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Homily for Easter Sunday 2024

Readings: Acts 10:34, 37-43;  Col 3:1-4; John 20:1-9

 Theme: ‘Christ has turned all our sunsets into dawns’ (St Clement of Alexandria)

 We are an Easter People and Alleluia is our song.  The Easter liturgy makes it clear that the centre piece of the great drama of salvation is the passage of Christ from death to new life. In Christ not only is death defeated but even our fallen condition has become no longer a curse but a cause of rejoicing. Because of Christ’s resurrection we can shout triumphantly in the words of the Exsultet: ‘O happy fault that brought us so glorious a Redeemer’.

In the first reading of today’s Eucharist, Peter states that Jesus’ Resurrection from the dead was the direct action of God: ‘God raised him to life and allowed him to be seen’ (Acts 10:38). The Resurrection is God the Father’s response to the Cross. It is the Father’s affirmation of everything that Jesus preached and did, everything for which he lived and died. It is the definitive answer of the Father to a world that sought to silence Jesus forever, the supreme manifestation of the power of God’s Love – a love that is stronger than death, or hatred, or injustice.    And it is the final word between God and humanity in the dialogue of salvation: the great Amen of God, not just to humanity, but to all creation.

The gospel reading from John recounts the disciples’ discovery of the empty tomb. The story begins in the dark with Mary Magdalene’s visiting the tomb of Jesus ‘very early in the morning (Jn 20:1). When she reaches the tomb, she sees that the stone covering the entrance had been rolled away. She interprets this to mean that the body of Jesus must have been stolen: ‘They have taken the Master out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have put him’ (Jn 20:2).  She runs off to relate her disturbing discovery to Peter and John, who immediately run to the tomb. John, being the faster runner, gets there first. Looking into the tomb, he sees the linen cloths that had wrapped the body of Jesus lying here. He then waits for Peter who goes into the tomb ahead of him and sees exactly what John had seen. The climax of the story comes when John, the beloved disciple, in contrast to Peter, who is simply perplexed, realises the significance of the discarded linen wrappings and knows that Jesus has truly risen from the dead: ‘He saw and he believed’ (Jn 20:8).  In the words of Denis McBride, CSSR, ‘his is a love that sees through the dark’.

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Our second reading from St Paul’s Letter to the Colossians reminds us of what Jesus’ resurrection means for us, his disciples. By our baptism we have died with Christ and have come to share in his new, risen life.  Easter challenges to commit our lives more fully to our risen Lord who has conquered the powers of darkness and ‘turned all our sunsets into dawns’ (St Clement of Alexandria).  Hence, ‘we must look for the things that are in heaven, where Christ is, sitting at God’s right hand’ (Col 3:1). We must live as people possessed the an unquenchable hope of Easter. In the words of Pope Francis ‘Jesus is a specialist at turning our deaths into life, our mourning into dancing. With him, we too can experience a Pasch, that is, a Passover from self-centredness to communion, from desolation to consolation, from fear to confidence. Let us not keep our faces bowed to the ground in fear, but raise our eyes to the risen Jesus. His gaze fills us with hope, for it tells us that we are loved unfailingly, and that however much we make a mess of things, his love remains unchanged. This is the one, non-negotiable certitude we have in life: his love does not change. Let us ask ourselves: In my life, where am I looking? Am I gazing at graveyards, or looking for the Living One?

On this Easter Sunday morning, let us rejoice and are glad because Christ our   Lord is Risen. Death, and all that is negative within ourselves and in our world, has no longer any power over him. And with him we too are victorious, for now nothing can come between us and the love of God made manifest in Christ – manifested supremely in his glorious resurrection from the dead. I will end with  an Easter poem by the English poet, Malcolm Guide.

 As though some heavy stone were rolled away,
You find an open door where all was closed,
Wide as an empty tomb on Easter Day

 Lost in your own dark wood, alone, astray,
You pause, as though some secret were disclosed,
As though some heavy stone were rolled away. 

You glimpse the sky above you, wan and grey,
Wide through these shadowed branches interposed,
Wide as an empty tomb on Easter Day.

 Perhaps there’s light enough to find your way,
For now the tangled wood feels less enclosed,
As though some heavy stone were rolled away.

 You lift your feet out of the miry clay
And seek the light in which you once reposed,
Wide as an empty tomb on Easter Day.

 And then Love calls your name, you hear Him say:
The way is open, death has been deposed,
As though some heavy stone were rolled away,
And you are free at last on Easter Day.

I wish each and every one of you a blessed, peaceful and joy-filled Easter!

Michael McCabe SMA

Click on the play button below to listen to an alternative homily from Fr Tom Casey SMA.

Lenten Reflection – Fr Pat Kelly SMA

In this, the final video Reflection of this series, Fr Pat Kelly reflects on a Palm Sunday procession in the Holy Land that he participated in some years ago. He also speaks about the first Palm Sunday, which took place at a time when in Jerusalem the Pax Romana – the Peace of Rome was enforced by its soldiers.  Jesus came on a donkey – a sign that he came in peace – one that was very different from theirs.   

In our procession of life which do we choose or follow?  The way of the world or that of Christ? 

 

International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination

The International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination is observed annually on the day the police in Sharpeville, South Africa, opened fire and killed 69 people at a peaceful demonstration against apartheid “pass laws” in 1960.  It is observed annually on 21st March and serves as a vital reminder of our collective responsibility to combat racism, promote tolerance, and strive for a more equitable world.  The inherent sacredness and dignity of human life is the foundational principle of Catholic Social Teaching and what the Church teaches about Racism is summed up in this quotation from Pope Francis. 

“We cannot tolerate or turn a blind eye to racism and yet claim to defend the sacredness of human life.”   

To mark this day we link to an article written by Michelle Robertson, OLA Communications Officer called: The Silent Battle Against Racism in Ireland.   In this she gives an insightful account of racism in Ireland. In spite of the recent rise of ultra-right activism in Ireland, there is little evidence of widespread overt racism. Nevertheless, there are subtle underlying currents of racism that pervade workplaces and public spaces which undermine individual dignity and also perpetuate social and economic disparities along racial lines.   This article describes these undercurrents and the suffering they cause READ MORE

Lenten Reflection – Fr Des Corrigan SMA

This Reflection in this Lenten series comes from Fr Des Corrigan SMA.   

Recorded two years ago, in this reflection Fr Des gives and overview on the meaning of Lent and focuses on the theme of forgiveness – a very demanding and difficult thing to do – yet is is something that is at the very heart of the Christian message that has its ultimate expression in the Passion of Jesus – “Father forgive them for they know not what they are doing.”

Homily for Palm Sunday – Year B

Readings: Isaiah 50: 4-7; Philippians 2:6-11; Mark 14:1-15:47

Today, Palm or Passion Sunday, is the first day of Holy Week, the high point of the Church’s year, climaxing in the Easter Triduum:  Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and the Easter Vigil on Holy Saturday. Two gospels are proclaimed during today’s Eucharist. The first is proclaimed during the procession with palms and recounts Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem, riding on a borrowed colt. He is greeted joyfully by the crowds, who spread their garments and leafy branches on the road before him and acclaim him with the words: ‘Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the kingdom of our father David that is coming! Hosanna in the highest!’ (Mk 11:10). It is shocking but salutary to remember that these are the same crowds who will, a few days later, shout out in unison, ‘Crucify him!’ (Mk 15: 13).  

At the Liturgy of the Word, the events of Jesus’ passion are proclaimed in full, this year from the Gospel of Mark. We will hear these same events once more on Good Friday, when the passion of Jesus according to the Gospel of John will be proclaimed. Why does the Church give so central a place in its liturgy to the passion and death of Jesus on the Cross? Why do we continue to remember in all their shameful and gory details the humiliation and crucifixion of the one who was Love Incarnate, the one who came on earth only to bring healing, forgiveness and peace?  It was surely not because this was the price demanded by the Father for our sins.  Only a sadist would demand such a price, and God, far from being a sadist, is Love itself. Nor does Jesus deliberately court his own destruction. He did not seek the Cross, though he did embrace it freely as he discerned that the inevitable outcome of his mission of love was to be handed over to his enemies and put to death: ‘Now it happened that as the time drew near for him to be taken up, he resolutely turned his face towards Jerusalem’ (Lk   9:51)    

Jesus’ passion and agonising death by crucifixion was not a consequence of the Father’s need to be placated nor the result of a martyr complex on the part of Jesus himself. It was, as Fr Denis McBride CSSR states ‘the final solution thought up by a world opposed to Jesus’ way’. Jesus’ suffering and death shows us with startling clarity what happens to self-forgetful love in a world ruled by the demons of hatred and violence. Jesus could have avoided the Cross but only by turning aside from his mission of proclaiming and inaugurating the God’s reign of justice, peace and love. And this he could not and would not do. To reveal the full extent of God’s love for us, he had to endure suffering and death. The events we recall today represent the final phase and climax of Jesus’ life-giving mission of love.

In the story of Jesus’ passion and death, presented in exacting detail by all the evangelists, Jesus’ mission moves into a higher key, in which he allows himself to be acted upon rather than to act. For three years, he had acted: reaching out to people, especially the poor and marginalised, proclaiming a message of hope to those longing for liberation, healing the sick, forgiving sinners, and casting out demons. In the first phase of his mission, he was the protagonist. Now, in this climactic phase, he is the one being acted upon. We see him being betrayed, arrested, imprisoned, interrogated by Caiphas, Herod and Pilate, scourged, crowned with thorns, mocked, forced to carry a cross, stripped of his garments,  and finally nailed and hung on the cross until he expired. This is the supreme moment of his witness to the God of Love.

Jesus suffering and death on the Cross, as the noted Dominican theologian, Herbert McCabe, points out, reveals ‘the weakness of God…, not the weakness of ineffectiveness but the weakness of love, which is our best picture of the power of God. From creation itself right through to redemption the power of God is exercised not in manipulating and interfering with things but in letting them be, because the power of God is the power of love (God Matters, p. 108). It is, however, only through the lens of the resurrection that we come to see the weakness of divine love in our world not as a tragic defeat but as a glorious victory.

As we prayerfully recall the memory of Jesus’ passion and death, we profess our gratitude for the love that inspired Jesus to be ‘led like an innocent lamb to the slaughter’. We remember and express our solidarity with the many victims of violence in our world today and pray that we may be active witnesses to God’s transforming love in our violent and war-torn world.

Michael McCabe SMA

Click on the play button below to listen to an alternative homily from Fr Tom Casey SMA.

 

Fr Valentine [Val] Hynes, SMA [RIP]

Fr Val Hynes, SMA, died peacefully in the St Theresa’s Nursing Unit at the SMA House, African Missions, Blackrock Road, Cork, Ireland on Friday afternoon, 15 March 2024. He was 78 years of age and had been in failing health for some years. Ar dheis lámh Dé go raibh a anam dhílis.

Val Hynes was born in the Parish of Ballintubber, Archdiocese of Tuam, on 18 September 1945, one of eight children born to John and Mary Ellen [née Barnicle]. He was educated in the local National School and the SMA Secondary school: Sacred Heart College, Ballinafad, Belcarra, Co Mayo. He then entered the Society of African Missions in Cloughballymore, Kilcolgan, Co Galway, to train for the missionary priesthood. He was ordained a priest on 16 December 1970. Arriving in Western Nigeria in 1971, he was to spend the next 42 years working in the Diocese of Ondo and the Archdiocese of Lagos.

Fr Val returned to Ireland in 2013, and joined the SMA community in the SMA Zimmermann House, Cloonbigeen, Claregalway, Co Galway, which gave him the opportunity to help out in neighbouring parishes as well as in his home parish at Ballintubber. It is there, alongside his late parents and other family members, that Fr Val will be laid to rest on Tuesday, 19 March. In 2021, Fr Val transferred to the SMA Motherhouse at Blackrock Road, Cork. Until recent months, he participated in the daily community exercises.

In his youth, Val was a member of the Ballintubber CLG and played at different age levels for the Club. He also served as Club President for some years, an honour he was immensely proud of. 

Fr Val was predeceased by his parents, his sisters Rose O’Gorman and Frances O’Reilly and three of his brothers, Patsy, David and Jimmy. His sister Bridie O’Toole and brother Noel as well as a large number of other relatives survive him.

Fr Val will repose in the Ballintubber Resource Centre from 5pm to 7pm on Monday, 18 March, after which his remains will be brought to Ballintubber Abbey. His Funeral Mass will take place at 2pm on Tuesday, 19 March, followed by burial in the Abbey cemetery.

For those who cannot attend, View Fr Val’s Funeral Mass here.

Solas na bhflaitheas agus leaba i measc na naomh duit, a Athair Val.

A Short Prayer for Sunday

This is the seventh and last in a series of short prayers, one for each day of the week,  recorded by Parishioners from SMA Parish Wilton, Cork.    

Thanksgiving for creation, for life and for what we achieve.

 

A Short Prayer for Saturday

This is the sixth in a series of short prayers, one for each day of the week,  recorded by Parishioners from SMA Parish Wilton, Cork.    

Thanks to God for the blessing of family and friends.

A Short Prayer for Friday

This is the fifth in a series of short prayers, one for each day of the week,  recorded by Parishioners from SMA Parish Wilton, Cork.    

A prayer for God’s presence and guidance in our daily life.

A Short Prayer for Thursday

This is the fourth in a series of short prayers, one for each day of the week,  recorded by Parishioners from SMA Parish Wilton, Cork.   

  1. A prayer of thanks to God our father and creator.

A Short Prayer for Wednesday

This is the third in a series of short prayers, one for each day of the week,  recorded by Parishioners from SMA Parish Wilton, Cork.    

 Today, a prayer for the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

 

Fr Seamus Nohilly SMA – Funeral Homily

Fr Seamus Nohilly died on Saturday, 24 February 2024, in the Mercy University Hospital, Cork City. After reposing in the SMA House, Wilton, on Tuesday, 27 February, his Funeral Mass was celebrated in St Joseph’s SMA Church, Wilton, Cork on Wednesday, 28 February. Fr Seamus was then laid to rest in the adjoining SMA Community cemetery.

Fr Malachy Flanagan, SMA Provincial Leader was assisted at the Funeral Mass by the Most Rev Fintan Monaghan, Bishop of Killaloe, Fr Ciarán Blake, Parish Priest of Corofin parish, Diocese of Galway and Fr Christopher Emokhare SMA. A large number of SMA priests from all parts of Ireland concelebrated the Funeral Mass.  Fr Noel O’Leary SMA was the MC for the Mass, assisted by Fr Gus O’Driscoll. Fr Colum O’Shea SMA was the preacher. The following is the text of Fr Colum’s homily.

Seamus’ home parish of Corofin, Co Galway, has been very good to the SMA. I believe the figure could be around 12 and that is a sizeable number from a rural area.

Corofin has been very generous to the SMA and the Nohilly family of Cummer in particular.

Like the two sets of brothers Simon and Andrew, and James and John, that we read about in the Gospel, Seamus and Micheál answered God’s call to be “fishers of people”.

It tells us a lot about the religious climate of the time and the place. It produced people of great faith.

While you may not have been wealthy in the material sense of the word you inherited a rich faith. You have nurtured that faith and have passed it on to the younger generations.

It is a faith that has sustained you down the years and a faith that once more has been put to the test with the sudden and unexpected death of Seamus, coming so soon after Micheál’s death and other family bereavements.

Last December marked the 54th anniversary of Seamus’s ordination.  On and off during those 54 years our paths would have met. I had the privilege of living and working with him, here in Ireland and in Nigeria.

We were here in Wilton together in the early 1980s. Then in 1987 both of us headed to Nigeria to join up with Fr Des Corrigan in setting up a new project in Ibadan. We were to recruit Nigerians to the SMA and to set up a training programme. It was a new venture, very challenging but an exciting period in the SMA story. It was great to be part of it.

One of the young men who passed through our hands then is here today in the person of Fr. Christopher Emokhare SMA, now the FVC Director for Munster.

Seamus’ obituary notice outlines the places he served in, in Ireland and Nigeria, and the various positions he held. Reading down the long list one might conclude that Seamus was a restless person who did not settle very well in any one place. One would be way off the mark to come to that conclusion. Seamus Nohilly was a solid, dependable, steady person. To quote Seamus himself, when comparing himself with his younger brother Micheál, he says, “I am more measured, pragmatic and structured.”

During our student days I remember him on the football field. Football was his sport but he was handy with the hurley as well. When he took up his position at full back it was not easy to get around him. ‘Thou shall not pass.’

He was very organised; a great administrator. It is no wonder he was elected to positions of leadership in the Society.

His first appointment after ordination was to the teaching staff at Zawan Teacher Training College, Jos, in Northern Nigeria. Fr Bernie Cotter was on the staff with him. After a couple of years, Seamus was asked to change and go into formation work here in Wilton. From there he was posted to Ibadan.

After four years in Ibadan he was in administration in the North of Nigeria before being elected to the Provincial Council here in Cork. And, of course, he spent several years as Community Leader in Claregalway, on two different occasions.

It was not that Seamus was restless and unsettled. In fact, he settled very well where ever he was. He was always ready to go where the authorities felt he was needed, where the need was greatest. This manifests a strong generous spirit. He was very generous, he had the good of the SMA at heart.

While most of his priestly life was in formation work and administrative and leadership roles he was, I believe, at heart a pastoral person. He had a great interest in people, in their welfare; very good at visiting and keeping up contact with people, reconnecting with them. And I believe he got great energy from that pastoral outreach.

An opportunity to partake in pastoral work or parish work presented itself in 2014 when he took up an appointment at Tubber, Co Clare, in the diocese of Killaloe. He spent four happy years there. He spoke glowingly about the people he ministered to and the priests he worked with.

It was not all work and no play with Seamus. One of his appealing characteristics was his sense of humour and fun. He was very sociable, loved parties or gatherings, always had his party piece ready at hand. He had a great interest in sport, especially football. He was a proud Corofin man and enjoyed their successes on the football field. When he took to the golf he took to it like a duck to water. But his golf was very boring – par, birdie, birdie, par. No bogies.

Today’s first reading from the book of Wisdom states that “Length of days is not what makes age honourable, nor number of years the true measure of life.” Our stay in this life is short and the important thing is not how long we are here but how we live our lives.

Seamus could truly echo the words of St Paul, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race”, even though the finishing line came sooner than expected. He could definitely say that “I have kept the faith”, the faith that he inherited from his parents back in Cummer 80 years ago. He not only kept the faith but he spent his life sharing the good news with so many people.

In family circles he was a much admired and much-loved brother, brother-in-law, uncle, granduncle and friend. You in turn were very good in supporting Seamus and Micheál.

Last week Seamus was looking forward to spending some time recuperating in St Theresa’s Unit in the SMA House on Blackrock Road, Cork, before coming back here to Wilton. That was his plan but God had a different plan. And on Saturday last when the call came to come home Seamus was ready.

I think there is a lesson there for us all. We can have all the plans but it is important at the same time to be ready when the call comes.

While we are saddened by his sudden passing there is so much to be grateful for. He had 80 good years. He was a very happy fulfilled person. He was happy in his priestly vocation. We are all the richer for having known him.

God gifted him to us and we now return him to God, where he will be reunited with all who have gone before us.

Until our paths meet again Seamus, slán go fóil.

Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.

Fr Colum O’Shea, SMA

A Short Prayer for Tuesday

This is the second in a series of short prayers, one for each day of the week,  recorded by Parishioners from SMA Parish Wilton, Cork.    

The rush and pressures of life, a short prayer for serenity and that we may find God in the mist of our busy lives.

Homily for the 5th Sunday of Lent- Year B

Readings:  Jeremiah 31:31-34; Hebrews 5:7-9;  John 12: 20-33

 Theme: The Way of the Cross

As we continue our Lenten journey with Christ, the human face of God, today’s readings remind us of the painful struggle Jesus had to endure to be faithful to his vocation as suffering Messiah. As we saw on the first Sunday in Lent in the story of the temptations, Jesus had to decide how he would fulfil his messianic vocation. From the beginning of his ministry he chose the path of suffering love, the way of the Cross. Both the second reading from the Letter to the Hebrews and the Gospel give us an insight into what this would cost him.

