theorems Halley then encouraged him to study astronomy which led him to propose a prescient theory affecting elliptical orbits He proceeded to do further work in analytic geometry and wrote four books on probability followed by a fundamental theorem of what is now known as complex analysis (involving the lsquoimaginaryrsquo number i = radicminus1) It is said that he correctly calculated the date of his death on 27 November 1754 Also born on 26 May 1667 and of Huguenot descent was the Swiss mathematician Johann Bernoulli Educa-ted at Basel University with his older brother Jacob he became a professor at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands They both specialised in the new fields of calculus and differential equations which had important applications in physics Amazingly Johann developed a proof of de Moivrersquos proposal affecting elliptical orbits in 1710 amongst many other works The Bernoullis including a third brother were the first of three generations of prominent mathematicians and scientists Johann died in 1748 William Whiston was born in England on 09 December the son of a rector and studied at Cambridge He became a tutor there left to join the ministry and returned to become Sir Isaac Newtonrsquos understudy in 1701 He took the Lucasian Chair of Mathematics the next year when Newton retired but unlike his lsquocloset Unitarianrsquo predecessor he did not conceal his radical religious views Instead he gave lectures published books and even debated the doctrine of the Trinity with two archbishops after which he was expelled from Cambridge in 1710 He went on to a controversial career in both science and religion writing many books on both subjects Despite his unorthodoxy and never having been made a Member he often gave lectures to the Royal Society He co-authored a chart of the Solar System showing the paths of various comets and produced one of the first maps of the Earthrsquos magnetic field over southern England He died in 1752
15
(The Reformation That Failed contrsquod)
The final phase of the wars is known as lsquothe War of the Three Henrysrsquo because it involved King Henry III
Henry of Guise and Henry of Navarre It began when Prince Francis died in 1584 after spending four years
out of the country courting Queen Elizabeth I of England and taking part in William of Orangersquos revolt in the
Spanish Netherlands (present-day Holland and Belgium) As neither he nor Henry III had any children this
made their cousin Henry of Navarre the legal successor to the throne which the Catholic League could not
accept Under pressure from the Guises the king signed an edict in 1585 that suppressed Protestantism and
annulled Henry of Navarrersquos right to the succession in favour of Cardinal Charles de Bourbon
The Catholic League wanted total war against the Huguenots but the king who wanted a settlement insisted
that he had no funds for such a campaign When a Catholic uprising in Paris drove him from the city in 1588
Henry III concluded that the Guises meant to overthrow him His bodyguard assassinated Henry of Guise
and his brother Cardinal Louis de Guise at the Royal Chacircteau de Blois and the king joined forces with his
Protestant cousin However he in turn was assassinated by a Dominican monk in 1589 and Henry of Navarre
became King Henry IV of France
The Catholic League still controlled the north and east of the country but Henry attacked and defeated them in
two battles in Normandy He laid siege to Paris in 1590 until a Spanish army from the Netherlands forced him
back after which the two armies fought until the invaders withdrew at the end of 1592 Henry then realised that
he could never take Paris and rule the whole of France while he was a Protestant so he became a Catholic in
1593 and the Pope revoked his excommunication in exchange for the Churchrsquos supremacy in France
While Henry had committed to reserving all high positions to Catholics he wanted to assure the Huguenots
that he was not a puppet of Spain In 1595 he initiated the Franco-Spanish War in which he also sought to
subdue the few remnants of the Catholic League that refused to recognise his accession This led to another
invasion from the Spanish Netherlands which was stopped at Calais and driven back after which the Peace
of Vervins in 1598 deprived the French rebels of support from Spain Henry then pacified Brittany without
bloodshed and issued the Edict of Nantes which guaranteed the rights of Protestants and ended the wars
In 1599 Henryrsquos childless marriage was annulled and he married Marie dersquo Medici the next year She soon
gave birth to a son who became King Louis XIII when his father was assassinated by a fanatical Catholic in
1610 Marie became his regent until 1617 after which Louis used various means to erode the provisions of
the Edict of Nantes His son Louis XIV was even more hostile to the Huguenots and from 1661 he actively
pressured them to either convert or leave the country Finally his Edict of Fontainebleau in 1865 declared
Protestantism illegal and between 200000 and a million Huguenots emigrated
Some Protestants remained in the mountainous Ceacutevennes region in the southeast where they were largely left
alone In more settled areas many who claimed to have converted practiced their faith in secret suffering
severe penalties if they were detected Ironically religious freedom was restored by Louis XVI in his Edict of
Versailles of 1787 ndash two years before the Revolution and the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen
[This story has a number of interesting historical sidelines starting with the regent queens Catherine and
Marie dersquo Medici Both were scions of the ruling house of Florence which also produced three popes Leo X
who excommunicated Martin Luther Clement VII who granted King Henry VIII of Englandrsquos annulment
and Leo XI who was elected at 69 and died less than a month later
The short-lived King Francis II was married to Mary Stuart Queen of Scots whose mother was the sister of
Francis Duke of Guise She lived in France from the age of five until her husbandrsquos death after which she
returned to rule Scotland Her son James VI succeeded Queen Elizabeth I as King James I of England in
1603 (His great-grandmother Margaret Tudor was King Henry VIIIrsquos sister)
Henry III was the last ruler from the House of Valois whereas Henry IV founded the Bourbon Dynasty His
eldest daughter Elisabeth married King Philip IV of Spain while his youngest Henrietta Maria became the
wife of King Charles I of England Scotland and Ireland Louis XIII died when his elder son was four years
old giving Louis XIV the longest recorded reign (72 years) of any monarch of a sovereign European nation
Known as the lsquoSun Kingrsquo his time was a period of political centralisation economic advancement military
success and empire building in North America India and Africa]
16
MORE ICCU NEWS Just as we go to press the Chalice Lighting for December has arrived
Saat gelap kita terkungkung rasa takut maka nyalakanlah harapan dalam jiwa Saat gelap kita penuh kecurigaan dan prasangka buruk pada sesama maka nyalakanlah kasih dalam hati Saat gelap kita kehilangan sadar mana yang baik dan mana yang jahat maka nyalakanlah hikmat dalam nurani Saat gelap kita merasa bisa berbuat semau kita tanpa ingat Sang Maha Suci dan sesama maka nyalakanlah iman yang dipenuhi kebenaran Gelap ada saat kita abai menyalakan terang Gelap tak bisa diusir dengan marah dan geram sebab gelap akan sirna jika kita menyalakan terang Saat kita menyalakan lentera kita dalam ibadah ini Marilah tak hanya mengundang terang bagi mata jasmani tetapi selalu undang terang bagi mata rohani Yang akan memerdekakan hati serta membawa kebijaksanaan dan kebahagiaan sejati
When it is dark we are surrounded by fear so light hope in your soul When it is dark we are full of distrust and prejudice to the others so light love in your heart When it is dark we lose awareness of good and evil so light wisdom in your conscience When it is dark we feel that we can do whatever we want without remembering The Most Holy One and our neighbors so light faith that is fulfilled with truth Darkness exist when we forget to turn on the light Darkness cannot be expelled with our anger and wrath because darkness will be gone when we turn on the light When we light up our chalice in this worship Let us not only welcoming the light for our physical eyes but always invite the light for our spiritual eyes A light that will free our heart bringing wisdom and real happiness