The Letter to the Hebrews tells us that, ‘Although he was Son, he learnt to obey through suffering’ (Hebrews 5:8). The gospel reveals Jesus’ inner struggle  as the time of his passion and death draws near: ‘Now the hour has come… now my soul is troubled’ (Jn 12: 27).  We have here an echo of Jesus’ agony in the Garden of Gethsemane where he seemed appalled at the prospect of his forthcoming death and prays to his Father: ‘Take this cup away from me’ (Mk 14: 36).  John’s account of this harrowing moment is less stark: ‘What shall I say: Father, save me from this hour? (Jn 12:27).  Jesus’ fear reveals his humanity. Fear is natural. As Alexander Solzhenitsyn states: ‘A person without fear is no hero; the person who overcomes fear is.  Jesus’   trepidation is followed immediately by his humble submission to the Father’s will: ‘It was for this very reason that I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name! (Jn 12: 27)

 Jesus knows that his death is necessary and he embraces it freely. It is his supreme witness to his Father’s love, the climax of his life-giving mission:   ‘Unless the grain of wheat falls on the ground and dies, it remains a single grain, but if it dies it bears much fruit’ (Jn 12:24). This declaration may, at first sight, seem to conflict with Jesus’ earlier affirmation of the life-giving nature of his mission: ‘I have come have come so that they may have life and have it to the full’ (Jn 10:10). It is indeed a paradox and a deeply counter-cultural one. But it expresses a profound truth at the heart of life and a key principle of all Christian discipleship. To try to avoid death,  including the ‘little deaths’ that are part of everyday living, is to stunt our growth in love and suffocate the Spirit. From the moment we are born until the moment of our physical death, we experience many ‘deaths’, beginning with our departure from the comfort and warmth of our mother’s womb. Our lives are inscribed with a  series of ‘deaths’, losses and renunciations – in our relationships, in our career goals, in our hopes and expectations.   An it is from these ‘little deaths’ that we learn to change, to adapt and make new gains.

A few years ago, I tuned into a BBC programme on old age and listened to an 82 years old Asian woman being interviewed about her life.  She was asked the question: What in your opinion are the most important ingredients for a happy life?. Two things she said struck me: ‘Let go of being needful of the approval of others’ and ‘Don’t be afraid of death. If you’re afraid of death you will never live. Ilia Delio says that every time we try to hold on too tightly to our comfort and security, every time we try to control our lives to avoid risk, we reject the movement of God’s Spirit in our lives. ‘To say “I will not die” is to die. To be willing to die by surrendering to the freedom of the Spirit is to live forever’ (Making all Things New, p. 82).

Jesus’ challenge to us is clear. It is to die to self and imitate his own life-giving service: ‘The one who serves me must follow me. Wherever I am, my servant will be there too (Jn 12:27). To follow Christ is to choose to walk with him through ‘thick and thin’, in good times and bad. It is to travel with him all the way to the Cross. And this way, as Pope Francis reminds us, is the way of de-entering and transcending. ‘We have to leave behind the “selfie” culture and look at the eyes, faces, hands and needs of those around us; and in this way find, too, our own faces, our own hands, full of possibilities.’  I will end with an apt reflection from the pen of Flor McCarthy, SDB, entitled ‘A Grain of Wheat must Die’:

 Each of us is like a grain of wheat planted by God.
Just as the grain of wheat must die to produce a harvest,
so we must die to self in order to bear the fruits of love.
This dying to self is a gradual process and happens in little ways.
Every act of humility involves dying to pride.
Every act of courage involves dying to cowardice.
Every act of kindness involves dying to cruelty.
Every act of love involves dying to selfishness.
Thus the false self dies, and the true self,
made in God’s image, is born and nurtured.
It is by giving that we receive;
It is by forgiving that we are forgiven;
It is by dying that we are born to eternal life.

Michael McCabe SMA

Click on the play button below to listen to an alternative homily from Fr Tom Casey SMA.

A Short Prayer for Monday

This is the first in a series of short prayers, just about thirty seconds, one each day in this week of Lent. They were recorded by Parishioners from SMA Parish Wilton, Cork.

Today, Monday we have a Prayer for the beginning of the week – may God be with me in all that happens in the coming days.

 

Fr Cornelius Murphy SMA – Funeral Homily

Fr Con Murphy died unexpectedly in the SMA House, African Missions, Blackrock Road, Cork on Thursday, 8 February 2024. After reposing in the SMA House, Wilton, on Friday, 9 February, his Funeral Mass was celebrated in St Joseph’s SMA Church, Wilton, Cork on Saturday, 10 February. Fr Con was later laid to rest in the adjoining SMA Community cemetery.

Fr Eamonn Finnegan, SMA Vice Provincial Leader, was assisted at the Funeral Mass by Fr Finbarr Crowley, PP of Innishannon, Diocese of Cork and Ross, Fr Alphonse Sekongo SMA, Vice Leader of the SMA Blackrock Road community and Fr Hugh Harkin SMA. Many other SMA priests travelled from all over Ireland to concelebrate the Funeral Mass. Fr Con’s twin sister, Sr Immaculata Murphy, Mercy Order and his nieces and nephew as well as their children and other relatives were in the congregation for the Mass and burial.

Fr Noel O’Leary SMA was the MC for the Mass, assisted by Fr Gus O’Driscoll. Fr John Dunne SMA was the preacher.

The readings for the Mass were from Ecclesiastes 3: 1-7 and 11, Romans 14: 7-12 and Matthew 5: 1-12.

Following the text of Fr John’s homily below,  there is at the end of this article also a link to an article written by Fr Dominic Wabwireh SMA called “A Legacy of Faith, Wisdom, and Cultural Reverence” – a tribute to Fr Con’s contribution to the formation of African SMA missionaries. 

HOMILY: St Catherine of Sienna reminds us to something very important in life when she said “be the person God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire”.

As we gather to celebrate Fr Con Murphy’s life I invite you to recall some memory you have of him……

Thanksgiving is sweeter than bounty itself.
One who cherishes gratitude does not cling to the gift!
Thanksgiving is the true meat of God’s bounty; the bounty is its shell,
For thanksgiving carries you to the heart of the Beloved.
Abundance alone brings heedlessness,
Thanksgiving gives birth to alertness…    
The bounty of thanksgiving will satisfy and elevate you, 
And you will bestow a hundred bounties in return.
Eat your fill of God’s delicacies,
And you will be freed from hunger and begging.   [Rumi]

We gather today to celebrate the long life and work Fr Con Murphy. On hearing news of his death, we felt we had lost a good friend. As we recalled and shared the stories of Fr Con’s life and his gifts we were grateful for his life. He loved stories and was blessed with a great memory. Now that we are here to celebrate his funeral Mass, we have the privilege of honouring his memory, celebrating his long, fruitful life and finally lay him to rest in the SMA cemetery adjacent to this church.

We surround Con’s immediate family and relatives who are gathered here and we extend to them our sincere sympathy and condolences.

One of the things I’m conscious of today is that Con would not like me or anyone else using too many words about him on this occasion. However, I have no doubt he would like to be remembered in this way. The Scripture passage chosen for the First Reading today speaks eloquently about life and its hidden mystery; and it also reminds us about the life of Con Murphy. There is a time to be born, a time for every purpose under heaven and then a time to die.  Too often perhaps we rush to fix the time and to manage it in our way and this in turn prevents us from grasping and appreciating the grace of the present moment.        

If we do not see the wisdom of the truth that for everything there is a time and a season then at a time of mourning or loss we may want to rush ahead or not wish to spend time grieving. But there is a time to be born and a time to die; a time to hold on and a time to let go. And so we are remembering and honouring the times of Con’ life as we gather to remember and pray for him.

Looking back now at how Con’s lived the years of his long life we can see that there were many different seasons, various invitations to do different things right from the beginning in Toames, Kilmichael – where he was born and grew up in his family.  Then there were the years when he went to the local primary school and then to De La Salle College for secondary education and played Gaelic games at which Con excelled.  Good, happy years I believe! On finishing school there came a change for him as he went to work for a few years before joining the SMA. He was dedicated, efficient and welcoming.

In life we are all searching for something important, that pearl in our lives. This is our vocational call. Con joined the SMA and was ordained 60 years ago. The poet RS Thomas reminds us of the importance of finding this treasure or naming something for which we then live and die:

“I have seen the sun break through
to illuminate a small field
for a while, and gone my way
and forgotten it. But that was the pearl
of great price, the one field that had
treasure in it. I realize now
that I must give all that I have
to possess it.”                                  R.S. Thomas, The Bright Field

I think Con found his own treasure in his missionary vocation, relationships, and work and so lived a long and happy life.  Once he found the treasure, he gave it all he had through his quiet commitment to work, prayer and people, and ministry as a missionary in Ireland and in different parts of Africa.

Our Second Reading reminds us of how our lives are connected to others and how what we do and say has an influence far beyond what is merely visible. Like Christ we are each invited to give our lives in love for the service of the other. Fr Con did this in so many ways, but particularly during the years of active missionary life by caring for others, He sought to help people discover the dream of God for them through their choices in the difficult times in life. People in Africa liked Con for caring and encouraging them in their lives. I got a message from one person in Kenya yesterday mourning the loss of Mzee Fr Con. Mzee is the Swahili language means “the wise elder”.

Then during all his years in Cork – both in active ministry in his retirement – Con never forgot his roots and loved to visit the family and extended family and keep in touch with his many friends.

The Gospel chosen for this funeral Mass is the familiar passage of the Beatitudes or guidance on how to be and become your best self. These were the same Gospel principles or virtues that guided Con’s life, work and relationships.  He knew that in life, “things which matter most must never be at the mercy of things which matter least.” [Goethe]. The principles and values of the Gospel were the very things that guided his life in ministry be that in administration of the Irish Province of our SMA, education and formation of younger people in schools in Nigeria and later on in seminaries in Ireland, South Africa and Kenya, and his care for the poor where he lived and worked. Over the last few days since news of Fr Con’s death spread, I have received messages from those who met him and were influenced by his gentle, caring connection to all.

In all the seasons of his life Con learned about change and grew in an ever-growing awareness of the mystery of God and the presence of the person of Jesus in his life and work. He was ever conscious of the truth:

 “With the drawing of this love and the voice of this calling
we shall not cease from your exploration
and the end of all our exploring
will be to arrive at where we started
and know that place for the first time.”   [T S Elliot]

Then when life’s journey draws to a close there is the harvest time, a time of reaping and blessings. For the fullness of time, which encompasses all seasons, we depend ultimately on the mercy of God from whom our salvation comes. Rising from the dead, Christ became the light that illuminates all peoples, that lightens and saves the path of humanity and allows us to catch a glimpse of the face of God beyond the tunnel of death.  Christians, who have been marked by the seal of the Holy Spirit, are the enlightened ones. Dying with Christ they rise again with Him in the dazzling light of the Lord’s Day and the new creation. They are new creatures, they are like the stars and they have a mission to illuminate the dark and sometimes tragic path of history. Fr Con has now joined that blessed company and he can share in their care for us so we pray:

May the road rise to meet you,
May the wind always be at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
and rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of his hand.    [Celtic blessing]

Ar dheis lámh Dé go raibh a anam dílis.

Fr John Dunne, SMA

Click to read: Fr. Con Murphy: A Legacy of Faith, Wisdom, and Cultural Reverence – a tribute by Fr Dominic Wabwireh

A LENTEN REFLECTION – from Fr Gus O’Driscoll SMA

This the fourth in our series of Lenten Reflections comes from Fr Gus O Driscoll SMA.   

Lent for him is a time to live more intentionally and and opportunity to recover lost treasures.   The unexamined life is not worth living – do we waste out time?  Can we be more creative or active.   Lent can also be a time to re-connect, to recover and appreciate again things we have perhaps left in the past or that we have ignored. 

 

MARCH 2024 | For the martyrs of our day, witnesses to Christ

“The martyrs are a sign that we’re on the right path”

In this video message from Pope Francis he requests prayers for the new martyrs of our day so that they might “imbue the Church with their courage and missionary drive.” A martyr is a Christian who bears witness to the Gospel until death without resorting to violence

The courage of the martyrs, the witness of the martyrs, is a blessing for everyone,” the Holy Father reflects in the message. 

TEXT OF THE POPE’S MESSAGE
This month, I want to tell you a story that is a reflection of the Church today. It is the story of a little-known witness of faith.

Visiting a refugee camp in Lesbos, a man told me, “Father, I am Muslim. My wife was Christian. Terrorists came to our place, looked at us and asked what our religion was. They approached my wife with a crucifix and told her to throw it on the ground. She didn’t do it, and they slit her throat in front of me.” That’s what happened.

I know he held no grudges. He was focused on his wife’s example of love, a love for Christ that led her to accept, and to be faithful to the point of death.
Brothers, sisters, there will always be martyrs among us. This is a sign that we’re on the right path.

A person who knows told me there are more martyrs today than at the beginning of Christianity.

The courage of the martyrs, the witness of the martyrs, is a blessing for everyone.
Let us pray that those who risk their lives for the Gospel in various parts of the world might imbue the Church with their courage and missionary drive. And to be open to the grace of martyrdom.

Pope Francis – MARCH 2024

‘LET US ALL SAY: ENOUGH … STOP THE WAR!’ – IRISH BISHOPS STATEMENT

On the second day of the 2024 Spring General Meeting of the Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference in Maynooth, the bishops called for an urgent and complete ceasefire in Gaza, and an immediate end to the  daily horror of killing, wounding and destruction of property in the Holy Land.  

Statement

As the Catholic Bishops of Ireland, we echo Pope Francis’ heartfelt appeal for a complete ceasefire in Gaza – ‘Enough, please! Let us all say it: enough…Stop!’ Stop the War! In saying this, we join with many in our parishes,  together with all people of goodwill, in demanding an immediate end to the daily horror of killing, wounding and destruction of property and infrastructure there.

We call on the Israeli government to comply with basic human and  international standards in ensuring that Palestinians have full and unimpeded access to food, water and basic safety requirements.  At the same time, we call on Hamas to release all hostages and to end missile attacks on Israel.  Equally, the attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank, which do not command as much attention in the public sphere, are also to be condemned.  What is happening in this region cannot be morally justified.

The current aggression is not a war between Jews and Arabs; people of all faiths, including many of the Jewish tradition, oppose what is happening and the effect it is having not only on Israel and Palestine but throughout the wider Middle East and further afield.

There is no future in the perpetuation of conflict and human suffering.  This is especially so when one considers the intensity of what is happening in the Holy Land.  The only future is one of dialogue and the putting in place of a sustainable plan for a just peace for Palestinians and Israelis and that brings to an end the occupation that has for far too long denied Palestinians their rights and freedoms.

International efforts to secure a ceasefire are welcome.  However, as the death toll continues to rise all possible pressure should be applied to prevail upon Israel to desist from military operations that impact so horrendously on innocent civilians.  Equally, any international support for Hamas terrorism is utterly unacceptable.  The international community has failed to vindicate the right of the Palestinian people to a safe homeland, with statehood and freedom of movement, as part of a two-state solution which recognises both Israel and Palestine.

In this Season of Lent, we Christians prepare for the celebration of the Paschal Mystery of Christ’s Death and Resurrection, as Muslims prepare for the Season of Ramadan and Jews prepare for the celebration of Passover.  We urge people to continue praying and fasting for the intention of peace.  In praying for peace in the land of Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, we remember in a special way the small but vibrant Christian communities in Palestine.  An ideal way of showing solidarity at this time is to support Trócaire’s  Gaza appeal on https://www.trocaire.org/ [1].

We implore Almighty God and Jesus, who is the Light of the world, to shine a light into the terrible darkness that envelops the region that we call the Holy Land. In the face of despair, we renew our prayers for a just and lasting peace that respects justice and the dignity of all peoples.

ENDS

4th Sunday of Lent 2024 – Year B

2 Chronicles 36:14-16,19-21  –  Ephesians 2:4-10  –  John 3:14-21

Two of the most beautiful, heart-warming and challenging statements in the Bible are found in the passages chosen for today’s Eucharist: ‘God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son so that everyone who believes in him may not be lost but may have eternal life (Jn 3: 15); and ‘We are God’s work of art’ (Eph 2:10). These statements are intimately connected to one another and the connection is Love. God loved the world so much because, as John tells us in his first Letter, ‘God is Love’ – Love at the heart of the world since the dawn of creation. And Jesus is Love Incarnate. Hence we, who are created in the image of the God of Love cannot but be ‘God’s work of art’. What a different world it would be if we all believed those statements and took them to heart.

The problem is that we don’t really believe that God loves us or that we are his work of art – works of art in which he delights. One of the tragic consequences of sin is that we remake the God of Love into a projection of our guilt. As the Dominican theologian, Herbert Mc Cabe, states: ‘Blinded by our guilt, we don’t see the real God at all; all we see is some kind of judge who condemns us’. Jesuit priest, Fr Gerard Hughes, makes the same point in his spiritual classic, The God of Surprises. Many people, he writes, are burdened with an inadequate image of God as a stern judge, not averse to using threats to get his way – a God who warns us to be good or else face rather drastic consequences. One of the consequences of this distorted image of God is that we hide away from the God we have grown to fear. We turn away from the light and take refuge in darkness. The great philosopher, Plato, wrote: ‘We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when adults are afraid of the light’.

Nicodemus was a Pharisee and a member of the Sanhedrin, the supreme religious court in Israel. He was also an open-minded man and a seeker of truth. However he, too, was afraid of the light. That was why he came to Jesus at night-time.   Nevertheless, Jesus made time for him and tried to open his heart to the God who loved him so much that he could make a new person out of him, and even enable him to be born again. This was too much for Nicodemus to take in. He had lived too long in semi-gloom of a tradition, hide-bound by a myriad of legal prescriptions to be able to take that leap of faith into the light Jesus is proposing to him. However, Nicodemus did not break off all contact with Jesus and he eventually came to see the light and accept the message of Jesus. 

There is a lot of Nicodemus in most of us. We are attracted to Jesus and his message about God’s love but hesitant to open our hearts fully to its transforming force. And we find the idea that we might be God’s work of art at least as frightening as it is consoling. As the American author, Marianne Williamson, states: ‘It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, “Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?” Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.’

As he was with Nicodemus, Jesus is patient with us. He understands our fears and will help us to overcome them. If we keep returning to him, who is the incarnate God of Love we will overcome our fears, leave the dark behind and flourish in the sunshine of God’s loving and admiring smile. Let us not be afraid to trust Jesus to lead us out of darkness into the light and help us grow to our full stature and dignity as God’s works of art.

Michael McCabe SMA

Click on the play button below to listen to an alternative homily from Fr Tom Casey SMA.

SMA International News – March 2024

Welcome to the SMA International News for March 2024.  This month our news bulletin is shorter than usual and concerns three events associated with Netherlands Province of the SMA. 

  • We meet new members of the Province
  • We hear about an initiative called the African House Project 
  • and finally Fr Franz Mulders sends us a message as he celebrates his 60th Ordination Anniversary 

The Bulletin concludes with brief information about current and forthcoming canonical visits by members of the General Council.   

 

Synodality: What’s it all About? – by Michael McCabe SMA

Introduction
Just as the concept of ‘inculturation’ suddenly appeared on the horizon of ecclesial discourse about fifty years ago, so the concept of ‘synodality’ has recently emerged into the foreground of contemporary ecclesial debate. It has become one of Pope Francis’s favourite themes and, as Fr Gerry O’Hanlon SJ states, the key to understanding the quiet revolution he is creating in the Church  Speaking at a commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Institution of the Synod by Pope Paul VI, Pope Francis strongly endorsed the concept of synodality, stating that it was an essential dimension of the Church’s life and mission in the service of God’s reign.

In order to embed synodality in the life and mission of the Church, in October 2021, Pope Francis launched a two year journey of reflection and consultation on synodality throughout the Church. This journey, coordinated by a central secretariat in Rome, involved an unprecedented series of meetings at local, national and continental levels, culminating in the first universal assembly of bishops on synodality that took place in Rome from the 4th to the 29th October, 2023. A second universal assembly on synodality will take place in October this year (2024) to complete the journey. But what is synodality all about? In this short presentation, I will focus on the meaning, historical roots and theological foundation of synodality.

 Synodality: Meaning and Historical Roots
The word ‘Synod’ is of Greek origin and means literally ‘together on the road’. It expresses an understanding of the Church as a community of Christ’s disciples, guided and bonded by the Spirit, and journeying together on the path of Christ. While including the principle of collegiality, synodality has a much broader range of application. Collegiality refers to the relationships of collaboration and co-responsibility between the Pope and the bishops of the Church. Synodality denotes the relationships that exist between all sectors of the people of God. In the words of Pope Francis: ‘it is the way in which people in the Church learn and listen to one another and take shared responsibility for proclaiming the Gospel’’.

 The special meetings known as synods existed in the Church from the earliest centuries. Writing to the Christian community in Ephesus at the beginning of the second century, St Ignatius of Antioch stated that the members of the local Church are ‘companions on the journey’ by virtue of the dignity of baptism and their friendship with Christ. During the first millennium, the whole community took part in synods of the local Church, while the participants of Provincial synods were composed mainly of the bishops of various local churches, with priests and monks regularly invited to contribute. However, only bishops could participate in those special synods known as Ecumenical Councils.

In the Second Millennium, synods developed along different lines in the Eastern and Western Churches, especially after the East-West Schism in the 11th century. The Eastern Church developed synods as a permanent institution of the Church – an institution which continues to this day in the Orthodox Church. In the Latin Church, synodality became embedded in the life and structures of monastic and religious communities, especially the Mendicant Orders. In the sixteenth century, the Council of Trent decreed that diocesan Synods should take place every year and provincial Synods every three years in order to communicate and promote the reforms of the Council to the whole Church. These synods, however, did not involve the active participation of the whole People of God.

In the nineteenth century, the emphasis of the First Vatican Council on the primacy and infallibility of the Pope tended to eclipse the principle of synodality. Nevertheless, some prophetic voices, notably those of Adam Möhler (1796-1836), Antonio Rosmini (1797-1855) and John Henry Newman (1801-1890) kept it alive. These theologians highlighted the communitarian dimension of the Church, arguing that this implied ‘an ordered synodal practice’ throughout the Church at every level, thus acknowledging the understanding of the faith (sensus fidei) among the entire people of God

In the twentieth century, the development of ecumenical relations between the Catholic Church and other Christian Churches and communities and the reforms of the Second Vatican Council led to a renewed emphasis on, and enlarged understanding of, synodality.  Synodality is clearly a core element in Pope Francis’ vision of Church and the key to his programme for its renewal. He regards it as a constitutive dimension of the whole Church, embracing the relationships between all sectors and members of the members of the people of God.

 Synodality: Theological Foundation
While the term ‘synodality’ does not appear in the documents of Vatican II, the ecclesiological vision of the Council provides a firm theological foundation for synodality. One of the major objectives of the Council was to examine and re-think the Church’s understanding of itself and its mission in the world.  This new understanding found expression especially in the Council’s Dogmatic Constitution of the Church (Lumen Gentium) which spoke of the Church, using the biblical images of ‘the people of God’ and ‘the body of Christ’.  The people of God image underlines what all the members of the Church share in common as a consequence of their common baptism:

  • All have the same fundamental dignity as sons and daughters of God, in whose hearts the Spirit lives as in a temple (Lumen Gentium, no. 9).
  • All share in the three-fold office of Christ, their head – the priestly, prophetic and kingly offices (LG, nos. 9-13).
  • All are called to be holy and to emulate the perfect love of Christ. There is only one standard of perfection for clergy, religious and laity (LG, no. 40). Hence it is theological nonsense to speak of priest or religious being called to a ‘higher degree’ of holiness.
  • All are called to participate in the Church’s mission of bringing Christ to the world (LG, no. 9).

 In speaking of the Church as ‘The body of Christ’, the Council was echoing St. Paul’s favourite image for the Church. In his First Letter to the Corinthians, chapter 12 (and also in chapter 12 of his Letter to the Romans), Paul articulates a vision of the Church using the analogy of the human body.  In the human body, all the organs are different from one another and yet work together in harmony for the good of the whole body.  If any organ is sick, the entire body is affected.  So it is also, says Paul, with the members of the Body of Christ.  When Paul refers to the Church as the Body of Christ, he is drawing our attention to both the unity-in-diversity and interdependence which ought to characterise the Christian community.  The different gifts received by the members of the community from the Holy Spirit complement one another, and, when properly used, build up the unity of the community. 

Taken together, the ‘People of God’ and ‘Body of Christ’ images depict a Church that is far more communitarian than the institutional model of pre-Vatican II times allowed for; a Church where all the baptised are recipients of the gifts of Spirit and are called to active participation in the its mission; a Church in which diversity is not regarded as an obstacle but rather as a means to unity.  While there are, of course, elements of the older institutional model of Church to be found in the documents of Vatican II, on balance, the new vision is dominant, and it provides a strong theological foundation for the creation of a synodal Church. This communitarian vision of Church calls on all the members of the Church, sharing a fundamental equality by virtue of their common baptism, to listen, discern and collaborate with one another in the service of the Church’s mission. Giving concrete expression to this vision is what synodality is all about.

A LENTEN REFLECTION – Fr Colm Nilan SMA

 

This week’s Reflection is from Fr Colm Nilan SMA who lives in the SMA Community in Claregalway, Ireland. 

Lent is a time of preparation, of renewing our commitment – The Kingdom of God is close at hand – heal the sick, raise the dead, cast out demons. This was the mission passed on to the Apostles and it is a challenge for us today – a challenge Fr Colm speaks of and calls on us to take up. 

 

Homily for the Third Sunday of Lent – Year B

Christ cleansing the Temple - L Lew OP, CC

Readings: Exodus 20:1-17; 1 Corinthians 1:22-25; John 2:13-25
Theme:  ‘A House of Prayer for all Peoples’ (Isaiah 56:7)

A few days ago, I came across a recent interview with the young American poet, Amanda Gorman, that shocked me. In the course of the interview she mentioned that the poem she had recited to great acclaim during Joe Biden Presidential inauguration in January 2021 (The Hill We Climb), had been removed from elementary school libraries in Florida. A single parent had complained that some words in the poem might fuel hatred and lead to violence. The offending lines were: ‘We’ve braved the belly of the beast,/ we’ve learned that quiet isn’t always peace/ and the norms and notions of what just is, isn’t always justice’.

The truth of Amanda Gorman’s words is clearly evident in the life and ministry of Jesus. He was certainly a prophet of peace and justice, but he knew that the justice of God did not mean remaining ‘quiet’, and accepting what ‘just is’.  His passion for God’s Kingdom led him to brave ‘the belly of the beast’ and confront those who used their power to oppress rather than liberate. In today’s gospel, we see his passion turning to anger when he observes the temple of Jerusalem, his Father’s House, being desecrated. This sacred place, this place of prayer, had been turned into ‘a market’ (Jn 2:13), or ‘a den of thieves’ (Lk 19:46). So, as today’s gospel reading tells us, Jesus makes a whip of cord and drives out the merchants, along with their cattle and sheep.  He overturns the tables of the money-changers and scatters their coins on the ground. Then he tells the pigeons sellers to take their pigeons away with them (Jn 2: 14-15). What made Jesus so angry on this occasion? True, he was often angry and frustrated with the Scribes and Pharisees, but this is the only time we see his anger turning to violent action.

To understand Jesus’ anger we need to realise the importance of the Temple for the Jews. The first Temple of Jerusalem was built by King Solomon in the tenth century BC to house the Ark of the Covenant, the residence of God on earth. Sacked and destroyed a few decades later, a second Temple was built in the sixth century BC. In 63 BC, this new Temple was ransacked but not destroyed by the Romans. In 19 BC it was completely renovated and expanded by King Herod the Great. Today’s gospel tells us that the new temple took forty-six years to complete. At the time of Jesus, it was a magnificent building of which the Jews were justly proud. It was the centre of their religious, social and also commercial life. Indeed, the temple played a significant role in the life of Jesus from his earliest years. His parents were accustomed to travel to Jerusalem every year for the feast of the Passover. When he was twelve years old, much to the consternation of his parents, Jesus remained in the temple for three days, listening to the doctors of the Law, and asking them questions (Lk 2:41-42). According to John’s gospel, it was Jesus’ custom to go to the temple at regular intervals, for the Feasts of the Passover, the Tabernacles, and the Dedication of the Temple.

Jesus, then, did not hate the Temple, nor did he hate Jerusalem. Luke tells that he wept over the Holy City, foreseeing its destruction by the Romans in 70AD. His anger was directed, not against the temple, but against the powerful Temple authorities, the priests, who had turned temple worship into a lucrative business for themselves. They controlled the buying and selling of the animals for sacrifice, the exchange of currency, and the collecting of the temple tax, equivalent to half a week’s wages of the average labourer. In effect the pilgrims, and especially the poor, were being fleeced to line the pockets of the wealthy priests. Moreover, the buying and selling of animals and the exchange of money took place in the courtyard of the gentiles. This meant that they (the gentiles) could not pray in peace. No wonder Jesus was furious. So, in open defiance of the temple authorities, he resorted to an action that surely sealed his fate. 

The temple, the House of God, was no longer ‘a house of prayer for all peoples’ (Is 56:7), but a place of empty rituals and corrupt practices. Its worship had become commercialised and hypocritical, not the kind of worship that pleases God. What Jesus wanted, and this remains his challenge to us today, is ‘worship in spirit and in truth’ (Jn 4.23) – the heartfelt worship of lives marked by integrity and justice, compassion and service of others. And Jesus didn’t just tell us how to worship God. He modelled true worship for us by his life of self-giving love and by his sacrificial death on the Cross. He has become the new Temple of God. I will end with a popular prayer, composed by Bishop Thomas Ken (1637-1711), and inscribed over the door of St Stephen’s Church, Walbrook, London:

O God, make the door of this house
wide enough to receive all who need human love and fellowship,
and a heavenly Father’s care;
and narrow enough to shut out all envy, pride and hate.
Make its threshold smooth enough to be no stumbling block to children,
nor to straying feet,
but rugged enough to turn back the tempter’s power:
make it a gateway to thine eternal kingdom. Amen

Fr Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below. 

Fr Seamus Nohilly SMA [RIP]

The members of the Society of African Missions [SMA] are mourning the unexpected death of their confrere, Fr Seamus Nohilly, who died peacefully in the Mercy University Hospital, Cork City, on Saturday evening, 24 February 2024 with family and SMA confreres at his side.

Seamus Nohilly, was the third of seven children born to Joe and Nora [née Burns] in the parish of Cummer, Tuam, Co Galway on 5 October 1943. After schooling in Cummer Monastery School and the SMA Sacred Heart College, Ballinafad, Co Mayo [1957-1962], Seamus completed his Novitiate at the African Missions, Kilcolgan, Co Galway. He did a BA Degree in the University College, Cork [1963-1966] before going to the African Missions Major Seminary at Dromantine, outside Newry, Co Down, where he completed his theology studies. Seamus was ordained in the Cathedral of St Patrick and St Colman, Newry, by Bishop Eugene O’Doherty on 17 December 1969, one of twenty SMA priests ordained on that day.

Fr Seamus was appointed to the Irish Province missions in Northern Nigeria, arriving in Apapa, Lagos, by the MV Aureol in August 1970. Along with nine of his classmates, he travelled north by train [36 hours] to the SMA Tyrocinium House in Kagoro, Kaduna State, where he spent several months learning the Hausa language. In 1971, Fr Seamus was appointed to assist Fr Bernie Cotter, SMA, in Zawan Teacher Training College in the then Diocese of Jos. From 1978 to 1991, Fr Seamus was involved in the formation of SMA seminarians, first in Ireland and later in Ibadan, Nigeria.

In 1992, Fr Seamus returned to Kagoro as a Resource Person for Ongoing Formation of Laity, Clergy and Religious. This led to his involvement in parish and Retreat work as well as accompanying some diocesan seminarians in St Augustine’s Major Seminary in Jos. In 1993, he was appointed as Deputy Regional Superior for Nigeria North and, in 1995, elected the Regional Superior for the SMA group in Northern Nigeria, succeeding Fr John O’Keeffe SMA. At the 2001 SMA Irish Provincial Assembly, Fr Seamus was elected to the Provincial Council and took up residence in Cork. After a Sabbatical break in 2008, he was appointed Superior of the SMA House in Claregalway, Co Galway before spending five years in parish work in the Diocese of Killaloe.

In 2019, Fr Seamus was appointed again as the Community Leader at the SMA Zimmermann House, Claregalway, Co Galway. From 2022 to 2023, he had a sabbatical break in the African Missions, Dromantine, Newry where he helped out when requested in neighbouring parishes and house duties.  Fr Seamus retired on 1 October 2023, and took up permanent residence in the SMA House, Wilton, Cork.

Fr Seamus was predeceased by his parents, his brothers Johnny and Fr Michael SMA.

Fr Seamus is deservedly mourned by his sisters Peggy [Gilmore] and Una [Mitchell] and his brothers Tom and Eamonn, his sisters-in-law Margaret and Marie and his brother-in-law Michael Mitchell as well as nieces, nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews, other relatives, friends, the people of the Archdioceses of Jos and Ibadan, Nigeria, the Diocese of Killaloe, Ireland, and his confreres in the Society of African Missions.

Funeral arrangements later.

Lenten Reflection – Fr John Denvir SMA

In this, the second in our series of Lenten Reflections, Fr John Denvir SMA reflects on his favourite colour – Purple.  He considers the many associations it has – with royalty, material wealth and high status.  In the Gospel we are told that Dives the wealthy man wore purple. He lived a life of privilege and luxury but showed no concern for Lazarus who lived in poverty.

Purple is also the colour of Lent – a symbol of change, humility and repentance. Lent is a time to recognise that we can be like Dives, uncaring and selfish.   

Therefore let us change, let us dress ourselves in the colour of service and repentance.  

Homily for the Second Sunday of Lent – Year B

Readings: Genesis 22:1-2,9-13,15-18; Romans 8:31-34; Mark 9:2-10

Theme: The Love that dances in the heart of things’ (Malcolm Guite)

Today, we are invited to reflect on an extraordinary event in the life of Jesus, the moment he was transfigured in the presence of his disciples, Peter, James and John. The significance of this event is shown by the fact that it is described in detail in three of the gospels. According to the popular biblical scholar, Tom Wright, the transfiguration ‘shows that Jesus is the place where God’s world and ours meet… It forms part of a new set of signposts, Jesus-shaped signposts, indicating what is to come: a whole new creation, starting with Jesus himself as the seed that is sown in the earth and then rises to become the beginning of that new world’ (from his book, Simply Jesus, p. 144).   

The story of the Transfiguration, as recounted in today’s gospel reading from Mark, takes place at a critical moment in the life of Jesus. Jesus has left behind his beloved Galilee and turned his face towards Jerusalem, where he knows he will meet the same fate as the prophets before him. He has already warned his disciples that the Son of man is destined ‘be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again’ (Mk 8: 31). And he rebuked Peter for refusing to accept this prophesy: ‘Get behind me, Satan! Because the way you think is not God’s way but man’s’ (Mk 8:33).

Now, about to enter the final phase of his mission, he withdraws, as was his custom, to a mountain to pray and reflect, taking with him three of his disciples, Peter, James, and John. In their presence he is transfigured: ‘His clothes became dazzlingly white, whiter than any earthly bleacher could make them’ (Mk 9:3).   At that moment he is re-affirmed in his identity and messianic vocation by his Father: ‘This is my Son, the Beloved. Listen to him’ (Mk 9:7). It was surely this affirmation that gave Jesus the strength to face the agony that lay ahead. His intense experience of the Father’s love confirmed the truth to which Paul attests in today’s second reading: ‘With God on our side, who can be against us’? (Romans 8:31).

The transfiguration experience was important not only for Jesus but also for his beloved disciples, Peter, James, and John. Their eyes were opened and they catch a glimpse of Jesus in his glory, and their ears were opened to hear the divine confirmation of Jesus’ identity as the ‘beloved Son’ to whom they are commanded to listen. Captivated by the experience, Peter wants to remain on the mountain in the exalted company of Elijah, Moses and Jesus. However, this is not to be. This luminous moment passes and the three disciples find themselves alone with Jesus who warns them not to tell anyone what they have witnessed ‘until the Son of Man had risen from the dead’ (Mk 9:9). We are told that the disciples observed his warning faithfully, but continued to reflect on what they had seen and heard, wondering what it all meant.

Today’s gospel prompts us to recall ‘transfiguration moments’ in our own lives, moments when we caught a glimpse of a transcendent beauty beyond the horizon of the habitual. Poets capture such moments better than we can. In his poem, ‘Primrose’, Patrick Kavanagh, recalls and reflects on a moment when, as a child sitting on a river bank, he found One small page of Truth’s manuscript made clear’ and ‘looked at Christ transfigured without fear’. Seamus Heaney, in his poem ‘Postscript’, writes of a moment when, while driving along the magnificent west coast of county Clare, with the wild ocean on one side and the extraordinary expanse of the Burren on the other, ‘big soft buffetings come at the car sideways / And catch the heart off guard and blow it open’. Such moments may not change us as they are always fleeting. But they can burst open our hearts to a sustaining presence in our lives and help us cope with times of great fear and uncertainty – such as we are experiencing at present – uplift our spirits, and carry us forward in hope of a better future.

Lent is a time to recall such moments in our own lives and draw strength from them. It is a time to trust in the Lord, like Abraham in our first reading, even when the odds seem stacked against us. It is a time to withdraw to the mountain with Jesus, to listen to him, and allow him to lead us on our journey towards Easter. I will end with a beautiful poem by the Anglican poet, Malcolm Guite, entitled Transfiguration, which, for me, captures the eternal significance of that sublime event.

For that one moment, ‘in and out of time’,
On that one mountain where all moments meet,
The daily veil that covers the sublime
In darkling glass fell dazzled at his feet.
There were no angels full of eyes and wings
Just living glory full of truth and grace.
The Love that dances at the heart of things
Shone out upon us from a human face
And to that light the light in us leaped up,
We felt it quicken somewhere deep within,
A sudden blaze of long-extinguished hope
Trembled and tingled through the tender skin.
Nor can this blackened sky, this darkened scar
Eclipse that glimpse of how things really are

Fr Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below. 

DROMANTINE RETREAT AND CONFERENCE CENTER – 2024 PROGRAMME

Dromantine Retreat and Conference Centre
View of the Lake at Dromantine. G Forde

 

 

 

 

 

 

Visitors to Dromantine are invariably impressed by the stunning beauty of the early 19th century house, extensive grounds, lake, colourful woodlands and pleasant walks set in the 320 acre estate with the Mourne mountains and Slieve Gullion in the in the background. 

The beautiful grounds, tranquil, peaceful atmosphere along with the modern facilities make Dromantine the perfect venue for retreats, conferences, chapters, assemblies, workshops, meetings, church, inter-church, ecumenical, medical, educational, business and community groups. 

Dromantine avenue. G Forde

In addition to events that host other religious congregations and groups the center also runs SMA organized events such as four weeks of Summer Camps for young people and also a Programme of Retreats, Reflection Days and Workshops.  The 2024 Programme lists twenty-one events, many of which are led by SMA’s including Fr Hugh Lagan, Fr Des Corrigan, Fr Damian Bresnahan and Fr Colum O’Shea. 

To view the full programme CLICK HERE.

  • The Centre  has 73 ensuite bedrooms all with free broadband access
  • Eight modern well equipped Conference rooms accommodating 10 – 250, all with free broadband access.
  • A large chapel which can accommodate 180
  • A prayer room
  • Excellent home cooked food served in spacious, bright dining rooms
  • Comfortable residents Lounge and Coffee Dock
  • Free, secure car parking for up to 200 cars

For more information or to book contact: 

Dromantine Retreat And Conference Centre, Newry, Co Down, N. Ireland, BT34 1RH
Tel: +44 28 30 821964 :: From ROI Tel: (048) 3082 1964 :: Fax: +44 28 30 821963 or email: [email protected]

View of the Lake with Dromantine House in the background behind the trees. G Forde

A LENTEN REFLECTION – Fr Anthony Kelly SMA

Today Ash Wednesday, and also St Valentine’s Day, we bring you the first in a series of reflections and short videos that will be published over the Lenten period. 

Fr Anthony Kelly SMA recounts his experience of street children in Kitwe, Zambia who could not or would not go back to their parents. He reflects on the love of the Father – always waiting for us to come back home, to turn again to him.

Homily for the First Sunday of Lent, Year B

Readings: Genesis 9:8-15; 1 Peter 3:18-22; Mark 1:12-15

Theme:  Jesus in the Wilderness

Jesus’ life was dominated by a single passion: to proclaim and establish on earth God’s reign of justice, peace and love. His mission was not about saving people’s souls by taking them out of the world and bringing them to heaven. It was about bringing God’s kingdom on earth and challenging people to embrace it. But how was he going to carry out this mission entrusted to him by the Father? He had no blueprint or plan of action to guide him. What he had was the Holy Spirit, the Spirit who came upon him at his baptism. It was this same Spirit that, in the words of today’s gospel, ‘drove Jesus out into the wilderness’ (Mk 1:12,) where he was tempted by Satan and clarified for himself how he is going to establish God’s Reign in the world. A better word than tempted is tested.

Jesus’ forty days in the wilderness was a decisive and defining experience for him, determining the path his messianic mission would take. It led him to reject the way of violent revolution adopted by the Zealots, and the way of easy compromise adopted by the Jerusalem elite – the Sadducees and High Priests – and to choose instead the path of redemptive suffering. The way of Jesus would be to turn the other cheek, to walk the second mile, and to take up the cross. He would defeat evil by letting evil do its worst to him, by suffering it in love and forgiving his enemies. Mark’s brief reference to the temptations of Jesus ends with the sentence: ‘He was with the wild beasts, and the angels looked after Him’ (Mk 1:13).

I can still vividly recall my own brief experience of the wilderness, while on a sabbatical programme in Jerusalem in the Spring of 2008. Along with my companions, I spent a brief but memorable time in the Sinai Desert, including a night sleeping in the open. I had imagined the desert as a place of sand, heat and dust. But it wasn’t like that at all. Instead of sand there were rocks – huge mountainous boulders on every side – terrifying and yet strangely protective. Instead of heat, there was piercing cold. No matter how I tried to nestle down into my sleeping bag in my several layers of clothes and with my head covered, I couldn’t get warm. Sleep eluded me and the night seems to drag on and on interminably. And instead of dust, the air was crisp and clean with high visibility.  I had never in my life seen so many stars in the sky, shining brilliantly, a sight of awesome beauty – ministering angels indeed! And then there was the silence, not just the absence of noise but the sense of ‘hush’ which made you want to speak in whispers so as not to disrupt the silence. It was an unforgettable experience. It made me feel small and insignificant and yet immensely privileged.  It made me want to de-clutter my mind and heart and let go of things I thought I needed and focus on ‘the one thing necessary’ (Lk 10:42), making more space for the Lord in my life.