Submitted by the Unitarian Christian Church of Indonesia Indonesian words (and presumably the English translation) written by its minister Rev Aryanto Nugroho Membership renewals for 2017 are due from 01 January so the best time to pay them will be at the
Christmas Party Those wishing to join our church can use this form by way of application but should
not send payment until their membership is accepted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MEMBERSHIPRENEWAL FORM
I (name) ___________________________________________________ of (address) _________________________________________________ ________________________________ Postcode _________ Phone(s) (home) __________________ (other) ___________________ Email ______________________________________________________ I apply to joinrenew membership in (delete one) the Sydney Unitarian Church and agree to abide by the rules as set down by the Constitution and management of the church Signature ________________________________ Fee enclosed $_____ Cheques should be made payable to Treasurer Sydney Unitarian Church Membership will be valid for the calendar year 2016 Annual membership is $20 and includes the SUN journal subscription to the SUN only is $15
12
This short aquatic trip from Europe to Asia was perilous if not downright stupid but it was also an adven-
ture neither would ever forget The water on the edge of the Bosphorus was a tepid odorous brew of
effluents and diesel fuel At first our swimmers had to paddle through floating islands of detritus and dead
creatures in various stages of decomposition but soon due to the salubrious effect of water currents things
got more pleasant Away from the shoreline the boys were at last able to pause to admire the stars and the
city lights flickering and sparkling over the dark flapping waves A mighty cruise ship went by with her pro-
pellers stomping and chopping the waters gliding by serenely with utter confidence in her great power
For a few long minutes Maurice and Philippe thought they were going to be drawn into a fatal whirlpool and
minced by this metallic behemoth but on this occasion fate if there is such a thing decided to spare them
Fishermen who spotted them in the glow of their kerosene lamps at first asked if they required some help
but as the boys kept swimming trying to explain that they were fine these Good Samaritans sailed on
joking among themselves puzzled and amused by the absurdity of these wayward Westerners whom they
ended up cursing for disturbing the fish
Being somewhat socially inept Maurice had since early childhood disliked all team sports As a matter of
fact he had disliked all sports in general considering such physical endeavours as complete wastes of time
either as a participant or particularly as a spectator In any case he considered competition to be one of the
most subversive of all human activities This being said he had periodically enjoyed some individual sports
such as tennis or running for any distance over a thousand metres As long as he was on his own being only
responsible to and for himself he found such exercise tolerable if not pleasurable He had for many years en-
joyed swimming long distances and had even hoped that one day he would swim across the English Channel
but that project would never eventuate
Although he had navigated in a sea of uncertainty for most of his young life and was chronically griped by
self-doubt he often wondered on the futility of all his endeavours but on that warm summer night of 1966
swimming between Europe and Asia across that fabled body of water which links the Mediterranean and the
Sea of Marmara to the Black Sea leading to his beloved Russia he had never felt more alive In any case this
was a feat worthy of Uncle Alexander to whom he always liked to compare himself Swimming calmly and
rambling on in one of his usual silent soliloquies he was brought back to more practical considerations by
Philippe who seemed to be paddling away with some difficulty bordering on panic
Maurice lightheartedly convinced his new friend that this was not a race ndash rather they had all the time in the
world to enjoy this wonderful night and he should therefore save his energy if he wanted to make it to the
other side Philippe asked ldquoDonrsquot you have any fearsrdquo Maurice answered between breaststrokes ldquoOf course
I dohellipJust like everyone elsehellipBut if I listened to all my fears I would never do anythingrdquo ldquoToo truerdquo
responded Philippe who was easily convinced by this line of thought
Having both conquered their fears their youthful enthusiasm and health triumphed and at three-thirty in the
morning they landed in Asia near the Beylerbeyi Palace which had been the last place of captivity of the de-
posed Sultan Abdulhamid II from 1912 until his death there in 1918 Unfortunately since 1973 this elegant
historical building has been dwarfed by the Bosphorus Bridge
The Beylerbeyi Sarayi (Beylerbeyi Palace) and the 1973 Bosphorus Bridge linking Europe to Asia
13
Punctual and dependable Ursula and Thomas were already on location walking up and down the embank-
ment genuinely concerned for these two foolhardy Frenchmen although they hardly knew them After all this
was the 1960s when trusting and caring for even complete strangers were highly fashionable sentiments But in
that balmy summer night of 1966 having anxiously feared for the worst Ursula and Thomas were greatly
relieved when the boys emerged from the black waters exhausted but ecstatic For anyone else this could be
considered to have been an insignificant event but for Maurice and Philippe it would remain one of those rare
defining moments in their lives It is the sum of such experiences not the accumulation of lsquostuffrsquo no matter
how splendid that lsquostuffrsquo might be which gives meaning if not purpose to our existence
The four new friends then followed the happy ending with jubilant celebrations in the overgrown gardens
surrounding the Beylerbeyi Palace As Maurice and Philippe dried up they sat all there surrounded by flat-
tened plastic bottles broken glass cigarette butts weeds and thorny bushes but for them on that particular
night this was the Garden of Eden They talked endlessly and drank too much cheap wine waiting for the sun
to arise from beyond the Far East The uninhibited impulse to reveal the secrets of our souls is one of the most
precious treasures of youth With age too many of us deteriorate into poor listeners and crushing mono-
logists Without even noticing it we become cynical guarded and judgmental with a dwindling ability to
enjoy the company of others How much more intoxicating it is to share dreams rather than memories Half a
century later Maurice often wonders ldquoWhere are they all now these ephemeral merry companions who ap-
peared and disappeared from my firmament like shooting starsrdquo
On the edge of a new continent which might as well have been a new planet Maurice and Philippe spent the
next couple of days retelling each other the saga of their swim across the Bosphorus Strait in constantly
evolving details every new version of their story slightly more embellished and heroic than the previous one
which in Philippersquos case truly was lsquopoetic licensersquo Eventually they continued their journey to the excava-
tion site of the Homeric city of Troy which had lain buried for 2500 years During this pilgrimage Philippe
took great pleasure in reading aloud relevant passages of The Iliad but he seemed profoundly fatigued and
felt that it was time for him to go home He farewelled Maurice with an open invitation to visit him in Stras-
bourg whenever he wished and they parted ways on the most amicable terms
Istanbul in 1966
Istanbul now 3
3 In 1966 none of the high-rise buildings that appear in this photo existed and the two suspension bridges that cross the
Bosphorus had not yet been constructed either The Hagia Sophia appears in both photos
14