The message Jesus formulated in the wilderness and that we are called to take to heart in these days of Lent, is in the final words of today’s gospel: ‘Repent and believe the Good News’ (Mk 1:15). This means to turn away from the clutter in our lives and to listen to the One who speaks to us in nature, in people and in the depths of our hearts. Lent not a dreary, sad season to be patiently endured. It is a joyful season, as today’s Lenten preface reminds us: ‘Each year you give us this joyful season when we prepare to celebrate the paschal mystery with mind and heart renewed. You give us a spirit of loving reverence for you, Our Father, and of willing service of our neighbour. As we recall the great events that gave us new life in Christ, you bring the image of your Son to perfection within us’.

Lent, then, is a truly graced time; a time to embrace with enthusiasm ‘an offer we cannot refuse’, a time to experience afresh the breath of the Spirit and the embrace of God’s love; and to grow in our understanding of the riches hidden in Christ. It is not a time for ‘beating up’ on ourselves and our failures; it is rather a time to focus on God’s graciousness and fidelity to his promises as the first reading reminds us – a time to imitate the example of Christ and lay claim to his victory over Satan, as our second reading reminds us. Lent is the springtime of the Spirit, a time of hope and renewal.

I will end with a few practical suggestions that may help us to make this lent the joyful season it is meant to be:

  • Opening my heart to the God of Surprises by listening more attentively to his Word and the voice of his Spirit;
  • Practising the art of kindness by fasting from unkind words and criticism, and replacing them with words of affirmation and appreciation;
  • Spending less time watching TV, or using my iphone, and more time with nature, allowing this wondrous season of burgeoning life to nurture my spirit;
  • Lessening my carbon footprint by cutting back on my energy use.

Fr Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below. 

Living Lent

The cornerstone of Lent is the call to conversion which commences on Ash Wednesday. Sometimes the impression is given that such conversion is change for change sake or, worse still, for the sake of control by those in authority. The core of conversion in the church is  captured by the title of a campaign conducted by British Airways around two decades ago – Change for Better – which collected the spare cash (in different currencies) that passengers had in their pockets at the end of flights and which they would not use again, at least for a while. Christian conversion is not focused on finance (though it does call for almsgiving) but on change in two dimensions, goodness and holiness, morally and spiritually. Lent is not the issuing of a list of do’s and don’ts but an invitation to look at our lives in the light of the Gospel which ‘instead involves looking at the mindset and listening to the heart that guides our lifestyle, to consider and choose what brings us blamelessness and blessedness or bitterness and banishment’.[1] As Pope Francis’ proclaims, ‘the Church must be a place where everyone can feel encouraged to live the good life of the Gospel’.[2]

Conversion has a communal dimension and demand also, calling for committed participation in the Church, as Louis J. Cameli states that ‘conversion entails a new way of living in the church’.[3] This may be the greatest challenge facing Catholics – participation – particularly in the Western world. In the wake of the Covid pandemic this will involve the recovery of the sacramental dimension of church life. Participation by people – the people of God – is critical if the two other legs of synodality  – mission and communion – are to continue standing and serving the work with others for a better world amid witness to the values of the Gospel.

Like the other evangelists Luke leads the readers of the Gospel(s) to Jerusalem. His account of the journey of Jesus is a type of theological travelogue which takes events along the way like the temptations in the desert and transfiguration on a mountain. These events mark major moments in Jesus’ life, manifesting his humanity in freedom and disclosing his divinity in glory. Entering meditatively and mindfully into these milestones of the Messiah as he makes his way to Jerusalem enables Christians to enter into and experience some of the essential ‘mysteries of the life of Jesus’.[4] Here conversion deepens beyond imitation to become configuration to Christ. This spiritual and sacramental shaping to be more Christlike signifies that the Christian is – in the words of Vatican II – ‘one who has been made a partner in the paschal mystery, and as one who has been configured to the death of Christ, will go forward, strengthened by hope, to the resurrection’.[5]Partner in the Paschal mystery’ points out the personal and communal process of transformation which Living Lent leads to and perfects, looking beyond the cross and forward in joyful hope to Easter.

In the Northern hemisphere Lent is linked with nature, the tilling of ground and sowing of seeds a metaphor for the working of human goodness and divine grace. Indeed Lent – as its title suggests – is also linked to time, the lengthening of daylight (clocks Spring forward). Light is both a symbol and statement of Christian faith with deep scriptural roots. The supreme statement of this is found in the Gospel of John where the evangelist exclaims in the Prologue that the ‘true light’ of God has entered the world and Jesus proclaims ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life’ (8:12). Saint Paul picked up on this in the Letter to the Ephesians telling his readers, ‘For once you were darkness, but now in the Lord you are light. Live as children of light – for the fruit of the light is found in all that is good and right and true’ (5:8-9). This is the classic indicative-imperative formula where God’s grace precedes and empowers the growth of human goodness through the formation of conscience(s). Like light contrasting with and casting out darkness, God’s grace goes against the grain of personal and social sin(s) in furtherance of forgiveness and freedom.

Living Lent is not about a bit of Spring-cleaning and in modern day jargon decluttering but, as Paul told the Ephesians, ‘you were taught to put away your former way of life…and to clothe yourselves with the new self, created according to the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness’ (4:22-24). While this will most likely not be achieved in a single season of Lent, it shows the horizon for the journey of a lifetime that looks towards and leads to holiness. As Pope Francis states at the beginning of Rejoice and Be Glad : ‘The Lord asks everything of us, and in return he offers us true life, the happiness for which we were created. He wants us to be saints and not to settle for a bland and mediocre existence’.[6] There is nothing bland or mediocre in response to the Lenten call to change as its exercise of sharing (almsgiving) and sacrificing (fasting) show.

(Fr Kevin O’Gorman SMA)

[1] Kevin O’Gorman SMA, Journeying in Joy and Gladness – Lent and Holy Week with Gaudete et Exsultate, (Dublin: Messenger Publications, 2019), 6.

[2] Pope Francis, Rejoice and Be Glad, (2013), Par. 114.

[3] ‘Clericalism isn’t the only thing stopping the Catholic Church from embracing synodality’, America, January 12th 2024.

[4] Phrase taken from Joseph Ratzinger/Pope Benedict XVI, Jesus of Nazareth – Holy Week, (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 2011), xvi.

[5] Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, in Vatican Council II – the Basic Sixteen Documents, (Dublin: Dominican Publications, 2007), par. 22.

[6] Rejoice and Be Glad, par. 1.

FEBRUARY 2024 | For the terminally ill

Pope Francis asks that the terminally ill and their families be cared for and assisted

The Pope Video for February, the month in which the Church celebrates the World Day of the Sick, contains an appeal that the terminally ill “will always receive the necessary medical and human care and assistance.”

“Cure if it is possible; always take care”

The Pope also states that families play a “decisive role” and that they “should not be left alone.”

TEXT OF THE POPE’S MESSAGE
When some people talk about terminal illnesses, there are two words they often confuse: incurable and un-carable. But they are not the same.
Even when little chance for a cure exists, every sick person has the right to medical, psychological, spiritual and human assistance.
Sometimes they can’t talk; sometimes we think they don’t recognize us. But if we take them by the hand, we know they are relating with us.
Healing is not always possible, but we can always care for the sick person, caress them.
Saint John Paul II used to say, “cure if it is possible; always take care.”
And this is where palliative care comes in. It guarantees the patient not only medical attention, but also human assistance and closeness.
Families should not be left alone in these difficult moments.
Their role is decisive. They need access to adequate means so as to provide appropriate physical, spiritual and social support.
Let us pray that the terminally ill and their families always receive the necessary medical and human care and assistance.

Pope Francis – FEBRUARY 2024

Fr Cornelius [Con] Murphy SMA [RIP]

The members of the Society of African Missions are mourning the death of Fr Con Murphy, SMA. Fr Con died unexpectedly at the African Missions, Blackrock Road, Cork on Thursday, 8 February.

Fr Con was a native of Toames, Kilmichael, Macroom, Co Cork, one of three children born to Michael and Brigid [née Foley]. He was ordained an SMA priest in December 1964 and served as a missionary in Nigeria, South Africa and Kenya as well as in St Joseph’s SMA Parish, Wilton, Cork.

Fr Con spent many years training seminarians in Ireland, South Africa and Kenya as well as serving as Irish Provincial Superior from 1978 to 1989.

Fr Con’s brother, Liam, predeceased him. He is survived by his sister, Sr Immaculata [Mercy Sisters], nieces Siobhán Meers, Bríd Murphy and nephew Michael Murphy as well as five grand-nephews.  See RIP.IE for full funeral arrangements.

Fr Con will be laid to rest in the SMA community cemetery at Wilton, Cork, following 12 noon Funeral Mass in St Joseph’s SMA Church, Wilton on Saturday, 10 February 2024. You can view the Mass via the Church webcam here.

God of mercy and love,
grant to Fr Con, your servant and priest,
a glorious place at your heavenly table,
for you made him here on earth
a faithful minister of your word and sacrament.
We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen

Homily for the 6th Sunday of Ordinary Time: Cycle B

 Readings: Leviticus 13:1-2,44-46; 1 Corinthians 10:31-11:1; Mark 1:40-45

 Theme:  ‘Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him’ (Mk 1:41)

In biblical times, leprosy covered a wide range of skin diseases from ringworm and psoriasis to what is today known as Hansen’s disease – a truly horrific condition which, if untreated, can lead to loss of fingers and toes and other deformities of the body. Fear of contagion forced victims to live outside the community and endure the most frightful and humiliating form of isolation imaginable. Lepers were treated as outcasts, pariahs, untouchables.

The miserable plight of lepers was made even worse by the ingrained belief that their disease was a punishment from God for sin. Thus, to their physical affliction was added the psychological and mental torment of feeling rejected not only by society but even by God. As our first reading from the Book of Leviticus makes clear, a leper was declared ‘unclean’ by one of the priests, compelled to wear ‘his clothing torn and his hair disordered’, to ‘shield his upper lip and cry, “Unclean, unclean”, and to ‘live outside the camp’ (Lev 13: 45-46). Moreover, Jewish Law forbade anyone from approaching or touching a leper under the pain of incurring ritual defilement. Hence the life of a leper at the time of Jesus was nothing short of a ‘living hell’. Death would have been preferable.

This context makes the story of Jesus’ cure of a leper in today’s gospel quite remarkable. First, there is the extraordinary courage and faith of the leper. In spite of the frightful stigma he had to endure, he still has the courage to approach Jesus, trusting that he will accept and cure him. To come close to Jesus he had to risk the anger of the people around Jesus and the likelihood of been chased away with stones. With an exemplary combination of faith and humility he goes down on his knees before Jesus and pleads with him in words that must have wrung the very heart of Jesus: “If you want to, your can cure me” (Mk 1:40).

Even more extraordinary is the response of Jesus, especially the manner in which he cures the leper. Moved with compassion for the leper, he says: “Of course I want to. Be cured” (Mk1:41) And, with a gesture not only forbidden by the Mosaic Law but profoundly counter-cultural, he reaches out and touches the leper with his hand.  This gesture – touching the untouchable – spoke more eloquently than any words could and brought spiritual as well as physical healing to the unfortunate man. It was a gesture of acceptance and empathy that restored the leper’s humanity and sense of self-worth as well as curing him physically: ‘At once the leprosy left him and he was cured’ (Mk1.42). And despite Jesus’ warning, the healed leper cannot keep the good news of his cure to himself. He must speak of it to everyone he meets with the unfortunate consequence that Jesus has to leave town and go to place where nobody lived.

Today’s gospel reminds us that touch is one of our most fundamental human needs. To be touched and to be able to touch is at the very core of what it means to be human.  Far more than words, touch conveys concern, empathy, support and affirmation. The importance of touch was brought home to me forty years ago when I was teaching in a seminary in Liberia. Every weekend, along with a small group of seminarians, I went to visit a Leprosarium in a place called Suakoko, about six miles from the seminary,  bringing some rice and fruit, and leading a prayer service with the members of the Leper community. The highlight of the prayer service was always the kiss of peace, when all decorum was abandoned, and everyone went around shaking hands with everyone else – not the restrained handshake with the person beside you that we are accustomed to in Ireland. I should add that the leprosy was inactive so there was no risk of contagion. At that moment the small assembly became alive and radiated a joy that was truly infectious. This was an experience that make a lasting impression on me and taught me more about the message of Christ than many homilies.

As disciples of Jesus we are called, like St Paul, to model our lives on Christ, to reach out to others with compassion and love, especially to those who are  rejected and stigmatised in any way.  The love of God impels us to imitate the example of Jesus and bring his compassionate and healing touch to the lepers of our time, the many isolated, despised and broken men and women longing for acceptance and love. I will end with a reflection on the importance of touch from the pen of Flor McCarthy, SDB.

 ‘Many of us are afraid to touch other people.
We give a few pennies to a beggar,
but made sure there is no contact between us,
not even eye-contact.
Jesus didn’t stand off or keep his distance.
He wasn’t afraid to touch others.
He touched lepers, sinners, sick people,
and even the dead.
Physical contact is precisely what gives people,
especially sick and wounded people,
a sense of warmth and joy.
By the very act of touching another person,
we accept that person as he or she is.
Lord give us a warm heart and kind hands.

Fr Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below. 

will be published when received

Join with the International Day of Prayer and Awareness Against Human Trafficking – Feast of St Josephine Bakhita

The Church’s International Day of Prayer and Awareness Against Human Trafficking takes place every year on February 8th, which is also the feast day of St Josephine, the Sudanese nun who as a child was kidnapped and enslaved and has become the patron saint of trafficked persons and the symbol of the Church’s commitment against  tafficking. 

 “Journeying in Dignity: Listen, Dream, Act” is the theme of this year’s Day of Prayer and Awareness Against Human Trafficking a scourge, which affects millions of people in our world today.  On this day we are invited to pray, listen and dream of a better world and to act for change that will allow living and journeying in dignity together. 

To view a short video, made by the OLA and SMA about the life of St Josephine and Human Trafficking, click on the button below.

On Feb. 8, an online pilgrimage of prayer and reflection against human trafficking will be held around the world. It will start at 9:30 a.m. in Oceania, followed by Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe, South America, and will finally conclude at 4:30 p.m. in North America.  It is expected that people from more that 50 countries will participate in the event and Pope Francis is expected to publish a special message on the day. This international event is coordinated by Talitha Kum, an international network against human trafficking, with more than 6,000 women religious members, friends and collaborators.  Maryknoll Sister Abby Avelino, coordinator of the event says;  Trafficking is around us, in our cities, but is often invisible to our eyes. With this day, we want to increase awareness of trafficking, reflect on the situation of violence and injustice suffered by the victims of this global phenomenon, and propose concrete solutions,”

Join in the live streaming of the Pilgrimage of Prayer via this link  https://www.youtube.com/c/preghieracontrotratta

 

SMA OLA WEBINAR:  To highlight the issue of Human Trafficking at this time the SMA and OLA Justice and Communications Desks are organising a webinar with the title “The Weaponization of Cultural Beliefs in Human Trafficking – the ensnaring power of Witchcraft.  This will take place on Tuesday 12th February between 7pm and 8.15pm.  This Webinar will explore the intersection of cultural beliefs and human trafficking – how traditional oath-taking rituals and the influence of juju (magic) become insidious control mechanisms, ensnaring victims in bondage and leaving them at the mercy of traffickers.  The main speaker at the event will the author David Lohan who co-wrote Open Secrets: An Irish Perspective on Trafficking & Witchcraft and more recently published At Freedom’s Crossroads: Making Sense of Modern Slavery.

To Register click on this link http://subscribepage.io/februarytrafficking2024 

 

Fr Frank Coltsmann, SMA [RIP]

The death has taken place on Saturday, 3 February 2024, of Fr Frank Coltsmann, SMA. Fr Frank died peacefully in the St Theresa’s Nursing Unit of the African Missions, Blackrock Road, Cork.

Fr Frank, a native of Strokestown, Co Roscommon, was ordained for the SMA in 1961 and served in the Diocese of Ibadan, Nigeria from 1962 until 1977 and 1981 to 1983. For several years he was Editor of the Diocesan newspaper – The Independent. He later served in the Archdiocese of Toronto, Canada, and the Diocese of Elphin, Ireland. He retired in 2012.

In 2018, he moved to the St Theresa’s Nursing Unit in Blackrock Road, Cork where he lived until his death.

Fr Frank is survived by his brother Tony, his sisters Jean [Frobisher] and Jackie [Carey]. He is deeply regretted by his siblings, his sister-in-law May, his brother-in-law Derek, nieces, nephews, relatives, friends and his confreres in the Society of African Missions.

Removal to St Joseph’s SMA Church, Wilton, Cork at 11am on Tuesday, 6 February, for Funeral Mass at 12 noon followed by burial in the community cemetery.

Requiescat in Pace.

SMA International News – February 2024

Welcome to the SMA International News for February 2024.  As usual we have three reports from SMA’s and OLA’s around the world. 

1 – From Benin we hear of Meeting of  seventeen SMA Spiritual Directors from our formation Houses which took place in Cotonou. 

2 From Sanniquellie, Liberia we hear Fr Lawrence Samba who tells us about the completion of a Church that took five years to construct

3 – Finally we hear from Ireland where the life of St Brigid is celebrated as a national holiday for the first time this year.

Towards a Synodal Church in Mission

A brief look at the Synthesis Report of the First Universal Session of the Synod on Synodality by Michael McCabe SMA

 Introduction
The first universal session of the Synod on Synodality (Rome, 4-29 October, 2023) was unique in the recent history of Episcopal Synods on several accounts. It was held in the Vatican’s Audience Hall, not the usual Synodal Hall. Among its 400 participants (including observers and facilitators), were a significant number of religious and lay men and women (70), all with voting rights. The method of the synod was also new (for Vatican meetings). It gave a voice to all the participants and facilitated what was termed ‘conversations in the Spirit’ (35 round tables of 10 participants – mixed – each person being given a chance to speak a number of times).  It involved several moments of silent prayer, speaking (3 mins), and listening,  followed by free exchange. The final 42-page Synthesis Report, entitled ‘A Synodal Church in Mission’, summarises the results of these conversations.  All 81 paragraphs of the report received the two-thirds majority of votes necessary for inclusion in the document.   It should be noted that this Report is not a final document but rather ‘a tool at the service of ongoing discernment.’

Structure of the Report
The Report consists of an introduction, a conclusion, and three sections, entitled respectively ‘The face of the synodal Church,’ ‘All disciples, all missionaries,’ and ‘Weaving bonds, generating communities.’ Each section contained subtopics split into three headings: ‘Convergences,’ which highlight areas of agreement, ‘Matters for Consideration,’ pointing to subjects for further discussion, and Proposals,’ suggesting specific actions.

Convergences
The Assembly was practically unanimous in affirming the fundamental equality and dignity of all the baptised (as clearly taught by Vatican II), while respecting  the specific identity and role of the laity in the Church. The Report notes that many assembly members warned against the danger of ‘clericalising’ the laity, creating ‘a kind of lay elite that perpetuates inequalities and divisions among the People of God’. The Report states: ‘Before any distinction of charisms and ministries, we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body’ (1 Cor 12:13). Therefore, among all the baptized, there is a genuine equality of dignity and a common responsibility        for mission.’ By the anointing of the Spirit, who ‘teaches all things’ (1 Jn 2:27), all believers possess an instinct for the truth of the gospel, a sensus fideiSynodal processes enhance this gift and allow for verifying the existence of that consensus of the faithful which is a sure criterion for determining whether a particular doctrine or practice belongs to the Apostolic faith’ (Report, p. 9).  This is a hugely significant statement which underlines the importance of consulting the faithful, not just on practical and pastoral issues, but also on matters of doctrine, a principle vigorously argued by Cardinal John Henry Newman over a century and a half ago, in 1859.

The Report calls for the simplification of liturgical language, and the inculturation of the liturgy. The text states that there was a ‘widely reported need to make liturgical language more accessible to the faithful and more embodied in the diversity of cultures’. Without questioning continuity with ritual tradition and the need for liturgical formation, the Report acknowledges the need for further reflection on this issue and for greater responsibility to be given to episcopal conferences in this area, along the lines of the motu proprio (Personal Letter of the Pope,) Magnum Principium  (2017). 

The Report stressed the need for greater participation of laity (especially women) in the life and mission of the Church and in decision-making processes at all levels (from local to universal), saying that this ‘can contribute to a more vibrant and missionary Church’. This will require the creation of new lay ministries according to the needs of local Churches. The Assembly endorsed the establishment of a special ‘baptismal ministry listening and accompanying’.  The Report also calls for special attention be given to the formation of priests so as ‘to avoid the risks of formalism and ideology that lead to authoritarian attitudes and to clericalism’. Priests need to be trained in the art of listening to, and collaborating with, the lay faithful on a basis of respect and equality.