Freer than he would ever be again Maurice then ventured further and deeper into the Middle East which was a much safer and more welcoming region in those days Like so many adventurers poets and mystics before or since he willingly lost himself in that part of the world in order to lsquofind himselfrsquo Whether he did so or not is irrelevant - only the quest mattered The Middle East was an unparalleled feast for the senses The tumultuous multitudes the noise the music the fragrant foods the apparent vitality and even the still dormant hostility were all mesmerising charms he could not resist He dived into it and disappeared for the next several months as a submarine does beneath the waves much to his parentsrsquo chagrin To follow onersquos whims to live life to the fullest often demands a monstrous indifference to the suffering of those close to us He disappeared simply because one could easily do so in those blessed days before personal computers the internet mobile phones digital cameras and all that electronic gadgetry which has so impoverished our lives and withered our ability to exist in complete symbiosis with the world around us in complete anonymity if we so wish To paraphrase Milan Kundera lsquolife is now always elsewherersquo It is neither Dariusrsquo ghost nor the splendours of Persepolis nor the ruins of Babylon that Maurice remembers most from these peregrinations but a humble present he received from a gentle young woman in Isfahan in the heart of Iran when she farewelled him with three red roses she had carefully wrapped and placed in a small wooden box adorned with intricate Persian miniatures For the last fifty years this treasured gift with its three dried-up flowers has held pride and place in the successive homes he has temporarily occupied in his nomadic life In spite of the dark decades that followed in her turbulent country he often thinks about this young woman of Isfahan and hopes that life has been as kind to her as she was to him A few months later the Middle East exploded into a fire that has not been extinguished to this day4 ___________________________ 4 Ie the Six Day War of June 1967
A GOOD YEAR FOR MATHEMATICIANS In keeping with the article twelve months ago on British chemists born in 1766 this year we have three pro-minent mathematicians who were born in 1667 ndash two on the same day The first was a Frenchman Abraham de Moivre born into a Huguenot family on 26 May and educated at the Protestant Academy of Sedan until it was suppressed in 1682 He went on to study logic at Saumur and physics in Paris but the repression of his denomination by Louis XIV caused him to move to London in 1687 There he met Edmund Halley and Isaac Newton and he was admitted to the Royal Society in 1689 after writ-ing two papers that generalised the latterrsquos theorems Halley then encouraged him to study astronomy which led him to propose a prescient theory affecting elliptical orbits He proceeded to do further work in analytic geometry and wrote four books on probability followed by a fundamental theorem of what is now known as complex analysis (involving the lsquoimaginaryrsquo number i = radicminus1) It is said that he correctly calculated the date of his death on 27 November 1754 Also born on 26 May 1667 and of Huguenot descent was the Swiss mathematician Johann Bernoulli Educa-ted at Basel University with his older brother Jacob he became a professor at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands They both specialised in the new fields of calculus and differential equations which had important applications in physics Amazingly Johann developed a proof of de Moivrersquos proposal affecting elliptical orbits in 1710 amongst many other works The Bernoullis including a third brother were the first of three generations of prominent mathematicians and scientists Johann died in 1748 William Whiston was born in England on 09 December the son of a rector and studied at Cambridge He became a tutor there left to join the ministry and returned to become Sir Isaac Newtonrsquos understudy in 1701 He took the Lucasian Chair of Mathematics the next year when Newton retired but unlike his lsquocloset Unitarianrsquo predecessor he did not conceal his radical religious views Instead he gave lectures published books and even debated the doctrine of the Trinity with two archbishops after which he was expelled from Cambridge in 1710 He went on to a controversial career in both science and religion writing many books on both subjects Despite his unorthodoxy and never having been made a Member he often gave lectures to the Royal Society He co-authored a chart of the Solar System showing the paths of various comets and produced one of the first maps of the Earthrsquos magnetic field over southern England He died in 1752
15
(The Reformation That Failed contrsquod)
The final phase of the wars is known as lsquothe War of the Three Henrysrsquo because it involved King Henry III
Henry of Guise and Henry of Navarre It began when Prince Francis died in 1584 after spending four years
out of the country courting Queen Elizabeth I of England and taking part in William of Orangersquos revolt in the
Spanish Netherlands (present-day Holland and Belgium) As neither he nor Henry III had any children this
made their cousin Henry of Navarre the legal successor to the throne which the Catholic League could not
accept Under pressure from the Guises the king signed an edict in 1585 that suppressed Protestantism and
annulled Henry of Navarrersquos right to the succession in favour of Cardinal Charles de Bourbon
The Catholic League wanted total war against the Huguenots but the king who wanted a settlement insisted
that he had no funds for such a campaign When a Catholic uprising in Paris drove him from the city in 1588
Henry III concluded that the Guises meant to overthrow him His bodyguard assassinated Henry of Guise
and his brother Cardinal Louis de Guise at the Royal Chacircteau de Blois and the king joined forces with his
Protestant cousin However he in turn was assassinated by a Dominican monk in 1589 and Henry of Navarre
became King Henry IV of France
The Catholic League still controlled the north and east of the country but Henry attacked and defeated them in
two battles in Normandy He laid siege to Paris in 1590 until a Spanish army from the Netherlands forced him
back after which the two armies fought until the invaders withdrew at the end of 1592 Henry then realised that
he could never take Paris and rule the whole of France while he was a Protestant so he became a Catholic in
1593 and the Pope revoked his excommunication in exchange for the Churchrsquos supremacy in France
While Henry had committed to reserving all high positions to Catholics he wanted to assure the Huguenots
that he was not a puppet of Spain In 1595 he initiated the Franco-Spanish War in which he also sought to
subdue the few remnants of the Catholic League that refused to recognise his accession This led to another
invasion from the Spanish Netherlands which was stopped at Calais and driven back after which the Peace
of Vervins in 1598 deprived the French rebels of support from Spain Henry then pacified Brittany without
bloodshed and issued the Edict of Nantes which guaranteed the rights of Protestants and ended the wars
In 1599 Henryrsquos childless marriage was annulled and he married Marie dersquo Medici the next year She soon
gave birth to a son who became King Louis XIII when his father was assassinated by a fanatical Catholic in
1610 Marie became his regent until 1617 after which Louis used various means to erode the provisions of
the Edict of Nantes His son Louis XIV was even more hostile to the Huguenots and from 1661 he actively
pressured them to either convert or leave the country Finally his Edict of Fontainebleau in 1865 declared
Protestantism illegal and between 200000 and a million Huguenots emigrated
Some Protestants remained in the mountainous Ceacutevennes region in the southeast where they were largely left
alone In more settled areas many who claimed to have converted practiced their faith in secret suffering
severe penalties if they were detected Ironically religious freedom was restored by Louis XVI in his Edict of
Versailles of 1787 ndash two years before the Revolution and the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen
[This story has a number of interesting historical sidelines starting with the regent queens Catherine and
Marie dersquo Medici Both were scions of the ruling house of Florence which also produced three popes Leo X
who excommunicated Martin Luther Clement VII who granted King Henry VIII of Englandrsquos annulment
and Leo XI who was elected at 69 and died less than a month later
The short-lived King Francis II was married to Mary Stuart Queen of Scots whose mother was the sister of
Francis Duke of Guise She lived in France from the age of five until her husbandrsquos death after which she