 Matters for Further Consideration
The Report acknowledges that there were a number of significant issues on which Assembly delegates did not reach consensus, and which therefore require further study and reflection. The first of these issues is the meaning and implications of Synodality itself. Many delegates found the term confusing. The Report calls for an ‘in-depth terminological and conceptual study of the notion and practice of synodality’ to be undertaken and presented at the Second Universal Session of the Bishops on Synodality in October ‘24. The Report also calls for the establishment of a ‘special intercontinental commission of theologians and canonists’  to examine the canonical implications of Synodality.

 While the reports of the local and national synodal assemblies, especially in the Western world, revealed enormous support for the ordination of women as deacons, the ordination of married men, and the removal of compulsory celibacy for priests, the Rome Assembly did not reach agreement on these issues. It did, however, agree to examine them again at the second Universal Assembly this coming October.  

Neither did the Assembly agree on what it termed  ‘difficult issues’.  These issues are: gender identity and sexual orientation; the end of life; ethical issues related to artificial intelligence; and irregular marital situations. The report states that these are controversial issues in society as well as in the Church, and that, to address them, the Church must take account of ‘perspectives from the human and social sciences, philosophical reflection and theological elaboration’. It is noteworthy that the Report avoids using the term ‘LGBTQ+’ – the term non-binary persons use when referring to themselves as a group.

Proposals
The Report makes several important proposals on the issues discussed by the Assembly. I will not attempt to refer to all of them but simply highlight those that struck me as particularly significant.

Under Lay participation in the Church, the Report  proposes  that the responsibilities assigned to the existing ministry of Lector be expanded to become ‘a fuller ministry of the Word of God, which, in   appropriate contexts, could also include preaching.’ The Report    also envisages the creation of a new lay ministry of accompaniment and listening, and ‘a ministry for married couples committed to supporting family life and accompanying     people preparing for the sacrament of marriage’.

Under the specific heading, Women in the Church, the Report calls for the participation of women in decision-making processes at every level in the Church, taking on greater roles of responsibility in pastoral care and the Report states: ‘There is an urgent need to ensure that women can participate in decision-making processes’. The Reports notes that Pope Francis has significantly increased the number of women in   positions of responsibility in the Roman Curia. The same should happen at other levels of the life of the Church, and Canon Law must be adapted accordingly. The Report goes on to propose that women be involved in seminary teaching and training programs (as happens in some Western countries). Research must continue on women’s access to the Diaconate, drawing on the work of two Commissions already established.     

Furthermore, liturgical   language must be revised to make it more respectful to women. Liturgical texts and    Church documents should ‘be  more attentive not only to the use of language that takes men and women  into equal account, but also to the inclusion of a range of words, images, and narratives that draw with greater vitality on women’s experience.’

On Religious, the Report proposes the revision of Mutuae Relationes, a 1978 document on the relationship between Bishops and Religious, in the light of synodality. This revision must involve all those concerned.

Regarding the Formation of Priests, the Report call for a thorough review of formation for ordained ministry in view of synodality, including a revision of the Ratio fundamentalis (The Gift of the Priestly Vocation), published by the Congregation of the Clergy, Rome, 2016).

Regarding the role of Bishops in the Church, the Report calls for the establishment of a process ‘for a regular review of the bishop’s work, with reference to the style of his authority, finance and Safeguarding. It also requires a review of the criteria for selecting bishops, including consulting the People of God. The Report also recommends further study on the doctrinal and juridical   nature of the Episcopal Conferences, and on the canonical status of continental assemblies of Bishops; and the creation of new international ecclesiastical provinces, for the benefit of bishops who do not belong to any episcopal conference.

 Conclusion
The Episcopal Synod on Synodality was an experience of synodality rather than a discussion about synodality. While some people who followed the synodal process closely were initially somewhat disappointed that the Assembly did not come up with more radical proposals for the renewal for the Church, on further reflection, the degree of consensus it achieved is remarkable, given the great diversity of viewpoints represented in the Assembly. The fact that even controversial proposals were not rejected out of hand but included under matters for further study and reflection, is surely significant. In any case, the success of the Assembly must not be judged just by its Report. Pope Francis wants us to focus more on synodal method (as I outlined in the introduction) rather than the issues discussed.

 As the experience of the Assembly proved, the method adopted for this Synod created an atmosphere of respectful listening and sense of community among members with very different viewpoints about the Church and its mission. The ultimate aim of the synodal process, as Pope Francis has always insisted, is not to turn the Church into a more democratic Institution, but to enable the People of God to fulfil its responsibility to be witnesses of the Good News of God’s love and mercy for all humanity and all creation.  It is to achieve this goal, that Pope Francis wants the entire church to become synodal. As missionaries committed to the service of God’s reign in the world we must respond wholeheartedly to this challenge, and strive to embed synodality in the heart of the Church wherever we work.

Lourdes Novena: 3-11 February 2024

Saturday 3rd to Sunday 11th February 2024, we join in a Novena of Prayer to Mary, under the title of Our Lady of Lourdes.

Visitors to Ireland are often struck by the beauty of the scenery throughout the country, from the Lakes of Killarney to the Glens of Antrim and the many places in between. In the stillness and peace of such places it is easy to encounter God’s presence in His Creation.
It is not an accident that many of our monastic sites in Ireland are found in beautiful places (Clonmacnoise, Glendalough, Gougane Barra, Skellig Michael, Cashel, to name a few). The early monks obviously encountered God’s presence in these locations (thin places in Celtic Spirituality), and the centuries of silence, prayer and worship that followed, only added to their tranquility and peace. What God is saying to us through His Creation cannot be heard by those who do not love silence. The monks can teach us how to listen and encounter God. “He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters; he restores my soul.” Psalm 23:2-3 

Lourdes is a similar place of tranquility and peace, despite the sickness of most who go there. Pilgrims returning from Lourdes often speak of how they experienced the presence of God in this holy place where they journeyed to honour Mary His Mother. They share how the experience strengthened them (restored their soul) as they returned home to face their daily routine and the ongoing difficulties of everyday life. We all need such experiences and occasions to restore our souls.

You are invited to join us at our daily Novena Mass at 10.00am in St Joseph’s SMA Church in Wilton, Cork – either in person or by webcam – go to www.smawilton.ie or www.sma.ie and click on the Webcam links there. On each of the seven days, the reflection / homily at Mass will be given by a different SMA priest.

The special Novena prayers will be recited during the Mass. Prayer Leaflets are available in the church, as well as “petition envelopes”. For those who can’t attend in person, see the prayers below so you can join from your home, nursing home, hospital or wherever you find yourself, particularly those who are ill.

© José Luiz Bernardes Ribeiro Wikimedia commons

On the final day, 11th February – World Day of the Sick – emphasis will be placed on Healing. This is something that is so necessary in our day. Mother Earth needs healing. International, national, church, family, personal lives and relationships urgently need healing.

We invite you to join in this Novena as we pray for the various Intentions people have asked us to remember. As well as praying for those Intentions, we will also remember those who care for the sick, the ‘frontline’ staff in hospitals, nursing homes, hospices and those who care for family members at home. May the Lord keep them and their families safe.

Donate to the Lourdes Novena here.

During the nine days, Make room for Mary in our families. She is a Mother! She is there – attentive and concerned. (Pope Francis). 

Prayers of the Novena

Introductory Prayer: “You have been blessed, O Virgin Mary, above all other women on earth by the Lord, the Most High God. God so exalted your name that praises shall never fade from the mouths of men and women.” [Judith 13:23-25]

Mary crowned with living light,
Temple of the Lord
Place of peace and holiness,
Shelter of the Word.

Mystery of sinless life,
in our fallen race,
Free from shadows you reflect
Plenitude of grace.

Virgin Mother of our God,
Lift us when we fall,
Who was named upon the Cross
Mother of us all. Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
Heaven sings your praise,
Mary, we magnify your name
Through eternal days.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen”.

Repeat Introductory Prayer

We then recite a Decade of the Rosary followed by this Litany

Our Lady of Lourdes, pray for us.
Saint Bernadette, pray for us.
Mary our Mother, pray for us.
Mary full of grace, pray for us.
Mary, cause of our joy, pray for us.
Mary, health of the sick, pray for us.
Mary, Queen of all saints, pray for us.
Mary, Queen of peace, pray for us.

The Memorare
“Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to thy protection, implored thy help or sought thy intercession was left unaided. Inspired with this confidence, I fly to you, O Virgin of Virgins, my Mother. To thee I come. Before thee I stand, sinful and sorrowful.  O Mother of the Word incarnate, despise not my petitions, but in thy clemency, hear and answer me. Amen.” 

Concluding Rite
“O God, who through the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, prepared a fit dwelling for your Son; we humbly ask you to grant us, who celebrate the apparition of the Virgin Mary, health of soul and body. Through Jesus Christ, Our Lord. Amen.”  

“O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee”.  (Three times)

Homily for the Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time – Year B

Readings: Job 7:1-4, 6-7; 1 Corinthians 9:16-19,22-23; Mark 1:29-39

 Theme:  The Mystery of Human Suffering

Human suffering, is one of the greatest mysteries of life. It is difficult to reconcile the terrible sufferings many people have to endure with the existence of a good and all-powerful God.  The book of Job, from which our first reading is taken, presents this issue very dramatically.  Written about 700 years before Christ, it tells us the story a just man, Job, who suffers a frightful string of calamities. Having lost everything and everyone dearest to him, he is left to bemoan his sad plight in words surely find an echo in our own hearts: ‘Is not our life on earth no better than hired service, our time no better than hired drudgery?’ (Job 7:1).

In the midst of his anguish, Job is visited by three friends. When they first arrive they say nothing. They just sit in silence on the ground beside him for seven days and seven nights. They have no words to assuage Job’s grief. In the face of unspeakable sorrow, silent accompaniment is perhaps the only and best response we can give. Eventually, however, Job’s friends do speak, but their words, though well intentioned, only serve to heighten Job’s anguish. Believing that his sufferings are a punishment from God for some wrong he has done, they try to convince him to repent and throw himself on the mercy of the Almighty. Job, however, continues to profess his innocence. Finally, after many days pouring out his grief and anger,  Job is granted an audience with God. And God does indeed stand by his claim to be innocent of any wrongdoing, but without offering an explanation for the shocking calamities he has had to endure.  He just tells Job that there is no way he (Job) could understand things from God’s perspective. He is left with no option but continue to place his trust in God without needing to understand his ways.

Jesus echoes the teaching of the Book of Job in rejecting the view, commonly held by his contemporaries. that human suffering is a punishment for sin.  (cf. Lk 13:1-5). But he goes well beyond this teaching in portraying a God who is more compassionate and loving than the austere God of Job. While Jesus does not explain the mystery of human suffering, his words and actions manifest a God who is profoundly moved by human suffering and responds to it with love ‘beyond all telling’. Jesus reveals a God, who, in the words of today’s responsorial psalm ‘heals the broken hearted and binds up all their wounds’. As today’s gospel clearly shows, Jesus went out of his way to heal all kinds of suffering, physical and mental. He is the lived embodiment of the divine response to human suffering, sowing seeds of hope where he finds despair, restoring broken relationships, and drawing life from the teeth of death.

Jesus came on earth to bring people into the life-giving stream of God’s love: I have come that you may have life and have it to the full’ (Jn 10:10). At the very heart of his ministry is a concern for the integral well-being of human beings. From the life of Jesus, it is clear that God wants us to be healed and to be fully alive at all levels of our being: spiritual, pyschological and physical as well as social and political. Nevertheless, Jesus did not eliminate all suffering. What he did, finally, was to enter the depths of human suffering himself. His identification with suffering humanity reached its climax ón the Cross, where he uttered that heart-rending cry of utter desolation to his Father: ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’ (Mt 27:46). And his Father did not forsake him but brought him through the portals of death to the fullness of resurrected life. The God revealed in the life and death of Jesus is not the distant and austere God of Job, but a God who assumes our weakness and pain and transforms it through the power of his love. And, by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus shows that God’s suffering love is ultimately victorious.

When suffering touches us personally, and none of us can escape suffering at some stage in our lives, it can be an overwhelming experience, shattering our self-confidence and even our faith in God. Pope Francis states that personal suffering confronts us with a choice. We can allow it  ‘to lead us into self-doubt to the point of despair, or we can embrace it as an opportunity for growth and discernment about what really matters in life.’  The English poet, John Keats, who experienced great suffering in his life and died from tuberculosis at the age of twenty-five.  wrote, ‘The world is the vale of soul-making’. For Keats, suffering is an integral part of this soul-making, helping us to become the person God wants us to be. This does not mean, however, that we should be passive, or merely stoical, in the face of suffering. As disciples of Jesus, we are also called to imitate his example and, in the midst of our own doubts, fears, and sufferings, to reach out to others with loving care. In the words of Pope Francis, we are called ‘to imitate God’s style of closeness, compassion and tenderness…, to be close to those in pain and to do what is possible to alleviate it, or at least let them know they are not alone.’

Fr Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below. 

CLIMATE AND BIODIVERSITY – THINKING ECOLOGICALLY – The 2023 Intergenerational Climate Justice Conference – VIDEOS

 

About Cork Conference on Intergenerational Climate Justice
The Cork Conference on Intergenerational Climate Justice is an annual event dedicated to fostering awareness, understanding, and action on issues related to climate change, intergenerational justice, and biodiversity. Since its inception, the conference has provided a platform for thought leaders, educators, and the community to come together to address pressing environmental challenges.

VIDEO RECORDINGS 

1 Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaption and Vulnerability  (This UN video was used as a resource to set the scene for the input from speakers that followed.)  https://youtu.be/hOwkMxrTbPQ   

2 Eco-Systems and thinking Ecologically Dr Emma Hart – Conservation Ecologist   https://youtu.be/BCdiW9lwZ_w     

3 The Rights of a River: Thinking Ecologically, James Orr, Friends of the Earth https://youtu.be/gG_hUDh9UsAClimate Change the Global Impact – Abigael Kima , 4 Kenyan Climate Activist https://youtu.be/Nyzmye39b9U

4 Climate Change the Global Impact – John Hillary Balyejusa, Ugandan Climate Activist https://youtu.be/iSxHvsZpHso

5 Intergenerational conversation: Protecting our Environment. Helen O’Dowd, Elders for Earth and Saoirse Exton, UN Climate Advisory Group moderated by Elaine Nevin of Eco-UNESCO https://youtu.be/t6r8RSEIDWE

6 Environmentalist award winners from Glanmire Community College discuss their 2022 winning Young Environmentalist Award Project https://youtu.be/FOVvkq6_an0

7 System Change not Climate Change: What can we do? Catherine Seale-Duggan,  Community Water Officer. https://youtu.be/QPYsIcDMh1s 

 

 

 

SMA Zambia Golden Jubilee Celebration

Last December the Divine Mercy Parish, Ndola, Zambia was the venue for a celebration marking the 50th Anniversary of the  arrival of Irish SMA’s in Zambia, at the invitation of Bishop Nicholas Adnozzi, an Italian Franciscan.  He requested four priests for parish work and four for teaching in government schools. His plan was that the SMA group would be sustained by the salaries earned by those teaching in schools.

Initially a group of seven SMA’s went to Zambia and they and their successors laid the groundwork for what today, has grown into the the Zambian District of the SMA, with 22 Zambian priests and 15 seminarians.  SMA’s now serve in Kabwe, Lusaka, Ndola and Solowezi Dioceses.  Fr Ignatius Malwa, the District Superior, described the 50th anniversary as an opportunity to build upon the foundations laid by the pioneering missionaries whose work has borne much fruit. 

To mark this historic occasion the SMA Media Centre team in Ndola, led by Fr Tom Casey SMA has produced the documentary video. It describes the work and achievements of the SMA in Zambia and includes interviews with some of those who started the SMA’s mission in Zambia fifty years ago and also with some of those who continue this mission today – the video is 45 minutes long – we hope you enjoy it. 

 

Homily for the Fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time – Year B

Readings: Deuteronomy 18:15-20; 1 Corinthians 7:32-35; Mark 1:21-28

 Theme:  ‘He taught them with authority’ (Mk 1:22)

The theme of authority dominates our readings today. In the first reading from the book of Deuteronomy, we see that, at the time of Moses (around the 13th century BCE), the Israelites longed for a prophet who would speak God’s word to them and lead them on the pathway to life. Through Moses, God makes this promise to them: ‘I will raise up a prophet like you for them from their own brothers. I will put my words into his mouth and he shall tell them all that I command him’ (Deut 18:18). Our gospel reading from Mark shows that this promise was fulfilled supremely in Jesus Christ, whose authority astonishes the people assembled in the synagogue of Capernaum.

In the gospel reading, Mark makes a clear distinction between the teaching of Jesus and that of the Scribes, the official interpreters of Jewish Law. Scribes never expressed their own judgement or opinion. They always began by citing their authority and supported whatever they said with quotes from the great masters of the past. And their focus was on the external observances of the Law rather than its spirit. Their teaching failed to make much impression on the people because it lacked the power of personal conviction. Moreover, the scribes did not always practice what they preached (cf. Mt 23:3).

The people immediately recognized that Jesus was a different kind of teacher. ‘His teaching made a deep impression on them’ (Mk 1:22). Why did the teaching of Jesus have such an impact? In what way was it different from the teaching of the scribes? The words of Jesus had the power to move people’s hearts. They had the ring of truth about them because they came from personal experience. Jesus did not just repeat what others had said. He spoke with his own voice, his own authority. People listened to Jesus primarily because he was a living witness to the truth of God’s love. He showed this love by the way he lived. People experienced God’s mercy and compassion in his actions. He reached out to the sick and less privileged, those who were neglected or excluded by society. In today’s gospel we see him freeing a man tormented by an ‘unclean spirit’ (cf. Mk 1:23-26).  This action moves the people to exclaim: ‘Here is a teaching that is new, and with authority behind it; he gives orders to unclean spirits and they obey him’ (Mk 1:27.) The authority of Jesus’ teaching is manifested, above all, in his actions.

We tend to associate authority with people in positions of power in society, like political or religious leaders, people we see as ‘authority figures’. In this sense, Jesus did not have any power at all. He was not a worldly king with political or military power. And he was not of the priests, who held religious power in Roman Judea. Nor did he have the authority of a scribe based on tradition. The only authority he had was the supreme confidence that what he did and said was God’s will and God’s truth, and the source of this authority lay in his intimate communion with his heavenly Father, his Abba, who, on the occasion of his baptism, had affirmed him as his ‘beloved son, in whom I am well pleased’ (Mk 1:11).

As we see in today’s gospel, Jesus uses his authority to liberate people from the evil forces that dominate their lives, and to bring them the blessings of health and healing, freedom and hope.  He came, as he himself states, ‘to serve not to be served, and to give his life for us’ (Mk 10:45). And he wants us to imitate his example. ‘You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them… Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant’ (Mk 10:42-43). By virtue of our baptism, all of us share in the authority of Jesus, in his prophetic, priestly and kingly mission, even if we may have no official leadership position in the Church. And we are empowered and summoned to use this authority to serve others, as Jesus did.

I end with an apt reflection on today’s gospel from the pen of Flor McCarthy SDB.

‘Ideally words should always be preceded by deeds.
When people who have done something begin to speak, people listen.
Their words carry enormous weight.
They have real authority.
The weakness of a lot of words arises from the fact that they are not preceded,
or accompanied, or even followed by deeds.
At the root of innumerable wrongs in our world
is the discrepancy between word and deed.
It is the weakness of Churches, parties and individuals.
It gives people and institutions split personalities.
Lord, grant that what we have said with our lips,
we may believe with our hearts,
and practice with our lives.’  AMEN.

Fr Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below. 

 

Prayer for Christian Unity 2024 – Reflection for Saturday 20th January

This reflection is based on the Mass readings for Saturday 20th January. 

In the week of Prayer for Christian Unity today’s readings are – to say the least – a poor platform for praying for and promoting unity. They provide plenty of food for thought, particularly when the joint video message of the Archbishops of Armagh is ‘Go and do likewise’. In the first reading we hear David’s ‘lament over Saul and his son Jonathan’ – ‘How did the heroes fall and the battle armour fail?’ This is the post battle cry of those who live – and die – by the sword or more modern weapons of warfare. Of course, heroes are hailed on both sides of any conflict. In the Gospel we hear how the relatives of Jesus wanted ‘to take charge of him, convinced he was out of his mind’. Perhaps they have listened to the lament of the Psalmist in today’s text that ‘you have made us the taunt of our neighbours’. Whatever its roots and repercussions, it is fairly tough, even rough, language about Jesus which cannot be simply explained away.

The Gospel brings divisions, that is definite. Readers and hearers have to make sense of Jesus’ declaration in Matthew – ‘I have not come to bring peace, but a sword’ (10:34) – which is followed by a description of disruption, even division, in family relationships. However, reference to the sword here is not to weapons the disciples of Jesus will wield but rather the rejection and suffering, even martyrdom they will have to undergo themselves. As one commentator states, ‘Jesus’ call to a new righteousness will inevitably bring division…[and] when the faithful confront injustice, division and estrangement follow’.[1]

The call – ‘Go and do likewise’ – is to imitate the Good Samaritan,  not those who ignored the injured man, because ‘he was moved with pity’ (Lk 10:33).  Joseph A. Grassi comments that ‘here the divine mercy works even through someone traditionally regarded as an enemy’.[2] This vision of compassion lies at the heart of Christian Unity.