returned to rule Scotland Her son James VI succeeded Queen Elizabeth I as King James I of England in
1603 (His great-grandmother Margaret Tudor was King Henry VIIIrsquos sister)
Henry III was the last ruler from the House of Valois whereas Henry IV founded the Bourbon Dynasty His
eldest daughter Elisabeth married King Philip IV of Spain while his youngest Henrietta Maria became the
wife of King Charles I of England Scotland and Ireland Louis XIII died when his elder son was four years
old giving Louis XIV the longest recorded reign (72 years) of any monarch of a sovereign European nation
Known as the lsquoSun Kingrsquo his time was a period of political centralisation economic advancement military
success and empire building in North America India and Africa]
16
MORE ICCU NEWS Just as we go to press the Chalice Lighting for December has arrived
Saat gelap kita terkungkung rasa takut maka nyalakanlah harapan dalam jiwa Saat gelap kita penuh kecurigaan dan prasangka buruk pada sesama maka nyalakanlah kasih dalam hati Saat gelap kita kehilangan sadar mana yang baik dan mana yang jahat maka nyalakanlah hikmat dalam nurani Saat gelap kita merasa bisa berbuat semau kita tanpa ingat Sang Maha Suci dan sesama maka nyalakanlah iman yang dipenuhi kebenaran Gelap ada saat kita abai menyalakan terang Gelap tak bisa diusir dengan marah dan geram sebab gelap akan sirna jika kita menyalakan terang Saat kita menyalakan lentera kita dalam ibadah ini Marilah tak hanya mengundang terang bagi mata jasmani tetapi selalu undang terang bagi mata rohani Yang akan memerdekakan hati serta membawa kebijaksanaan dan kebahagiaan sejati
When it is dark we are surrounded by fear so light hope in your soul When it is dark we are full of distrust and prejudice to the others so light love in your heart When it is dark we lose awareness of good and evil so light wisdom in your conscience When it is dark we feel that we can do whatever we want without remembering The Most Holy One and our neighbors so light faith that is fulfilled with truth Darkness exist when we forget to turn on the light Darkness cannot be expelled with our anger and wrath because darkness will be gone when we turn on the light When we light up our chalice in this worship Let us not only welcoming the light for our physical eyes but always invite the light for our spiritual eyes A light that will free our heart bringing wisdom and real happiness
Submitted by the Unitarian Christian Church of Indonesia Indonesian words (and presumably the English translation) written by its minister Rev Aryanto Nugroho Membership renewals for 2017 are due from 01 January so the best time to pay them will be at the
Christmas Party Those wishing to join our church can use this form by way of application but should
not send payment until their membership is accepted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MEMBERSHIPRENEWAL FORM
I (name) ___________________________________________________ of (address) _________________________________________________ ________________________________ Postcode _________ Phone(s) (home) __________________ (other) ___________________ Email ______________________________________________________ I apply to joinrenew membership in (delete one) the Sydney Unitarian Church and agree to abide by the rules as set down by the Constitution and management of the church Signature ________________________________ Fee enclosed $_____ Cheques should be made payable to Treasurer Sydney Unitarian Church Membership will be valid for the calendar year 2016 Annual membership is $20 and includes the SUN journal subscription to the SUN only is $15
13
Punctual and dependable Ursula and Thomas were already on location walking up and down the embank-
ment genuinely concerned for these two foolhardy Frenchmen although they hardly knew them After all this
was the 1960s when trusting and caring for even complete strangers were highly fashionable sentiments But in
that balmy summer night of 1966 having anxiously feared for the worst Ursula and Thomas were greatly
relieved when the boys emerged from the black waters exhausted but ecstatic For anyone else this could be
considered to have been an insignificant event but for Maurice and Philippe it would remain one of those rare
defining moments in their lives It is the sum of such experiences not the accumulation of lsquostuffrsquo no matter
how splendid that lsquostuffrsquo might be which gives meaning if not purpose to our existence
The four new friends then followed the happy ending with jubilant celebrations in the overgrown gardens
surrounding the Beylerbeyi Palace As Maurice and Philippe dried up they sat all there surrounded by flat-
tened plastic bottles broken glass cigarette butts weeds and thorny bushes but for them on that particular
night this was the Garden of Eden They talked endlessly and drank too much cheap wine waiting for the sun
to arise from beyond the Far East The uninhibited impulse to reveal the secrets of our souls is one of the most
precious treasures of youth With age too many of us deteriorate into poor listeners and crushing mono-
logists Without even noticing it we become cynical guarded and judgmental with a dwindling ability to
enjoy the company of others How much more intoxicating it is to share dreams rather than memories Half a
century later Maurice often wonders ldquoWhere are they all now these ephemeral merry companions who ap-
peared and disappeared from my firmament like shooting starsrdquo
On the edge of a new continent which might as well have been a new planet Maurice and Philippe spent the
next couple of days retelling each other the saga of their swim across the Bosphorus Strait in constantly
evolving details every new version of their story slightly more embellished and heroic than the previous one
which in Philippersquos case truly was lsquopoetic licensersquo Eventually they continued their journey to the excava-
tion site of the Homeric city of Troy which had lain buried for 2500 years During this pilgrimage Philippe
took great pleasure in reading aloud relevant passages of The Iliad but he seemed profoundly fatigued and
felt that it was time for him to go home He farewelled Maurice with an open invitation to visit him in Stras-
bourg whenever he wished and they parted ways on the most amicable terms
Istanbul in 1966
Istanbul now 3
3 In 1966 none of the high-rise buildings that appear in this photo existed and the two suspension bridges that cross the
Bosphorus had not yet been constructed either The Hagia Sophia appears in both photos
14
Freer than he would ever be again Maurice then ventured further and deeper into the Middle East which was a much safer and more welcoming region in those days Like so many adventurers poets and mystics before or since he willingly lost himself in that part of the world in order to lsquofind himselfrsquo Whether he did so or not is irrelevant - only the quest mattered The Middle East was an unparalleled feast for the senses The tumultuous multitudes the noise the music the fragrant foods the apparent vitality and even the still dormant hostility were all mesmerising charms he could not resist He dived into it and disappeared for the next several months as a submarine does beneath the waves much to his parentsrsquo chagrin To follow onersquos whims to live life to the fullest often demands a monstrous indifference to the suffering of those close to us He disappeared simply because one could easily do so in those blessed days before personal computers the internet mobile phones digital cameras and all that electronic gadgetry which has so impoverished our lives and withered our ability to exist in complete symbiosis with the world around us in complete anonymity if we so wish To paraphrase Milan Kundera lsquolife is now always elsewherersquo It is neither Dariusrsquo ghost nor the splendours of Persepolis nor the ruins of Babylon that Maurice remembers most from these peregrinations but a humble present he received from a gentle young woman in Isfahan in the heart of Iran when she farewelled him with three red roses she had carefully wrapped and placed in a small wooden box adorned with intricate Persian miniatures For the last fifty years this treasured gift with its three dried-up flowers has held pride and place in the successive homes he has temporarily occupied in his nomadic life In spite of the dark decades that followed in her turbulent country he often thinks about this young woman of Isfahan and hopes that life has been as kind to her as she was to him A few months later the Middle East exploded into a fire that has not been extinguished to this day4 ___________________________ 4 Ie the Six Day War of June 1967