Christians and churches can both work for and witness to the desire of Christ ‘that they may all be one’ which is contained in His Priestly Prayer in the Gospel of John (17:21). This divine draw that ‘As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us’ (17:22) means being called to communion with God. In this week (and every week) Christians would do well to ponder, pray and practice these words of Pope Francis:

Being Church means being God’s people, in accordance with the great plan of his fatherly love. This means that we are to be God’s leaven in the midst of humanity. It means proclaiming and bringing God’s salvation into our world, which often goes astray and needs to be encouraged, given hope and strengthened on the way. The Church must be a place of mercy freely given, where everyone can feel welcomed, loved, forgiven and encouraged to live the good life of the Gospel.[3]

 (Kevin O’Gorman SMA)

[1] R. Alan Culpepper, Matthew – A commentary, (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2021), 208.
[2] Jesus is Shalom – A Vision of Peace from the Gospels, (New York: Paulist Press, 2006), 111.
[3] Evangelii Gaudium – The Joy of the Gospel, 2013, par. 114.

Not a moment to waste

A recent report by George Lee, for RTE News, speaking about the latest information form the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service makes for grim reading – here are the main points.

The concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has gone up by 50% in 170 years. It now stands at 419 parts per million, up from 280 parts per million (ppm) at the start of the fossil fuel era.  

Experts at the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service reported that it went up by another 2.4ppm in 2023, coinciding with the largest single yearly rise in average global temperatures on record. The climate scientists at Copernicus are really worried –  Copernicus director Carlo Buontempo said the overall global temperature last year was warmer than at any time for 100,000 to 125,000 years. This is the hottest it’s been in human history.

In America, the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) reported a similar story but from a more financial viewpoint. US has been hit by 376 separate billion-dollar-plus weather disasters over the past 43 years, and average of 8.7 events per year.  But, last year alone there were 28 such catastrophic weather events reflecting worrying evidence of increasingly frequent extreme events.

In Europe last year we experienced extreme events in the shape of heatwaves multiple daily and monthly temperature records broken, widespread drier than average conditions,  record rainfall and flooding.  On the global level the average temperature for the entire world was 14.98 degrees Celsius last year.  This is 1.48 degrees higher than the average global temperature in 1850, which is almost reaching the 1.5 degrees of warming limit set by the Paris Climate Agreement.

Experts argue about the significance of 1.5 degrees and about the many natural and non-permanent factors that influence it (eg El Nino and Volcanic Ash), These have allowed leaders and decision makers a means to justify their inaction or as George Lee says, they “offer some kind of statistical fig leaf to hide their embarrassment over their collective failure over the past 30 years to take the climate crisis more seriously.”

However, parts per million of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere, and the extent to which that number is above the pre-industrial level of 280ppm, is a clear indication of how far the earth’s delicate energy balance is out of kilter.  There can be no ambiguity when it comes to the relentless rise in the concentration of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. By burning fossil fuels we release the gasses that stay in the atmosphere for hundreds of years, locking in more and more heat and energy from the sun and fueling increasingly catastrophic and more frequent weather events. 

Oil field pump, public domain CC0. rawpixel.com

Only months after COP28 in Dubai this is the stark and grim message, based on the latest science and research from the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service and the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

COP28 was far from the breakthrough and decisive event that many had hoped for but at least on paper it did agree to pursue deep, rapid, and sustained reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, and to start transitioning away from fossil fuels in energy systems, in a just, orderly, and equitable manner. Participants also agreed to accelerate all these actions during this critical decade.

What is on paper needs to be translated into action very rapidly.  Achieving this is an enormous task that will require great change – change that will no doubt be pushed back against by governments and those with vested interest. 

“Transitioning away from fossil fuels is the only thing that can be done in response to authoritative and worrying climate reports such as those released this week.” 

We don’t have a moment to waste.

To read the full story:http://www.rte.ie/news/analysis-and-comment/2024/0114/1426362-climate-change-reports/

Homily for the 3rd Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year B

Readings: Jonah 3:1-5,10; 1 Corinthians 7:29-31; Mark 1:14-20

Theme:   The God of Second Chances

One of the favourite aphorisms of a former priest companion of mine was: ‘You never get a second chance to make a first impression.’  While obviously true, it is not very encouraging! Fortunately, our God is a God of second chances rather than of first impressions, as today’s readings make clear. Our first reading is taken from one of the shortest and most fascinating books of the Bible – The Book of Jonah. Jonah is an Israelite prophet sent by God to preach to the Gentiles of Nineveh (the modern-day city of Mosul in Northern Iraq), a people hated by the Jews, and with a well-deserved reputation for wickedness (cf. Jon 1:2). Jonah’s message takes the form of a threat: ‘Only forty days more and Nineveh is going to be destroyed’ (Jonah 3:3). Fortunately, the people of Nineveh repent their evil behaviour and God withdraws his threat. He is prepared to give them a second chance, as the King of Nineveh surmises: ‘Who knows if God will not change his mind and relent, if he will not renounce his burning wrath, so that we do not perish’ (Jon 3:9).

In the story, it is not only the people of Nineveh to whom God gives a second chance. Jonah is also given a second chance to prove himself an obedient and worthy prophet of the Lord. When he first receives God’s command to preach to the Ninevites, he refuses to obey and he runs away.  He heads off in the opposite direction to Nineveh and boards a ship heading for Spain. Perhaps many of us, like Jonah, have felt like running away when God called us to undertake a difficult or challenging mission. Anyhow, after a series of adventures (or rather misadventures!), including being swallowed by a whale, Jonah realises he cannot escape from God. He repents, and the Word of God is addressed to him a second time: ‘Up, Go to Nineveh, the great city, and preach to them as I told you to’ (Jon 3:2). Jonah is given another chance, and this time he obeys.

To his surprise and annoyance, the Ninevites repent. And God changes his mind and does not destroy the city. Everyone is happy, except Jonah. He is angry and depressed. He feels that God has made him look foolish by not destroying Nineveh. Yet, even in his anger, Jonah identifies the compassionate and forgiving nature of the God he serves: ‘I knew you were a God of tenderness and compassion, slow to anger, rich in graciousness, relenting from evil’ (Jonah 4:2). Hopefully, he will eventually learn to open his heart more fully to this God and live accordingly. The significance of the story of Jonah is captured in the following Hebrew prayer recited by Jews on the feast of Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement):

‘Lord you are revealed in the story of Jonah, and we relate its meaning to ourselves; for Nineveh is the repentant world, and we are Israel, its unwilling prophet. You have chosen us to know and love you, and this knowledge is our glory, and this love is our burden…By it, you reveal our kinship to friend and foe, our duty to those who love us, and to those who hate us; our task in a world where everything and everyone is your work. If we are not for others, we are not for Israel. It is for us to bring the prisoner freedom, to give the homeless refuge, and the starving food. It is for us to sow the seed of friendship on unfriendly soil, to reconcile enemies, and bring redemption to our oppressors.

In light of the horrific war being waged currently by Israel on the people of Gaza there must be many Jews who today would recite this prayer with a sense of great unease.  It is a prayer that expresses the core of the good news proclaimed by Jesus in today’s gospel: ‘The time has come, and the kingdom of God is close at hand. Repent and believe the Good News’ (Mk 1:15). God’s Kingdom is about freeing prisoners, providing refuge for the homeless and food for the starving. It is about sowing the seeds of friendship everywhere; reconciling enemies and loving even those who hate us. But to embrace God’s kingdom – his vision for our world – we must first turn out back on hatred and violence. We must repent.

 The call to repentance may not seem to be good news, but this is because we have too negative or limited an understanding of what it means. Yes, it does mean recognising that all is not well with us, or with the kind of world we are creating. It means acknowledging that we have made bad choices and messed up our lives and the lives of those around us. But it also means realising we are not destined for disaster, that God is always ready to give us a second chance, and that, in the sunshine of his smile, we can turn our lives around – individually and collectively. It means that we can live in a new way, freed from the endless cycle of hatred and violence. In other words, we can live as God’s children for that is what we are. This is surely good news. No matter how often we may have failed in the past, we can always begin again. I end with the hopeful words of the Kerry poet, Brendan Kennelly:

Though we live in a world that dreams of ending,
that always seems about to give in,
something that will not acknowledge conclusion
insists that we forever begin.

Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below. 

 

Homily for the Second Sunday of Year B – 14th January 2024

Readings:1 Samuel 3:3-10,19; 1 Corinthians 6:13-15,17-20; John 1:35-42

 Theme: ‘Speak, Lord, your servant is listening ’ (1 Samuel 3:10)

Today’s readings are all about listening and responding to the call of the Lord. The first reading describes the call of Samuel, the son of Hannah and Elkanah in their old age. During the night, young Samuel hears a voice while serving in the sanctuary of the Lord. Thinking it is the high priest, Eli, who is calling him, he goes to him to find out what he wants. We are told, at this time, Samuel had ‘no knowledge of the Lord and the word of the Lord had not been revealed to him’ (1 Sam 3:7). It is Eli who eventually recognises that the Lord is calling Samuel and who tells him to respond with the memorable words ‘Speak, Lord, your servant is listening’ (I Sam 3:9).

These words express the attitude of openness and attentive listening required to discern the call of the Lord in our lives.  It is the attitude we must cultivate when we pray. Sometimes we turn Samuel’s words on their head and say or think: ‘Listen, Lord, your servant is speaking’, so anxious are we that the Lord will answer our requests. Of course, the Lord listens to us, but we must first listen and pay attention to what he is saying to us. And he speaks to us not only in Scripture, but also in the book of nature, through others, and in our everyday experiences. He is always speaking to us in the depths of our hearts and calling us to be his co-workers in creating a world that reflects his love. Rather than an insistent voice in the stillness of the night, as was the case with Samuel, his call may be more akin to a tug at our heartstrings, something we feel at quiet and reflective moments in our life. In whatever way it comes, it is important that we listen attentively to what the Lord is saying to us, and follow the example of Samuel, whom we are told ‘grew up and the Lord was with him and let no word of his fall to the ground’ (1 Sam 3:9). 

Our gospel reading today is John’s account of the call of the first disciples of Jesus, Andrew, his brother, Simon Peter, and John.  John and Andrew were already disciples of John the Baptist, and it was the Baptist who identified Jesus for them, saying ‘Look, there is the Lamb of God’.  The Baptist’s use of the messianic title, ‘Lamb of God’, shows that he recognises Jesus as the Messiah and is prepared to let his own disciples follow Jesus.  It also explains why Andrew and John immediately leave the Baptist and follow Jesus. Jesus then turns around to them and asks them what they want, or what they are looking for – a searching question, indeed? It is a question addressed also to us, inviting us to look into our own hears, and try to discover, in the words of the Spice Girls, ‘what you want, what you really, really want.’

Almost certainly John and Andrew were hoping to find the Messiah, the one whom they hoped would fulfil the promises made to the prophets of old and liberate the People of Israel from Roman oppression. We can presume that, in common with most of Jesus’ contemporaries, they did not have any clear understanding of how the Messiah would fulfil this promise.  In any case, they were prepared to allow Jesus to reveal himself to them.  When they ask Jesus where he was living, Jesus doesn’t give them instructions on how to get to his house. He invites them, rather, to ‘come and see’ for themselves.   Jesus is saying to Andrew and John and to us as well: ‘If you want to know me, you have to live with me’. He wants to have a personal relationship, a friendship, with those who wish to follow him. Andrew and John stay with Jesus ‘the rest of that day’. Andrew, convinced that they had found the Messiah, tells his younger brother, Simon Peter, and brings him to Jesus who looks at him intently and gives him a new name, Cephas, which means Rock.

I will conclude by highlighting four important lessons for us in today’s readings. First, like Samuel, we are reminded of the importance of listening and paying attention to the voice of the Lord and treasuring his word. Second, like Eli and Andrew, we are enjoined to share the good news with others and lead them to the Lord, but then let the Lord take over. We must not stand in the way. Third, we are challenged to clarify what we are looking for in life and what we are hoping for from the Lord. Finally, if we want to be true disciples of Jesus, we must be prepared to spend time with him and develop a personal relationship with him. I end with a short reflection from the pen of the popular Spiritual writer, Carlo Caretto, entitled God’s Call:

God’s call is mysterious; it comes in the darkness of faith.
It is so fine, so subtle,
that it is only with the deepest silence within us that we can hear it.
And yet nothing is surer or stronger;
nothing is so decisive and overpowering as that call.
This call is uninterrupted; God is always calling us.

Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below. 

SMA International News – January 2024

Welcome to the first Bulletin of the SMA International News for 2024.  Our thanks to all who have contributed to making these over the past year and we wish you all a Happy New Year.

This month we have stories from:
ROME – The Preparatory Commission for the 2025 General Assembly met in Rome in November and following their discussions they have issued an invitation to us all to take part in a certain number of activities, in preparation for this important event.

ZAMBIA – A report on how the SMA celebrated the golden jubilee of its presence in the country on December 8. This ceremony saw the participation of several SMA confreres, some of whom were part of the early pioneering group.  It was also attended by many other priests, religious and lay faithful.

COTE D’IVIORE – The Catholic Missionary Institute of Abidjan, Cote D’ivoire  (ICMA), celebrated its 20th anniversary on Sunday, December 10. This celebration of its foundation was also marked by the diaconal ordination of 10 acolytes and the priestly ordination of three deacons, by the laying on of hands of Bishop Raymond Ahoua.

EPIPHANY 2023 – Wilton

The Feast of Epiphany brings to an end the Nativity narrative – set in Bethlehem – by the entry of the three Wise Men from the East. Before considering their significance, it is necessary to confront the fear that the three –portrayed in paintings (and reproduced on plenty of Christmas cards) as Kings bearing gifts – supplant the poor shepherds from the story. Coming from Latin America –where the theology of liberation emerged in the midst of massive inequality and injustice – Pope Francis continually gives the lie to any theological interpretation and image of the church which ignores the poor and peasants, the marginalized in society. While today’s reading is taken from the Gospel of Matthew – Saint Luke’s version of the birth (and the life) of Jesus values the presence of the poor as Mary had proclaimed previously:  

He has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their heart. He has taken down princes from thrones and raised up the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away empty’. 

These surprise – if not strange – three visitors are remembered not for their wealth but for finding their way to Christ, kneeling before him and paying him homage as they would do for a king at home. Their understanding of him as King would not be complete until after Jesus had been crucified beneath the caption ‘The King of the Jews’ and raised from the dead. They learn, in the course of their journey to Bethlehem and back ‘by another road’, the poetic truth that taking ‘the road less travelled has made all the difference’.1 However, like the Greeks who, Saint John tells, ‘went up to worship at the festival’ and ‘wish[ed] to see Jesus’, had to hear Jesus’ words, ‘unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit’ (Jn 12:24), the Wise Men had to learn the paschal truth of God’s Kingdom personified in and by the Christ child they saw in the crib. Through the paschal mystery of his birth and life, death and Resurrection Jesus, in the words of the Second Vatican Council, ‘also opened up a way. If we follow this path, life and death are made holy and acquire a new meaning’.2 The Wise Men were well on their way to recognizing the entire Epiphany, expressed by Jesus himself: ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life’ (Jn 14:6). 

[1] Robert Frost, ‘The Road Not Taken’.

[2] Gaudium et spes – Church in the Modern World, par. 22.

Fr Kevin O’Gorman SMA, Wilton, Cork

 

JANUARY 2024 | For the gift of diversity in the Church

In this the first Pope’s Prayer intention for 2024, Pope Francis asks us to pray for “the gift of diversity in the Church. 

We are encouraged,

  • “to recognize the gift of different charisms within the Christian communities, and to discover the richness of different ritual traditions within the Catholic Church.”
  • The Holy Father also states that: “There is no need to fear the diversity of charisms in the Church.”  Diversity is a gift that enriches the life of the Church.

Text of Pope’s Message 
There is no need to fear the diversity of charisms in the Church. Rather, living this diversity should make us rejoice!
Diversity and unity were already very much present in the first Christian communities. The tension had to be resolved on a higher level.
But there’s more. To move forward on the journey of faith, we also need ecumenical dialogue with our brothers and sisters of other confessions and Christian communities.
This is not something confusing or disturbing, but is a gift God gives to the Christian community so it might grow as one body, the Body of Christ.
Let’s think, for example, of the Eastern Churches. They have their own traditions, their own characteristic liturgical rites…yet they maintain the unity of the faith. They strengthen it, not divide it.
If we are guided by the Holy Spirit, abundance, variety, diversity, never cause conflict.
The Holy Spirit reminds us first and foremost that we are children loved by God – everyone equal in God’s love, and everyone different.
Let us pray that the Spirit help us recognize the gift of different charisms within the Christian communities, and to discover the richness of different ritual traditions within the Catholic Church.

Homily for the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord Year B

Readings: Isaiah 50:1-11; 1 John 5:1-9; Mark 1:7-11
Theme: ‘You are my Son, the Beloved; my favour rests on you’ (Mark 1:11)

Today, we reach the end of the Christmas season, and come to the third great manifestation (‘epiphany’) of God in the person of Jesus. The first epiphany was at the birth of the child Jesus in a stable at Bethlehem, when he was visited and adored by shepherds, representing the poor and marginalized people of Israel. The second epiphany was when the wise men (magi) came from ‘the East’ to worship the baby Jesus, the new-born King. They represent all peoples and nations, who are invited to be numbered among God’s own people. Today, we celebrate the third great epiphany, the occasion of the baptism of Jesus by John, when He is revealed as God’s beloved Son.

The baptism of Jesus marks a major transition moment in his life. He is leaving behind the hidden years in Nazareth and entering the public arena for the first time.  Hence, the focus of our liturgy shifts from the baby in the manger to the adult Jesus about to embark on his messianic mission. His first public act is to join with a group of his fellow Jews, listening to the preaching of his cousin, John, and accepting to be baptized by him in the Jordan river.  At this time and in this place, Jesus is affirmed in his identity as God’s beloved Son: ‘No sooner had he come up out of the water than he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit, like a dove, descending on him. And a voice came from heaven, “You are my Son, the Beloved; my favour rests on you”’(Mk 1:11).

This affirmation of Jesus by his heavenly Father, his Abba, must have been a powerfully liberating experience for Jesus, preparing him for the mission on which he was about to embark – a mission that would take him from the foothills of Capernaum to the hill of Calvary. It was an experience of the Spirit empowering him to launch God’s reign of justice and peace in our broken world, to gather around him a community of followers, and communicate God’s gracious love by his personality, his teaching and his healing. It was this experience, too, that surely prepared him for another ‘baptism’ he would have to undergo (cf. Lk 12:50), the baptism of his suffering and death, by which his mission would be completed. Jesus would not be the great military leader who will liberate his people from Roman domination that many of his contemporaries expected.  Instead, he would be a suffering servant, a gentle and peaceful leader, identifying himself fully with the poor and oppressed of the land, and bringing healing and liberation not only to his people but to the world.

Recalling the baptism of Jesus and what it meant for him reminds us of our baptism and what it means for us. First, it reminds us of who we are, and to whom we belong. We are Abba’s beloved children. He delights in us. He is saying to each one of us, as he said to Jesus: ‘You are my beloved child. My favour rests on you’. This is our deepest and original identity. It is a given, not something we have to earn or prove to anyone. God is Love. He created us in love and cannot but love us. But we have to become aware, acknowledge, and claim our belovedness. According to the Franciscan author, Richard Rohr ‘the primary task of religion is to reconnect us with our original identity’. Sadly, too often, the way we understand and live our Christian faith does not help us to do this. The American poet, Raymond C. Carver, reminds each of us that the most important thing I need in life is ‘to call myself beloved/to feel myself beloved on the earth’. That means taking our baptism seriously and accepting what it signifies.

Secondly our baptism reminds us of our missionary calling as children of God. In acknowledging our inalienable dignity as God’s children, we are called to appreciate the Divine Presence in others by honoring them, loving them and serving them in all humility.  We are challenged to live as children of God in thought, word and action, and to share our faith with others. Our baptism involves much more than simply ‘saving our souls’ and ‘leading sinless lives’. It summons us to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world. It commits us to continue the mission of Jesus, becoming God’s co-creators in building up on earth his Kingdom of compassion, justice and love. I conclude this homily by leaving you with a sonnet from the pen of the poet, Malcolm Guite. It captures beautifully the meaning of today’s feast.

Beginning here we glimpse the Three-in-one;
The river runs, the clouds are torn apart,
The Father speaks, the Spirit and the Son
Reveal to us the single loving heart
That beats behind the being of all things
And calls and keeps and kindles us to light.

The dove descends, the spirit soars and sings
‘You are belovèd, you are my delight!’