A GOOD YEAR FOR MATHEMATICIANS In keeping with the article twelve months ago on British chemists born in 1766 this year we have three pro-minent mathematicians who were born in 1667 ndash two on the same day The first was a Frenchman Abraham de Moivre born into a Huguenot family on 26 May and educated at the Protestant Academy of Sedan until it was suppressed in 1682 He went on to study logic at Saumur and physics in Paris but the repression of his denomination by Louis XIV caused him to move to London in 1687 There he met Edmund Halley and Isaac Newton and he was admitted to the Royal Society in 1689 after writ-ing two papers that generalised the latterrsquos theorems Halley then encouraged him to study astronomy which led him to propose a prescient theory affecting elliptical orbits He proceeded to do further work in analytic geometry and wrote four books on probability followed by a fundamental theorem of what is now known as complex analysis (involving the lsquoimaginaryrsquo number i = radicminus1) It is said that he correctly calculated the date of his death on 27 November 1754 Also born on 26 May 1667 and of Huguenot descent was the Swiss mathematician Johann Bernoulli Educa-ted at Basel University with his older brother Jacob he became a professor at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands They both specialised in the new fields of calculus and differential equations which had important applications in physics Amazingly Johann developed a proof of de Moivrersquos proposal affecting elliptical orbits in 1710 amongst many other works The Bernoullis including a third brother were the first of three generations of prominent mathematicians and scientists Johann died in 1748 William Whiston was born in England on 09 December the son of a rector and studied at Cambridge He became a tutor there left to join the ministry and returned to become Sir Isaac Newtonrsquos understudy in 1701 He took the Lucasian Chair of Mathematics the next year when Newton retired but unlike his lsquocloset Unitarianrsquo predecessor he did not conceal his radical religious views Instead he gave lectures published books and even debated the doctrine of the Trinity with two archbishops after which he was expelled from Cambridge in 1710 He went on to a controversial career in both science and religion writing many books on both subjects Despite his unorthodoxy and never having been made a Member he often gave lectures to the Royal Society He co-authored a chart of the Solar System showing the paths of various comets and produced one of the first maps of the Earthrsquos magnetic field over southern England He died in 1752
15
(The Reformation That Failed contrsquod)
The final phase of the wars is known as lsquothe War of the Three Henrysrsquo because it involved King Henry III
Henry of Guise and Henry of Navarre It began when Prince Francis died in 1584 after spending four years
out of the country courting Queen Elizabeth I of England and taking part in William of Orangersquos revolt in the
Spanish Netherlands (present-day Holland and Belgium) As neither he nor Henry III had any children this
made their cousin Henry of Navarre the legal successor to the throne which the Catholic League could not
accept Under pressure from the Guises the king signed an edict in 1585 that suppressed Protestantism and
annulled Henry of Navarrersquos right to the succession in favour of Cardinal Charles de Bourbon
The Catholic League wanted total war against the Huguenots but the king who wanted a settlement insisted
that he had no funds for such a campaign When a Catholic uprising in Paris drove him from the city in 1588
Henry III concluded that the Guises meant to overthrow him His bodyguard assassinated Henry of Guise
and his brother Cardinal Louis de Guise at the Royal Chacircteau de Blois and the king joined forces with his
Protestant cousin However he in turn was assassinated by a Dominican monk in 1589 and Henry of Navarre
became King Henry IV of France
The Catholic League still controlled the north and east of the country but Henry attacked and defeated them in
two battles in Normandy He laid siege to Paris in 1590 until a Spanish army from the Netherlands forced him
back after which the two armies fought until the invaders withdrew at the end of 1592 Henry then realised that
he could never take Paris and rule the whole of France while he was a Protestant so he became a Catholic in
1593 and the Pope revoked his excommunication in exchange for the Churchrsquos supremacy in France
While Henry had committed to reserving all high positions to Catholics he wanted to assure the Huguenots
that he was not a puppet of Spain In 1595 he initiated the Franco-Spanish War in which he also sought to
subdue the few remnants of the Catholic League that refused to recognise his accession This led to another
invasion from the Spanish Netherlands which was stopped at Calais and driven back after which the Peace
of Vervins in 1598 deprived the French rebels of support from Spain Henry then pacified Brittany without
bloodshed and issued the Edict of Nantes which guaranteed the rights of Protestants and ended the wars
In 1599 Henryrsquos childless marriage was annulled and he married Marie dersquo Medici the next year She soon
gave birth to a son who became King Louis XIII when his father was assassinated by a fanatical Catholic in
1610 Marie became his regent until 1617 after which Louis used various means to erode the provisions of
the Edict of Nantes His son Louis XIV was even more hostile to the Huguenots and from 1661 he actively
pressured them to either convert or leave the country Finally his Edict of Fontainebleau in 1865 declared
Protestantism illegal and between 200000 and a million Huguenots emigrated
Some Protestants remained in the mountainous Ceacutevennes region in the southeast where they were largely left
alone In more settled areas many who claimed to have converted practiced their faith in secret suffering
severe penalties if they were detected Ironically religious freedom was restored by Louis XVI in his Edict of
Versailles of 1787 ndash two years before the Revolution and the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen
[This story has a number of interesting historical sidelines starting with the regent queens Catherine and
Marie dersquo Medici Both were scions of the ruling house of Florence which also produced three popes Leo X
who excommunicated Martin Luther Clement VII who granted King Henry VIII of Englandrsquos annulment
and Leo XI who was elected at 69 and died less than a month later
The short-lived King Francis II was married to Mary Stuart Queen of Scots whose mother was the sister of
Francis Duke of Guise She lived in France from the age of five until her husbandrsquos death after which she
returned to rule Scotland Her son James VI succeeded Queen Elizabeth I as King James I of England in
1603 (His great-grandmother Margaret Tudor was King Henry VIIIrsquos sister)
Henry III was the last ruler from the House of Valois whereas Henry IV founded the Bourbon Dynasty His
eldest daughter Elisabeth married King Philip IV of Spain while his youngest Henrietta Maria became the
wife of King Charles I of England Scotland and Ireland Louis XIII died when his elder son was four years
old giving Louis XIV the longest recorded reign (72 years) of any monarch of a sovereign European nation
Known as the lsquoSun Kingrsquo his time was a period of political centralisation economic advancement military
success and empire building in North America India and Africa]
16
MORE ICCU NEWS Just as we go to press the Chalice Lighting for December has arrived
Saat gelap kita terkungkung rasa takut maka nyalakanlah harapan dalam jiwa Saat gelap kita penuh kecurigaan dan prasangka buruk pada sesama maka nyalakanlah kasih dalam hati Saat gelap kita kehilangan sadar mana yang baik dan mana yang jahat maka nyalakanlah hikmat dalam nurani Saat gelap kita merasa bisa berbuat semau kita tanpa ingat Sang Maha Suci dan sesama maka nyalakanlah iman yang dipenuhi kebenaran Gelap ada saat kita abai menyalakan terang Gelap tak bisa diusir dengan marah dan geram sebab gelap akan sirna jika kita menyalakan terang Saat kita menyalakan lentera kita dalam ibadah ini Marilah tak hanya mengundang terang bagi mata jasmani tetapi selalu undang terang bagi mata rohani Yang akan memerdekakan hati serta membawa kebijaksanaan dan kebahagiaan sejati