In that quick light and life, as water spills
And streams around the Man like quickening rain,
The voice that made the universe reveals
The God in Man who makes it new again
He calls us too, to step into that river
To die and rise and live and love forever.

Michael McCabe SMA

MESSAGE OF POPE FRANCIS FOR WORLD DAY OF PEACE 1 JANUARY 2024

Below is the text of Pope Francis’s message for World Day of Peace.  The theme is Artificial Intelligence, a topic we have all heard of but, about which most of us do not, because of its complexity, have much understanding.  The message below gives a clear and informative overview of what AI is and what the social, political and human concerns that it gives rise to are.  If you wish to get a clearer understanding of what Artificial Intelligence is and how it should be developed then read on.   

Artificial Intelligence and Peace
At the beginning of the New Year, a time of grace which the Lord gives to each one of us, I would like to address God’s People, the various nations, heads of state and government, the leaders of the different religions and civil society, and all the men and women of our time, in order to offer my fervent good wishes for peace.

1. The progress of science and technology as a path to peace

Sacred Scripture attests that God bestowed his Spirit upon human beings so that they might have “skill and understanding and knowledge in every craft” (Ex 35:31). Human intelligence is an expression of the dignity with which we have been endowed by the Creator, who made us in his own image and likeness (cf. Gen 1:26), and enabled us to respond consciously and freely to his love. In a particular way, science and technology manifest this fundamentally relational quality of human intelligence; they are brilliant products of its creative potential.

In its Pastoral Constitution Gaudium et Spes, the Second Vatican Council restated this truth, declaring that “through its labours and its native endowments, humanity has ceaselessly sought to better its life”. [1] When human beings, “with the aid of technology”, endeavour to make “the earth a dwelling worthy of the whole human family”, [2] they carry out God’s plan and cooperate with his will to perfect creation and bring about peace among peoples. Progress in science and technology, insofar as it contributes to greater order in human society and greater fraternal communion and freedom, thus leads to the betterment of humanity and the transformation of the world.

We rightly rejoice and give thanks for the impressive achievements of science and technology, as a result of which countless ills that formerly plagued human life and caused great suffering have been remedied. At the same time, techno-scientific advances, by making it possible to exercise hitherto unprecedented control over reality, are placing in human hands a vast array of options, including some that may pose a risk to our survival and endanger our common home. [3]

The remarkable advances in new information technologies, particularly in the digital sphere, thus offer exciting opportunities and grave risks, with serious implications for the pursuit of justice and harmony among peoples. Any number of urgent questions need to be asked. What will be the consequences, in the medium and long term, of these new digital technologies? And what impact will they have on individual lives and on societies, on international stability and peace?

2. The future of artificial intelligence: between promise and risk

Progress in information technology and the development of digital technologies in recent decades have already begun to effect profound transformations in global society and its various dynamics. New digital tools are even now changing the face of communications, public administration, education, consumption, personal interactions and countless other aspects of our daily lives.

Moreover, from the digital footprints spread throughout the Internet, technologies employing a variety of algorithms can extract data that enable them to control mental and relational habits for commercial or political purposes, often without our knowledge, thus limiting our conscious exercise of freedom of choice. In a space like the Web, marked by information overload, they can structure the flow of data according to criteria of selection that are not always perceived by the user.

We need to remember that scientific research and technological innovations are not disembodied and “neutral”, [4] but subject to cultural influences. As fully human activities, the directions they take reflect choices conditioned by personal, social and cultural values in any given age. The same must be said of the results they produce: precisely as the fruit of specifically human ways of approaching the world around us, the latter always have an ethical dimension, closely linked to decisions made by those who design their experimentation and direct their production towards particular objectives.

This is also the case with forms of artificial intelligence. To date, there is no single definition of artificial intelligence in the world of science and technology. The term itself, which by now has entered into everyday parlance, embraces a variety of sciences, theories and techniques aimed at making machines reproduce or imitate in their functioning the cognitive abilities of human beings. To speak in the plural of “forms of intelligence” can help to emphasize above all the unbridgeable gap between such systems, however amazing and powerful, and the human person: in the end, they are merely “fragmentary”, in the sense that they can only imitate or reproduce certain functions of human intelligence. The use of the plural likewise brings out the fact that these devices greatly differ among themselves and that they should always be regarded as “socio-technical systems”. For the impact of any artificial intelligence device – regardless of its underlying technology – depends not only on its technical design, but also on the aims and interests of its owners and developers, and on the situations in which it will be employed.

Artificial intelligence, then, ought to be understood as a galaxy of different realities. We cannot presume a priori that its development will make a beneficial contribution to the future of humanity and to peace among peoples. That positive outcome will only be achieved if we show ourselves capable of acting responsibly and respect such fundamental human values as “inclusion, transparency, security, equity, privacy and reliability”. [5]

Nor is it sufficient simply to presume a commitment on the part of those who design algorithms and digital technologies to act ethically and responsibly. There is a need to strengthen or, if necessary, to establish bodies charged with examining the ethical issues arising in this field and protecting the rights of those who employ forms of artificial intelligence or are affected by them. [6]

The immense expansion of technology thus needs to be accompanied by an appropriate formation in responsibility for its future development. Freedom and peaceful coexistence are threatened whenever human beings yield to the temptation to selfishness, self-interest, the desire for profit and the thirst for power. We thus have a duty to broaden our gaze and to direct techno-scientific research towards the pursuit of peace and the common good, in the service of the integral development of individuals and communities. [7]

The inherent dignity of each human being and the fraternity that binds us together as members of the one human family must undergird the development of new technologies and serve as indisputable criteria for evaluating them before they are employed, so that digital progress can occur with due respect for justice and contribute to the cause of peace. Technological developments that do not lead to an improvement in the quality of life of all humanity, but on the contrary aggravate inequalities and conflicts, can never count as true progress. [8]

Artificial intelligence will become increasingly important. The challenges it poses are technical, but also anthropological, educational, social and political. It promises, for instance, liberation from drudgery, more efficient manufacturing, easier transport and more ready markets, as well as a revolution in processes of accumulating, organizing and confirming data. We need to be aware of the rapid transformations now taking place and to manage them in ways that safeguard fundamental human rights and respect the institutions and laws that promote integral human development. Artificial intelligence ought to serve our best human potential and our highest aspirations, not compete with them.

3. The technology of the future: machines that “learn” by themselves

In its multiple forms, artificial intelligence based on machine learning techniques, while still in its pioneering phases, is already introducing considerable changes to the fabric of societies and exerting a profound influence on cultures, societal behaviours and peacebuilding.

Developments such as machine learning or deep learning, raise questions that transcend the realms of technology and engineering, and have to do with the deeper understanding of the meaning of human life, the construction of knowledge, and the capacity of the mind to attain truth.

The ability of certain devices to produce syntactically and semantically coherent texts, for example, is no guarantee of their reliability. They are said to “hallucinate”, that is, to create statements that at first glance appear plausible but are unfounded or betray biases. This poses a serious problem when artificial intelligence is deployed in campaigns of disinformation that spread false news and lead to a growing distrust of the communications media. Privacy, data ownership and intellectual property are other areas where these technologies engender grave risks. To which we can add other negative consequences of the misuse of these technologies, such as discrimination, interference in elections, the rise of a surveillance society, digital exclusion and the exacerbation of an individualism increasingly disconnected from society. All these factors risk fueling conflicts and hindering peace.

4. The sense of limit in the technocratic paradigm

Our world is too vast, varied and complex ever to be fully known and categorized. The human mind can never exhaust its richness, even with the aid of the most advanced algorithms. Such algorithms do not offer guaranteed predictions of the future, but only statistical approximations. Not everything can be predicted, not everything can be calculated; in the end, “realities are greater than ideas”. [9] No matter how prodigious our calculating power may be, there will always be an inaccessible residue that evades any attempt at quantification.

In addition, the vast amount of data analyzed by artificial intelligences is in itself no guarantee of impartiality. When algorithms extrapolate information, they always run the risk of distortion, replicating the injustices and prejudices of the environments where they originate. The faster and more complex they become, the more difficult it proves to understand why they produced a particular result.

“Intelligent” machines may perform the tasks assigned to them with ever greater efficiency, but the purpose and the meaning of their operations will continue to be determined or enabled by human beings possessed of their own universe of values. There is a risk that the criteria behind certain decisions will become less clear, responsibility for those decisions concealed, and producers enabled to evade their obligation to act for the benefit of the community. In some sense, this is favoured by the technocratic system, which allies the economy with technology and privileges the criterion of efficiency, tending to ignore anything unrelated to its immediate interests. [10]

This should lead us to reflect on something frequently overlooked in our current technocratic and efficiency-oriented mentality, as it is decisive for personal and social development: the “sense of limit”. Human beings are, by definition, mortal; by proposing to overcome every limit through technology, in an obsessive desire to control everything, we risk losing control over ourselves; in the quest for an absolute freedom, we risk falling into the spiral of a “technological dictatorship”. Recognizing and accepting our limits as creatures is an indispensable condition for reaching, or better, welcoming fulfilment as a gift. In the ideological context of a technocratic paradigm inspired by a Promethean presumption of self-sufficiency, inequalities could grow out of proportion, knowledge and wealth accumulate in the hands of a few, and grave risks ensue for democratic societies and peaceful coexistence. [11]  

5. Burning issues for ethics

In the future, the reliability of an applicant for a mortgage, the suitability of an individual for a job, the possibility of recidivism on the part of a convicted person, or the right to receive political asylum or social assistance could be determined by artificial intelligence systems. The lack of different levels of mediation that these systems introduce is particularly exposed to forms of bias and discrimination: systemic errors can easily multiply, producing not only injustices in individual cases but also, due to the domino effect, real forms of social inequality.

At times too, forms of artificial intelligence seem capable of influencing individuals’ decisions by operating through pre-determined options associated with stimuli and dissuasions, or by operating through a system of regulating people’s choices based on information design. These forms of manipulation or social control require careful attention and oversight, and imply a clear legal responsibility on the part of their producers, their deployers, and government authorities.

Reliance on automatic processes that categorize individuals, for instance, by the pervasive use of surveillance or the adoption of social credit systems, could likewise have profound repercussions on the social fabric by establishing a ranking among citizens. These artificial processes of categorization could lead also to power conflicts, since they concern not only virtual users but real people. Fundamental respect for human dignity demands that we refuse to allow the uniqueness of the person to be identified with a set of data. Algorithms must not be allowed to determine how we understand human rights, to set aside the essential human values of compassion, mercy and forgiveness, or to eliminate the possibility of an individual changing and leaving his or her past behind.

Nor can we fail to consider, in this context, the impact of new technologies on the workplace. Jobs that were once the sole domain of human labour are rapidly being taken over by industrial applications of artificial intelligence. Here too, there is the substantial risk of disproportionate benefit for the few at the price of the impoverishment of many. Respect for the dignity of labourers and the importance of employment for the economic well-being of individuals, families, and societies, for job security and just wages, ought to be a high priority for the international community as these forms of technology penetrate more deeply into our workplaces.

6. Shall we turn swords into ploughshares?

In these days, as we look at the world around us, there can be no escaping serious ethical questions related to the armaments sector.  The ability to conduct military operations through remote control systems has led to a lessened perception of the devastation caused by those weapon systems and the burden of responsibility for their use, resulting in an even more cold and detached approach to the immense tragedy of war. Research on emerging technologies in the area of so-called Lethal Autonomous Weapon Systems, including the weaponization of artificial intelligence, is a cause for grave ethical concern. Autonomous weapon systems can never be morally responsible subjects. The unique human capacity for moral judgment and ethical decision-making is more than a complex collection of algorithms, and that capacity cannot be reduced to programming a machine, which as “intelligent” as it may be, remains a machine. For this reason, it is imperative to ensure adequate, meaningful and consistent human oversight of weapon systems.

Nor can we ignore the possibility of sophisticated weapons ending up in the wrong hands, facilitating, for instance, terrorist attacks or interventions aimed at destabilizing the institutions of legitimate systems of government. In a word, the world has no need of new technologies that contribute to the unjust development of commerce and the weapons trade and consequently end up promoting the folly of war. By so doing, not only intelligence but the human heart itself would risk becoming ever more “artificial”. The most advanced technological applications should not be employed to facilitate the violent resolution of conflicts, but rather to pave the way for peace.

On a more positive note, if artificial intelligence were used to promote integral human development, it could introduce important innovations in agriculture, education and culture, an improved level of life for entire nations and peoples, and the growth of human fraternity and social friendship. In the end, the way we use it to include the least of our brothers and sisters, the vulnerable and those most in need, will be the true measure of our humanity.

An authentically humane outlook and the desire for a better future for our world surely indicates the need for a cross-disciplinary dialogue aimed at an ethical development of algorithms – an algor-ethics – in which values will shape the directions taken by new technologies. [12] Ethical considerations should also be taken into account from the very beginning of research, and continue through the phases of experimentation, design, production, distribution and marketing. This is the approach of ethics by design, and it is one in which educational institutions and decision-makers have an essential role to play.

7. Challenges for education

The development of a technology that respects and serves human dignity has clear ramifications for our educational institutions and the world of culture. By multiplying the possibilities of communication, digital technologies have allowed us to encounter one another in new ways. Yet there remains a need for sustained reflection on the kinds of relationships to which they are steering us. Our young people are growing up in cultural environments pervaded by technology, and this cannot but challenge our methods of teaching, education and training.

Education in the use of forms of artificial intelligence should aim above all at promoting critical thinking. Users of all ages, but especially the young, need to develop a discerning approach to the use of data and content collected on the web or produced by artificial intelligence systems. Schools, universities and scientific societies are challenged to help students and professionals to grasp the social and ethical aspects of the development and uses of technology.

Training in the use of new means of communication should also take account not only of disinformation, “fake news”, but also the disturbing recrudescence of “certain ancestral fears… that have been able to hide and spread behind new technologies”. [13] Sadly, we once more find ourselves having to combat “the temptation to build a culture of walls, to raise walls… in order to prevent an encounter with other cultures and other peoples”, [14] and the development of a peaceful and fraternal coexistence.

8. Challenges for the development of international law

The global scale of artificial intelligence makes it clear that, alongside the responsibility of sovereign states to regulate its use internally, international organizations can play a decisive role in reaching multilateral agreements and coordinating their application and enforcement. [15] In this regard, I urge the global community of nations to work together in order to adopt a binding international treaty that regulates the development and use of artificial intelligence in its many forms. The goal of regulation, naturally, should not only be the prevention of harmful practices but also the encouragement of best practices, by stimulating new and creative approaches and encouraging individual or group initiatives. [16]

In the quest for normative models that can provide ethical guidance to developers of digital technologies, it is indispensable to identify the human values that should undergird the efforts of societies to formulate, adopt and enforce much-needed regulatory frameworks. The work of drafting ethical guidelines for producing forms of artificial intelligence can hardly prescind from the consideration of deeper issues regarding the meaning of human existence, the protection of fundamental human rights and the pursuit of justice and peace. This process of ethical and juridical discernment can prove a precious opportunity for shared reflection on the role that technology should play in our individual and communal lives, and how its use can contribute to the creation of a more equitable and humane world. For this reason, in debates about the regulation of artificial intelligence, the voices of all stakeholders should be taken into account, including the poor, the powerless and others who often go unheard in global decision-making processes.

* * *

I hope that the foregoing reflection will encourage efforts to ensure that progress in developing forms of artificial intelligence will ultimately serve the cause of human fraternity and peace. It is not the responsibility of a few but of the entire human family. For peace is the fruit of relationships that recognize and welcome others in their inalienable dignity, and of cooperation and commitment in seeking the integral development of all individuals and peoples.

It is my prayer at the start of the New Year that the rapid development of forms of artificial intelligence will not increase cases of inequality and injustice all too present in today’s world, but will help put an end to wars and conflicts, and alleviate many forms of suffering that afflict our human family. May Christian believers, followers of various religions and men and women of good will work together in harmony to embrace the opportunities and confront the challenges posed by the digital revolution and thus hand on to future generations a world of greater solidarity, justice and peace.

From the Vatican, 8 December 2023

FRANCISCUS

Homily for Sunday 31st December 2023 – Feast of the Holy Family

Theme:   ‘Let the message of Christ, in all its richness, find a home with you’ (Colossians 3:18)

Readings: Genesis:15:1-6 and 21:1-3; Colossians 3:12-21; Luke 2:22-40

On this Feast of the Holy Family we are invited to reflect on the importance of family in our lives and on the values which underpin and sustain it. Created in the image of a God who is a Community-in-Love (three in one), the meaning of our lives is to be found in relationship.  Our identity as human beings is inseparable from that network of relationships we call ‘family’ – not just the family into which we are born, but the wider family of friends and relations, of county and country, of Church, of all humanity and, indeed, of all God’s creatures, great and small, with whom we are inextricably connected.  And our final destiny is to belong to the family of the blessed in heaven.   We might say that family is inscribed in our DNA. It is part of who and what we are. All this is all beautifully captured in the Africa philosophy of Ubuntu, which means  ‘I am because we are’.

Our readings today are all about family. The first reading from the book of Genesis tells us the story of the patriarch, Abraham and his wife Sarah, who were already old before God blessed them with children. Abraham’s anguish at his childless condition is reflected in his complaint to the Lord: ‘See, you have given me no descendants; some man of my household will be my heir’ (Gen 15:3). But the Lord assures him that he will have heirs from his own flesh and blood – heirs as numerous as the stars of heaven. Despite the seeming improbability of this promise, given that Sarah was well past child-bearing age, we are told that Abraham put his faith in the Lord, and he and his wife were blessed with a son, Isaac. This reading reminds us that children are gifts of God. While they enter the world through their parents, they do not belong to them. In the concise words of the Lebanese poet, Khalil Gibran, speaking to parents: 

They come through you but not from you,
And, though they are with you,
Yet they belong not to you.’

The gospel reading – Luke’s account of the presentation of the baby Jesus in the Temple – also highlights the truth that children do not belong to their parents.    While in the temple, the holy family meet two elderly Israelites, Simeon and Anna. Representatives of the faithful remnant of Israel (the anawim), who hoped and longed for the liberation of Israel, they recognise the baby Jesus as the promised Messiah. The joy of Simeon, is captured in his beautiful prayer: ‘Now, Master, you can let your servant go in peace, just as you promised; because my eyes have seen the salvation which you have prepared for all the nations to see, a light to enlighten the pagans, and the glory of your people, Israel’ (Lk 2:29). Luke tells us that Mary and Joseph are wrapped in wonder at the gracious words of Simeon. However, they are brought down to earth with a bang by Simeon’s next words to Mary: ‘You see this child: he is destined for the fall and the rising of many in Israel, destined to be a sign that is rejected – an a sword will pierce your own soul, too’ (Lk 2: 34-35).

It is impossible to hear these words today without thinking of the many mothers (and fathers), in Gaza, Israel, Ukraine, Sudan, Nigeria, and many other countries, whose hearts are pierced with unspeakable pain at what is happening to their children in our troubled and violent world.  There is no easy answer to their pain, except to remember that it was this deeply wounded world that Christ was born into, and came to save. And to remember, too, that life for the holy family was not all sunshine and roses. They were not spared the anguish and pain that many families are experiencing today. They had to undertake a perilous journey when Mary was heavily pregnant and she had to bring her precious baby to birth in an animal shelter. They had to endure the terror of an imminent threat to the life of their special child, and flee into exile until the threat was ended. They were no strangers to hurt and puzzlement as their teenage Son asserted his independence, and to the pain of his rejection by the very people he came to save.

Christmas is a time for us to re-connect and bond with family and friends – those with whom we feel most at home. Many of you will recall, perhaps with a sense of nostalgia, ‘the good old days’ when homes were places where families and friends met and talked, laughed and sang, and celebrated life together.  Today, we live in a world of mass communication with the latest state of the art iphones and ipads, but perhaps we communicate less with those who matter most in our lives.  Christmas is a time when we should make a special effort to reach out to those whose love creates a home for us in ‘this crazy world’ (Christy Dignam). It is a time to let go of grudges and build bridges, a time, as St Paul reminds us in our second Reading, ‘to let the message of Christ, in all its richness, find a home’ in us,  a time to be kind,  compassionate and gentle; a time to forgive and to let the peace of Christ reign in our hearts, not just now but at all times.

Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below. 

Christmas is the night of joy and liberation from slavery: missionaries urge the faithful to build an internal nativity scene

Giovanni Benetti SMA

“Instead of working only on setting up the physical nativity scene, we insisted on building the interior nativity scene, the nativity scene of our hearts”. This is what the parish priest of the Good Shepherd parish of Cotonou, Father Hubert Kèdowidé, writes on the occasion of the Christmas holidays, celebrations which in Benin Republic, West Africa, arouse deep enthusiasm among Christians, but also among many non-Christians. “In addition to evening parish retreats priests are available every day for Confessions after the morning Masses”.