When it is dark we are surrounded by fear so light hope in your soul When it is dark we are full of distrust and prejudice to the others so light love in your heart When it is dark we lose awareness of good and evil so light wisdom in your conscience When it is dark we feel that we can do whatever we want without remembering The Most Holy One and our neighbors so light faith that is fulfilled with truth Darkness exist when we forget to turn on the light Darkness cannot be expelled with our anger and wrath because darkness will be gone when we turn on the light When we light up our chalice in this worship Let us not only welcoming the light for our physical eyes but always invite the light for our spiritual eyes A light that will free our heart bringing wisdom and real happiness
Submitted by the Unitarian Christian Church of Indonesia Indonesian words (and presumably the English translation) written by its minister Rev Aryanto Nugroho Membership renewals for 2017 are due from 01 January so the best time to pay them will be at the
Christmas Party Those wishing to join our church can use this form by way of application but should
not send payment until their membership is accepted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MEMBERSHIPRENEWAL FORM
I (name) ___________________________________________________ of (address) _________________________________________________ ________________________________ Postcode _________ Phone(s) (home) __________________ (other) ___________________ Email ______________________________________________________ I apply to joinrenew membership in (delete one) the Sydney Unitarian Church and agree to abide by the rules as set down by the Constitution and management of the church Signature ________________________________ Fee enclosed $_____ Cheques should be made payable to Treasurer Sydney Unitarian Church Membership will be valid for the calendar year 2016 Annual membership is $20 and includes the SUN journal subscription to the SUN only is $15
14
Freer than he would ever be again Maurice then ventured further and deeper into the Middle East which was a much safer and more welcoming region in those days Like so many adventurers poets and mystics before or since he willingly lost himself in that part of the world in order to lsquofind himselfrsquo Whether he did so or not is irrelevant - only the quest mattered The Middle East was an unparalleled feast for the senses The tumultuous multitudes the noise the music the fragrant foods the apparent vitality and even the still dormant hostility were all mesmerising charms he could not resist He dived into it and disappeared for the next several months as a submarine does beneath the waves much to his parentsrsquo chagrin To follow onersquos whims to live life to the fullest often demands a monstrous indifference to the suffering of those close to us He disappeared simply because one could easily do so in those blessed days before personal computers the internet mobile phones digital cameras and all that electronic gadgetry which has so impoverished our lives and withered our ability to exist in complete symbiosis with the world around us in complete anonymity if we so wish To paraphrase Milan Kundera lsquolife is now always elsewherersquo It is neither Dariusrsquo ghost nor the splendours of Persepolis nor the ruins of Babylon that Maurice remembers most from these peregrinations but a humble present he received from a gentle young woman in Isfahan in the heart of Iran when she farewelled him with three red roses she had carefully wrapped and placed in a small wooden box adorned with intricate Persian miniatures For the last fifty years this treasured gift with its three dried-up flowers has held pride and place in the successive homes he has temporarily occupied in his nomadic life In spite of the dark decades that followed in her turbulent country he often thinks about this young woman of Isfahan and hopes that life has been as kind to her as she was to him A few months later the Middle East exploded into a fire that has not been extinguished to this day4 ___________________________ 4 Ie the Six Day War of June 1967
A GOOD YEAR FOR MATHEMATICIANS In keeping with the article twelve months ago on British chemists born in 1766 this year we have three pro-minent mathematicians who were born in 1667 ndash two on the same day The first was a Frenchman Abraham de Moivre born into a Huguenot family on 26 May and educated at the Protestant Academy of Sedan until it was suppressed in 1682 He went on to study logic at Saumur and physics in Paris but the repression of his denomination by Louis XIV caused him to move to London in 1687 There he met Edmund Halley and Isaac Newton and he was admitted to the Royal Society in 1689 after writ-ing two papers that generalised the latterrsquos theorems Halley then encouraged him to study astronomy which led him to propose a prescient theory affecting elliptical orbits He proceeded to do further work in analytic geometry and wrote four books on probability followed by a fundamental theorem of what is now known as complex analysis (involving the lsquoimaginaryrsquo number i = radicminus1) It is said that he correctly calculated the date of his death on 27 November 1754 Also born on 26 May 1667 and of Huguenot descent was the Swiss mathematician Johann Bernoulli Educa-ted at Basel University with his older brother Jacob he became a professor at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands They both specialised in the new fields of calculus and differential equations which had important applications in physics Amazingly Johann developed a proof of de Moivrersquos proposal affecting elliptical orbits in 1710 amongst many other works The Bernoullis including a third brother were the first of three generations of prominent mathematicians and scientists Johann died in 1748 William Whiston was born in England on 09 December the son of a rector and studied at Cambridge He became a tutor there left to join the ministry and returned to become Sir Isaac Newtonrsquos understudy in 1701 He took the Lucasian Chair of Mathematics the next year when Newton retired but unlike his lsquocloset Unitarianrsquo predecessor he did not conceal his radical religious views Instead he gave lectures published books and even debated the doctrine of the Trinity with two archbishops after which he was expelled from Cambridge in 1710 He went on to a controversial career in both science and religion writing many books on both subjects Despite his unorthodoxy and never having been made a Member he often gave lectures to the Royal Society He co-authored a chart of the Solar System showing the paths of various comets and produced one of the first maps of the Earthrsquos magnetic field over southern England He died in 1752
15
(The Reformation That Failed contrsquod)
The final phase of the wars is known as lsquothe War of the Three Henrysrsquo because it involved King Henry III
Henry of Guise and Henry of Navarre It began when Prince Francis died in 1584 after spending four years
out of the country courting Queen Elizabeth I of England and taking part in William of Orangersquos revolt in the
Spanish Netherlands (present-day Holland and Belgium) As neither he nor Henry III had any children this
made their cousin Henry of Navarre the legal successor to the throne which the Catholic League could not
accept Under pressure from the Guises the king signed an edict in 1585 that suppressed Protestantism and
annulled Henry of Navarrersquos right to the succession in favour of Cardinal Charles de Bourbon
The Catholic League wanted total war against the Huguenots but the king who wanted a settlement insisted
that he had no funds for such a campaign When a Catholic uprising in Paris drove him from the city in 1588
Henry III concluded that the Guises meant to overthrow him His bodyguard assassinated Henry of Guise
and his brother Cardinal Louis de Guise at the Royal Chacircteau de Blois and the king joined forces with his
Protestant cousin However he in turn was assassinated by a Dominican monk in 1589 and Henry of Navarre
became King Henry IV of France
The Catholic League still controlled the north and east of the country but Henry attacked and defeated them in
two battles in Normandy He laid siege to Paris in 1590 until a Spanish army from the Netherlands forced him
back after which the two armies fought until the invaders withdrew at the end of 1592 Henry then realised that
he could never take Paris and rule the whole of France while he was a Protestant so he became a Catholic in
1593 and the Pope revoked his excommunication in exchange for the Churchrsquos supremacy in France
While Henry had committed to reserving all high positions to Catholics he wanted to assure the Huguenots
that he was not a puppet of Spain In 1595 he initiated the Franco-Spanish War in which he also sought to
subdue the few remnants of the Catholic League that refused to recognise his accession This led to another
invasion from the Spanish Netherlands which was stopped at Calais and driven back after which the Peace
of Vervins in 1598 deprived the French rebels of support from Spain Henry then pacified Brittany without
bloodshed and issued the Edict of Nantes which guaranteed the rights of Protestants and ended the wars
In 1599 Henryrsquos childless marriage was annulled and he married Marie dersquo Medici the next year She soon
gave birth to a son who became King Louis XIII when his father was assassinated by a fanatical Catholic in
1610 Marie became his regent until 1617 after which Louis used various means to erode the provisions of
the Edict of Nantes His son Louis XIV was even more hostile to the Huguenots and from 1661 he actively
pressured them to either convert or leave the country Finally his Edict of Fontainebleau in 1865 declared
Protestantism illegal and between 200000 and a million Huguenots emigrated
Some Protestants remained in the mountainous Ceacutevennes region in the southeast where they were largely left
alone In more settled areas many who claimed to have converted practiced their faith in secret suffering
severe penalties if they were detected Ironically religious freedom was restored by Louis XVI in his Edict of
Versailles of 1787 ndash two years before the Revolution and the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen
[This story has a number of interesting historical sidelines starting with the regent queens Catherine and
Marie dersquo Medici Both were scions of the ruling house of Florence which also produced three popes Leo X
who excommunicated Martin Luther Clement VII who granted King Henry VIII of Englandrsquos annulment
and Leo XI who was elected at 69 and died less than a month later
The short-lived King Francis II was married to Mary Stuart Queen of Scots whose mother was the sister of
Francis Duke of Guise She lived in France from the age of five until her husbandrsquos death after which she
returned to rule Scotland Her son James VI succeeded Queen Elizabeth I as King James I of England in
1603 (His great-grandmother Margaret Tudor was King Henry VIIIrsquos sister)
Henry III was the last ruler from the House of Valois whereas Henry IV founded the Bourbon Dynasty His
eldest daughter Elisabeth married King Philip IV of Spain while his youngest Henrietta Maria became the
wife of King Charles I of England Scotland and Ireland Louis XIII died when his elder son was four years
old giving Louis XIV the longest recorded reign (72 years) of any monarch of a sovereign European nation
Known as the lsquoSun Kingrsquo his time was a period of political centralisation economic advancement military
success and empire building in North America India and Africa]
16
MORE ICCU NEWS Just as we go to press the Chalice Lighting for December has arrived
Saat gelap kita terkungkung rasa takut maka nyalakanlah harapan dalam jiwa Saat gelap kita penuh kecurigaan dan prasangka buruk pada sesama maka nyalakanlah kasih dalam hati Saat gelap kita kehilangan sadar mana yang baik dan mana yang jahat maka nyalakanlah hikmat dalam nurani Saat gelap kita merasa bisa berbuat semau kita tanpa ingat Sang Maha Suci dan sesama maka nyalakanlah iman yang dipenuhi kebenaran Gelap ada saat kita abai menyalakan terang Gelap tak bisa diusir dengan marah dan geram sebab gelap akan sirna jika kita menyalakan terang Saat kita menyalakan lentera kita dalam ibadah ini Marilah tak hanya mengundang terang bagi mata jasmani tetapi selalu undang terang bagi mata rohani Yang akan memerdekakan hati serta membawa kebijaksanaan dan kebahagiaan sejati
When it is dark we are surrounded by fear so light hope in your soul When it is dark we are full of distrust and prejudice to the others so light love in your heart When it is dark we lose awareness of good and evil so light wisdom in your conscience When it is dark we feel that we can do whatever we want without remembering The Most Holy One and our neighbors so light faith that is fulfilled with truth Darkness exist when we forget to turn on the light Darkness cannot be expelled with our anger and wrath because darkness will be gone when we turn on the light When we light up our chalice in this worship Let us not only welcoming the light for our physical eyes but always invite the light for our spiritual eyes A light that will free our heart bringing wisdom and real happiness
Submitted by the Unitarian Christian Church of Indonesia Indonesian words (and presumably the English translation) written by its minister Rev Aryanto Nugroho Membership renewals for 2017 are due from 01 January so the best time to pay them will be at the
Christmas Party Those wishing to join our church can use this form by way of application but should
not send payment until their membership is accepted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MEMBERSHIPRENEWAL FORM
I (name) ___________________________________________________ of (address) _________________________________________________ ________________________________ Postcode _________ Phone(s) (home) __________________ (other) ___________________ Email ______________________________________________________ I apply to joinrenew membership in (delete one) the Sydney Unitarian Church and agree to abide by the rules as set down by the Constitution and management of the church Signature ________________________________ Fee enclosed $_____ Cheques should be made payable to Treasurer Sydney Unitarian Church Membership will be valid for the calendar year 2016 Annual membership is $20 and includes the SUN journal subscription to the SUN only is $15
15
(The Reformation That Failed contrsquod)
The final phase of the wars is known as lsquothe War of the Three Henrysrsquo because it involved King Henry III
Henry of Guise and Henry of Navarre It began when Prince Francis died in 1584 after spending four years
out of the country courting Queen Elizabeth I of England and taking part in William of Orangersquos revolt in the
Spanish Netherlands (present-day Holland and Belgium) As neither he nor Henry III had any children this
made their cousin Henry of Navarre the legal successor to the throne which the Catholic League could not
accept Under pressure from the Guises the king signed an edict in 1585 that suppressed Protestantism and
annulled Henry of Navarrersquos right to the succession in favour of Cardinal Charles de Bourbon
The Catholic League wanted total war against the Huguenots but the king who wanted a settlement insisted
that he had no funds for such a campaign When a Catholic uprising in Paris drove him from the city in 1588
Henry III concluded that the Guises meant to overthrow him His bodyguard assassinated Henry of Guise
and his brother Cardinal Louis de Guise at the Royal Chacircteau de Blois and the king joined forces with his
Protestant cousin However he in turn was assassinated by a Dominican monk in 1589 and Henry of Navarre
became King Henry IV of France
The Catholic League still controlled the north and east of the country but Henry attacked and defeated them in
two battles in Normandy He laid siege to Paris in 1590 until a Spanish army from the Netherlands forced him
back after which the two armies fought until the invaders withdrew at the end of 1592 Henry then realised that
he could never take Paris and rule the whole of France while he was a Protestant so he became a Catholic in
1593 and the Pope revoked his excommunication in exchange for the Churchrsquos supremacy in France
While Henry had committed to reserving all high positions to Catholics he wanted to assure the Huguenots
that he was not a puppet of Spain In 1595 he initiated the Franco-Spanish War in which he also sought to
subdue the few remnants of the Catholic League that refused to recognise his accession This led to another
invasion from the Spanish Netherlands which was stopped at Calais and driven back after which the Peace
of Vervins in 1598 deprived the French rebels of support from Spain Henry then pacified Brittany without
bloodshed and issued the Edict of Nantes which guaranteed the rights of Protestants and ended the wars
In 1599 Henryrsquos childless marriage was annulled and he married Marie dersquo Medici the next year She soon
gave birth to a son who became King Louis XIII when his father was assassinated by a fanatical Catholic in
1610 Marie became his regent until 1617 after which Louis used various means to erode the provisions of
the Edict of Nantes His son Louis XIV was even more hostile to the Huguenots and from 1661 he actively
pressured them to either convert or leave the country Finally his Edict of Fontainebleau in 1865 declared
Protestantism illegal and between 200000 and a million Huguenots emigrated
Some Protestants remained in the mountainous Ceacutevennes region in the southeast where they were largely left
alone In more settled areas many who claimed to have converted practiced their faith in secret suffering
severe penalties if they were detected Ironically religious freedom was restored by Louis XVI in his Edict of
Versailles of 1787 ndash two years before the Revolution and the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen
[This story has a number of interesting historical sidelines starting with the regent queens Catherine and
Marie dersquo Medici Both were scions of the ruling house of Florence which also produced three popes Leo X
who excommunicated Martin Luther Clement VII who granted King Henry VIII of Englandrsquos annulment
and Leo XI who was elected at 69 and died less than a month later
The short-lived King Francis II was married to Mary Stuart Queen of Scots whose mother was the sister of
Francis Duke of Guise She lived in France from the age of five until her husbandrsquos death after which she
returned to rule Scotland Her son James VI succeeded Queen Elizabeth I as King James I of England in
1603 (His great-grandmother Margaret Tudor was King Henry VIIIrsquos sister)
Henry III was the last ruler from the House of Valois whereas Henry IV founded the Bourbon Dynasty His
eldest daughter Elisabeth married King Philip IV of Spain while his youngest Henrietta Maria became the
wife of King Charles I of England Scotland and Ireland Louis XIII died when his elder son was four years
old giving Louis XIV the longest recorded reign (72 years) of any monarch of a sovereign European nation
Known as the lsquoSun Kingrsquo his time was a period of political centralisation economic advancement military
success and empire building in North America India and Africa]
16
MORE ICCU NEWS Just as we go to press the Chalice Lighting for December has arrived
Saat gelap kita terkungkung rasa takut maka nyalakanlah harapan dalam jiwa Saat gelap kita penuh kecurigaan dan prasangka buruk pada sesama maka nyalakanlah kasih dalam hati Saat gelap kita kehilangan sadar mana yang baik dan mana yang jahat maka nyalakanlah hikmat dalam nurani Saat gelap kita merasa bisa berbuat semau kita tanpa ingat Sang Maha Suci dan sesama maka nyalakanlah iman yang dipenuhi kebenaran Gelap ada saat kita abai menyalakan terang Gelap tak bisa diusir dengan marah dan geram sebab gelap akan sirna jika kita menyalakan terang Saat kita menyalakan lentera kita dalam ibadah ini Marilah tak hanya mengundang terang bagi mata jasmani tetapi selalu undang terang bagi mata rohani Yang akan memerdekakan hati serta membawa kebijaksanaan dan kebahagiaan sejati
When it is dark we are surrounded by fear so light hope in your soul When it is dark we are full of distrust and prejudice to the others so light love in your heart When it is dark we lose awareness of good and evil so light wisdom in your conscience When it is dark we feel that we can do whatever we want without remembering The Most Holy One and our neighbors so light faith that is fulfilled with truth Darkness exist when we forget to turn on the light Darkness cannot be expelled with our anger and wrath because darkness will be gone when we turn on the light When we light up our chalice in this worship Let us not only welcoming the light for our physical eyes but always invite the light for our spiritual eyes A light that will free our heart bringing wisdom and real happiness
Submitted by the Unitarian Christian Church of Indonesia Indonesian words (and presumably the English translation) written by its minister Rev Aryanto Nugroho Membership renewals for 2017 are due from 01 January so the best time to pay them will be at the
Christmas Party Those wishing to join our church can use this form by way of application but should
not send payment until their membership is accepted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MEMBERSHIPRENEWAL FORM
I (name) ___________________________________________________ of (address) _________________________________________________ ________________________________ Postcode _________ Phone(s) (home) __________________ (other) ___________________ Email ______________________________________________________ I apply to joinrenew membership in (delete one) the Sydney Unitarian Church and agree to abide by the rules as set down by the Constitution and management of the church Signature ________________________________ Fee enclosed $_____ Cheques should be made payable to Treasurer Sydney Unitarian Church Membership will be valid for the calendar year 2016 Annual membership is $20 and includes the SUN journal subscription to the SUN only is $15
16
MORE ICCU NEWS Just as we go to press the Chalice Lighting for December has arrived
Saat gelap kita terkungkung rasa takut maka nyalakanlah harapan dalam jiwa Saat gelap kita penuh kecurigaan dan prasangka buruk pada sesama maka nyalakanlah kasih dalam hati Saat gelap kita kehilangan sadar mana yang baik dan mana yang jahat maka nyalakanlah hikmat dalam nurani Saat gelap kita merasa bisa berbuat semau kita tanpa ingat Sang Maha Suci dan sesama maka nyalakanlah iman yang dipenuhi kebenaran Gelap ada saat kita abai menyalakan terang Gelap tak bisa diusir dengan marah dan geram sebab gelap akan sirna jika kita menyalakan terang Saat kita menyalakan lentera kita dalam ibadah ini Marilah tak hanya mengundang terang bagi mata jasmani tetapi selalu undang terang bagi mata rohani Yang akan memerdekakan hati serta membawa kebijaksanaan dan kebahagiaan sejati
When it is dark we are surrounded by fear so light hope in your soul When it is dark we are full of distrust and prejudice to the others so light love in your heart When it is dark we lose awareness of good and evil so light wisdom in your conscience When it is dark we feel that we can do whatever we want without remembering The Most Holy One and our neighbors so light faith that is fulfilled with truth Darkness exist when we forget to turn on the light Darkness cannot be expelled with our anger and wrath because darkness will be gone when we turn on the light When we light up our chalice in this worship Let us not only welcoming the light for our physical eyes but always invite the light for our spiritual eyes A light that will free our heart bringing wisdom and real happiness
Submitted by the Unitarian Christian Church of Indonesia Indonesian words (and presumably the English translation) written by its minister Rev Aryanto Nugroho Membership renewals for 2017 are due from 01 January so the best time to pay them will be at the
Christmas Party Those wishing to join our church can use this form by way of application but should
not send payment until their membership is accepted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MEMBERSHIPRENEWAL FORM
I (name) ___________________________________________________ of (address) _________________________________________________ ________________________________ Postcode _________ Phone(s) (home) __________________ (other) ___________________ Email ______________________________________________________ I apply to joinrenew membership in (delete one) the Sydney Unitarian Church and agree to abide by the rules as set down by the Constitution and management of the church Signature ________________________________ Fee enclosed $_____ Cheques should be made payable to Treasurer Sydney Unitarian Church Membership will be valid for the calendar year 2016 Annual membership is $20 and includes the SUN journal subscription to the SUN only is $15