SMA Father Giovanni Benetti, in an interview with FIDES, stated that “almost everywhere, as the holiday approaches, you can hear poems, songs and Christmas stories.” Father Giovanni has been at the International Spiritual Year Centre of the Society of African Missions [SMA] in Calavi, near the capital Cotonou, for almost three years. At the Brésillac Centre [named after the Venerable Bishop Melchior de Marion Brésillac, SMA Founder] the SMA train their future SMA priests. “Several families plant two stakes in front of their house, and hang a papaya on which a candle is placed,” Fr Giovanni explains. “In Godomey, near Calavi, every December evening, groups of children, known as Kaléta, wear masks and go from house to house offering their show. Equipped with small nativity scenes made by themselves, they parade and sing popular songs in chorus that announce the imminence of Christmas”.

Danse_de_masque_Caleta_sur_une_plage_de_Cotonou_au_Bénin_01 Wikimedia Commons

The Kaléta tradition was originally imported from Brazil. It is the legacy of the return of former slaves from Brazil to Benin around 1830. Kaléta is one of the five categories of masks present on the coasts of the Gulf of Guinea, but compared to the other four it lacks cult. This is why it is called a ‘children’s thing’.

The SMA missionary describes how Christmas in Benin is also a children’s celebration. “It is children who are offered gifts. At the Brésillac Center a big party is organized for all the children of the neighborhood.

The days fly by and, after much waiting, the night of the Nativity arrives. Midnight Mass draws crowds; it is well prepared and is a moment of enthusiastic faith that can last three hours or more. Fatigue and sleep are not felt: it is the night of joy and liberation from all slavery; it is the night of the birth of Jesus, the liberator, the saviour, the redeemer.

Brésillac Center, Calavi, Benin

“After Mass, everyone is in solidarity: the doors of the houses are opened wide and everyone is welcome to drink and eat. No one is left alone. No one is surprised to see a homeless person arrive. He will enter at home, he will sit and eat like the others”, concludes Father Benetti.

Benin is a young Church where only a little more than 160 years ago the first missionaries [Italian and French SMA priests] reached the Slave Coast, as the South of the country was then called, with the first real project of the Catholic Church to establish a stable presence of missionaries in those lands. (see Fides, 14/4/2021).

With thanks to FIDES for the use of this article which first appeared in FIDES on 22 December 2023.  https://www.fides.org/en/list/africa

  

 

 

A Christmas Meditation

Sharon Mollerus (CC BY 2.0
Newspapers reporting Mariopul shelling, AP Photo/Alastair Grant) CC BY-NC 4.0

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

‘The image sticks in the mind. A young woman, her heavily pregnant belly heaving, as she is carried on a stretcher away from a blasted-out building’.[1] These words almost say it all. Tragically they refer to the picture on the cover page of The Sunday Times magazine portraying 2022/The Year in Pictures, taken outside Maternity Hospital No. 3 in Mariupol, Ukraine, on March 9th of that year after an air strike on the facility. Sadly, the woman was fatally wounded and ‘the baby was stillborn: a little boy that his parents [Iryna and Ivan] had planned to call Miron after the Russian word for peace’.[2] The pathos of this picture is all the more profound when viewed in the panorama of photographs and clips of civilians caught up in the violence of present and pitiless conflicts. While the church celebrates in joy and gladness the journey of Mary and Joseph to Bethlehem and the birth of Jesus, the cross of suffering, separation and sadness in our ‘death-shadowed world’[3] is never far from its consciousness.

Word made flesh

The two great mysteries of Christ’s life are the Incarnation and the Resurrection. Christmas puts the focus on the child in the crib while Easter emphasizes the empty tomb and the subsequent appearances of the Risen Lord to the disciples. While we are more familiar with the so-called Infancy Narratives in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, it is in the Gospel of John that we hear the crescendo in the Prologue (read at Mass on Christmas Day), ‘The Word became flesh and lived among us’. Here the evangelist emphasises the entry of the eternal Word on earth, the human existence of ‘the only-begotten Son of the Father’. The church eschews any element of excarnation as emphasized by Pope Francis in his exclusion of any trace of Gnosticism from Christian faith, a heresy which exclaims salvation through escape from any form of earthly existence. While retaining the romantic, the Christmas story is rooted in a realism which recognizes both the fragility of life and the fortitude needed to face it. Christmas does not communicate or contemplate an abstract truth; the crib is not a computer containing a program but a manger nestling a newborn baby. A poor imitation of a Moses Basket, the manger symbolizes the messy human situation in which the heavenly Son of God is immersed and identifies with, ‘for us and for our salvation’. While God-in-man remains mystery, the mission of the Word made flesh is to make us friends and family of the heavenly Father.

Christmas is not a fairytale but a festival in which the church celebrates its three ‘R’s: remembering in faith the coming of the Messiah, the Christ child; renewing its hope in the coming of the Lord in majesty; receiving by charity the coming of God’s grace in mystery.

‘The maiden is with child’

Heard throughout Advent this proclamation from the prophet Isaiah continues ‘and shall bear a son and shall name him Immanuel’ (7:14). Taken over into the Gospel of Matthew and translated ‘the virgin shall conceive’, the evangelist explains the name Immanuel ‘which means “God is with us” (1:23), an indication of the Virgin birth of Jesus following his conception by Mary through the Holy Spirit. Mary is, of course, central to the Christmas story as mother of the child in the crib, the Christ. Her consent – complete and continual – to the invitation of the angel to be intimately involved in the Incarnation is now carried out in childbirth and care for the infant in her arms, an image that has been the inspiration for artists throughout the centuries which appear on many religious Christmas cards.

Prince of Peace

Widespread wars in the world today may make people wary of talk about peace. A world-weary cynicism might conclude that there is no point in talking, even thinking, about peace. However, this is to give up on the moral virtues of justice and courage and fail to hang onto the theological virtue of hope. As with the conception of Jesus an angel announces the advent of peace associated with his birth: ‘And this is a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a throng of the heavenly host, praising God and saying: ‘Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among people of good will.’ (Lk 2:13-14). While, in the words of Joseph Ratzinger (Pope Benedict XVI), ‘God is glorious, is indestructible truth, eternal beauty [and] that is the fundamental, comforting security of our faith’[4], God may still be glorified on earth by peaceful living among peoples. This year is the 55th anniversary of the meeting of the Bishops of Latin America after the Second Vatican Council at Medellίn and the Conference document characterized the ‘Christian view of peace’ as  formed by the following three factors: ‘a work of justice [which] presupposes and requires the establishment of a just order; ‘a permanent task [because] peace is not found, it is built; the fruit of love [which] is the expression of true fraternity, given by Christ, Prince of Peace, in reconciling all people with the Father’. The declaration – ‘Peace with God is the basic foundation of internal and social peace[5] – invites the three ‘Ds’ of devotion, discernment and doing on our part as we honour the presence of the Prince of Peace in our hearts and homes this Christmas.

As Mother of the Prince of Peace we can ask Mary to intercede: Our Lady, Queen of peace, pray for us.

Fr Kevin O’Gorman, SMA

 

[1] Naomi O’Leary, ‘Europe Letter’, The Irish Times, 16th November 2023.

[2] Idem.

[3] Phrase taken from Michael Simone, America, 216 (3rd April 2017), 52.

[4] Jesus of Nazareth – The Infancy Narratives, p. 76

[5] From eds. David J. O’Brien and Thomas A. Shannon, ‘Medellín Conference’ in Renewing the Earth – Catholic Documents on Peace, Justice and Liberation, (Image Books).

DECEMBER 2023| For those with disabilities

Pope Francis asks the Church and civil institutions to embrace inclusion and to foster the active participation of people with disabilities

 Pope Francis asks for prayers for people with disabilities so that they “may be at the center of attention in society.”

“It means changing our mentality a little and opening ourselves to the abilities and talents of these people who are differently abled,” the Holy Father reflects.

In addition, Pope Francis calls on institutions to promote “inclusion programs that enhance” the active participation of persons with disabilities.

TEXT OF MESSAGE
People with disabilities are among the most fragile among us.
Some of them suffer rejection, rooted in either ignorance or prejudice, which then marginalizes them.
Civil institutions need to support their projects through access to education, employment, and places where they can express their creativity.
Programs and initiatives are needed that promote their inclusion.
Above all else, big hearts are needed who want to accompany.
It means changing our mentality a little and opening ourselves to the abilities and talents of these people who are differently abled, both in society as well as in the life of the Church.
And so, creating a completely accessible parish does not only mean eliminating physical barriers. It also assumes that we stop talking about “them” and start talking about “us.”
Let us pray that people with disabilities may be at the center of attention in society, and that institutions offer inclusion programs that enhance their active participation.
Pope Francis – December 2023

 

CREDITS

Reflection for the last week of Advent – Fr Seamus Nohilly SMA

For the past three weeks we have brought you Reflections from SMA Fathers focusing on different aspects of our faith and Christian living as we prepare to celebrate the birth of Christ.  

This is the fourth and last reflection in this series. It comes from Fr Seamus Nohilly who is a member of the SMA Community living in Wilton in Cork.

Fr Seamus reflects on his first Christmas on mission in Nigeria when, while visiting a distant outstation,  he was left in a situation where he was waiting, uncertain about what would happen and in need of reassurance.  

 

  

  

Homily for the 4th Sunday of Advent 2023

Readings: 2 Samuel 7:1-5,8-11,16; Romans 16:25-27; Luke 1:26-38

Theme: Having the Courage to say  ‘Yes’  to God

The role of Mary in the unfolding of God’s plan of salvation is one of the great themes of the Advent season. In today’s Eucharist, the story of the Annunciation is introduced in our opening prayer, and recounted in the gospel reading from Luke – that dramatic moment when Mary said ‘yes’ to the message of the Angel Gabriel: ‘Mary, do not be afraid; you have won God’s favour. Listen! You are to conceive and bear a son, and you must name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High’ (Lk 1:30-32).

Mary’s ‘yes’ to God was probably the greatest act of faith a human being has ever made.  Once assured that it was through God’s Spirit that she would become the mother of Jesus, Mary responded with the total gift of herself: ‘Be it done unto me according to your word’ (Lk 1:38). Speaking of her decisive response to the God’s invitation, Pope Francis reminds us of her courage, as well as her faith and obedience. She ‘knew how to reject fear, even while sensing that her ‘yes’ would bring her tremendously difficult trials.’ 

Mary’s courage in accepting to become the mother of Jesus is also highlighted by the poet, Denise Levertov, in her beautiful poem ‘Annunciation’:

Called to a destiny more momentous
than any in all of Time,
she did not quail,
only asked

a simple, ‘How can this be?’
and gravely, courteously,
took to heart the angel’s reply,
the astounding ministry she was offered:

to bear in her womb
Infinite weight and lightness; to carry
in hidden, finite inwardness,
nine months of Eternity; to contain
in slender vase of being,
the sum of power –
in narrow flesh,
the sum of light.   

Mary’s courageous response to God’s word was a response she made over and over again, as the implications of her initial ‘yes’ to the angel became clear to her. I will highlight a few special moments recorded by Luke which illustrate her courage as she grew in her understanding of God’s call to her and continued to deepen the ‘yes’ she gave to God.  When Mary and Joseph bring the child Jesus to the temple to be presented to the Lord, in accordance to Jewish custom, they are left wondering at the things that are being said about Jesus by Simeon. What Simeon was saying about the child was that he would be “a light to the Gentiles and the glory of Israel”. But he also prophesied that he would be “a sign of contradiction” and that “a sword will pierce” Mary’s own soul, too (Lk 2:34-35). This prophecy of Simeon must surely have troubled her. Yet it did not lead us to regret or question her initial decision but, rather, to deepen her response to the Lord.

Another incident, mentioned in Luke’s Gospel, gives us an insight of what Mary had to go through when Jesus was young boy asserting his independence. The incident occurred on the occasion of Mary and Joseph’s pilgrimage to Jerusalem when Jesus was just twelve years old. On that occasion, Jesus leaves his parents and remains behind in the Temple to converse and dispute with the doctors of the Jewish Law. After searching for him everywhere for three days, they eventually find him. On this occasion Mary speaks very sternly to her Son in words that reveal her anguish: ‘Why have you done this to us; see how worried your father and I have been, looking for you’ (Lk 2:48). Jesus’ enigmatic reply can only have sharpened her pain. “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” (Lk 2:49). Luke tells us simply that Mary and Joseph “did not understand what he meant” (Lk 2:50). 

What is striking is how Mary deals with her puzzlement and pain at what her Son has done: ‘Mary stored up all these things in her heart’ (Lk 2: 51). Perhaps it was that moment that prepared her for her most profound and courageous moment of all, her final ‘yes’ as she stood at the foot of the Cross as her Son lay dying, sharing his pain and suffering: ‘Standing by the Cross of Jesus were his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary, the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene (Jn 19:25).Unlike most of Apostles, who abandoned Jesus and fled in fear the moment he was captured, Mary stood by Jesus to the bitter end.

Mary not only accompanied her Son throughout his entire life, right up to his death and resurrection, she also accompanied the first steps of the timid and fearful early Church, praying with the men and women whom her Son had called to form his community. And Mary continues to accompany us as we strive, in our own way, to say ‘yes’ to God, and give birth to Jesus in our lives and in our world. Sometimes, like Mary, we may not understand what God is doing. And, like Mary, we are invited to ‘store up in our hearts’ the things we do not understand now, and imitate her courageous response to the Lord.  I will end this homily with a prayer:

Lord, you invite us to respond to your call at every moment of our lives Give us the courage to respond with generosity, and help us to echo Mary’s ‘Yes’  in all the  circumstances of our lives.

Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below. 

“Transition away from” – COP28 from the perspective of Laudate Deum

COP28 copyright Mahmoud Khaled CC

The 11th hour inclusion of the phrase “Transition away from” fossil fuels marked the end of COP28. This, statement hailed by some as “historic” is at best a half-hearted victory, a baby-step at a time when a giant leap forward is needed.

Laudate Deum, Pope Francis recent Apostolic Exhortation specifically set a standard for COP 28 success. Recognising that global C02 emissions are still increasing it stated that “the necessary transition towards clean energy sources such as wind and solar energy, and the abandonment of fossil fuels, is not progressing at the necessary speed.” (55) It then says: “If there is sincere interest in making COP28 a historic event …then one can only hope for binding forms of energy transition that meet three conditions: that they be efficient, obligatory and readily monitored”. (par 59) “Transition away from” falls far short of these conditions.

It is true that “fossil fuels” were mentioned by name for the first time in a COP agreement, – in this sense it could be said that history was made in Dubai, but by the standards of Laudate Deum it was not an historic event.  One commentator referred to the phrase “Transition away from” as having a “constructive ambiguity.” It is an expression of unclear intent rather than the defined commitment that is needed.

A post COP28 email received from greenfaith.org, quoted in the paragraphs below, gives the following assessment of the summit: 

Most of you will have seen headlines about COP28’s concluding call for a “transition” away from fossil fuels. While such a transition is necessary, we have grave reservations about this COP’s concluding statement for three reasons.

It is not enough. The COP statement is non-binding, non-enforceable, and non-specific. There are no timetables or benchmarks. By comparison, in the face of COVID19, governments committed trillions of dollars within months. When Russia invaded Ukraine, national spending in the US and Europe surged immediately. Governments know how to act when they face a crisis which they consider a priority. In contrast, this year’s COP produced “a purely voluntary commitment by fossil fuel companies to better capture methane.” Non-binding statements and voluntary pledges are an insufficient response to any moral responsibility, let alone an existential threat.

It is not trustworthy. COP has become a venue too often used for promises made to be broken. For example, in 2009 wealthy nations pledged to commit $100 billion annually in climate finance by 2020 to assist developing countries. To date, Oxfam has reported that they have provided less than a third of that amount. Two years ago, at COP26, banks and asset managers were showered with praise for pledging to decarbonize their balance sheets by 2050. When Russia’s invasion of Ukraine caused oil and gas prices to spike, they ditched their commitment. The climate crisis requires what all our faiths require: reliable commitments, not posturing before the cameras.

It is not timely. Emissions continue to rise while tipping points draw nearer. It is widely known that nations must dramatically accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels in order to avoid temperatures surging beyond 1.5 degrees. Beyond that level, climate disasters will become so extreme that people will not be able to adapt. Basic components of the Earth system will be fundamentally, irrevocably altered.  In the face of such danger, human decency requires serious deadlines. Non-specific statements designed to facilitate equivocation are immoral. (source greenfaith.org)

COP28 – CC BY-NC 4.0 Midia NINJA

The views of greefaith.org representatives who attended COP28 reflect the feelings and views of many NGO’s and country representatives from the global south. The already weakened trust in the COP process has not been helped by the outcome of this Summit where once again wealthy and resource rich countries have called the shots.  

Pope Francis hoped that COP28 would establish “binding forms of energy transition that meet three conditions: that they be efficient, obligatory and readily monitored”. This did not happen.

The missed opportunity of COP 28 is summed up by Anne Rasmussen, representative of the Samoan Islands, in the South Pacific where islands are disappearing because of rising sea levels. “We have made an incremental advancement over business as usual,” she said, “when what we really need is an exponential step change in our actions.”

REFLECTION FOR THE THIRD WEEK OF ADVENT – Fr Anthony Kelly SMA

Each week until Christmas a short video reflection on the Season of Advent will be published on this website.  Each reflection has been recorded by an SMA Father and will focus on different aspects of our faith and Christian living as we prepare to celebrate the birth of Christ.  

The third reflection in this series comes from Fr Anthony Kelly SMA, a member of the Provincial Leadership Team, based in Blackrock Road, Cork. 

Fr Anthony reflects on the darkness of winter that is broken by the lights of the Christmas.  Light is often something taken for granted rather than seen as a gift.  He remembers, Mother Teresa, Desmond Tutu and Pope John Paul II  – people who reflect the light of Christ, a light that is needed so much in the present world. 

Homily for the Third Sunday of Advent 2023

Readings: Isaiah 61:1-2,10-11; 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24; John 1:6-8,19-28

 Theme: Waiting in Joyful Hope

I will begin with a story  ‘There was once an Indian tribe whose camp was at the base of a great mountain. The land was rugged and life was hard, but the Native Americans persevered. Their chief had led them with wisdom and fairness for many years, but now death was approaching. He called his three sons to him and said, “I am dying, and one of you will succeed me as leader of our tribe. I want each of you to climb our holy mountain and bring back something beautiful. Return here in three days; whoever brings the most outstanding gift will become the new chief.” The young men took their father’s words very seriously, and went off with a sense of purpose and determination; each returned three days later.

The first son brought his father a flower, which he had picked near the summit of the mountain; it was very rare and beautiful, and the father was pleased.  The second son handed his father a beautiful stone, which he found in a crevice in the side of the mountain; it was colourful and smooth, having been polished by the rain and the wind, and again the father was pleased. The third son approached, but his hands were empty. He said, “Father, I have brought back nothing to show you. When I stood on the top of the mountain, I saw that on the other side there is a beautiful land filled with green pastures, lush forests, and a crystal lake. Because I had this vision of where our tribe could go for a better life, I was so overwhelmed that I could not bring anything back. I’m sorry.” To the young man’s great surprise, his father answered, “You shall be our tribe’s new leader, for you have brought back the most precious thing of all: the gift of a vision for a better future”’ (Paul Wharton)

A well know liturgist, writing on the Advent Liturgy, describes it as a continuous song of hope. Today’s liturgy especially captures this mood of joyful hope. Christianity is essentially a religion of hope.  At its core is a vision of a better and brighter future for all humanity and, indeed, for all creation – a hope based on the conviction that God has come to dwell among us to heal, redeem, and transform our lives. This is what he has done for us in and through his Son, who is, as Isaiah announces in our first reading, the anointed one ‘sent to bring good news to the poor, to bind up hearts that are broken; to proclaim liberty to captives, and freedom to those in prison’ (Is 61:1-2). In him, God’s reign of justice, peace and love was established on earth. And so, Christ is our hope, our Light, the light to which, as our gospel reading today states, John the Baptist ‘came as a witness, a witness to speak for the light’ (Jn 1:7).

Yet, in spite of Christ’s coming, we know that our world is not as God wants it to be. Horrific wars, injustice, exploitation, violence and hatred continue to darken our world. Confidence in the progress of civilization has been undermined by the appearance of new forms lawlessness, greed and selfishness. Political leaders – some democratically elected – sow hatred and division instead of justice and reconciliation. New forms of populism and fascism, spread by social media, replace reason and dialogue in political discourse. In a recently published novel, Prophet Song, which won the 2023 Booker prize, Paul Lynch depicts the shocking plight of a family striving to survive in an Ireland, gripped by fascism – a dystopian vision not as fanciful as we might think.  A drugs culture, spiraling out of control in many countries, including Ireland, destroys the lives of millions. The gap between the rich and poor continues to widen, and, despite the warnings of scientists and climate activists, world leaders, meeting at present in Dubai (COP 28), fail to take decisive action to save ‘our common home’.

In circumstances such as these it is hard to be optimistic, but Christian hope must not be confused with optimism. This hope is not naive about the reality of sin and human failure. The hope we celebrate in our Eucharist, and to which we strive to witness in our lives, is a hope that can look beyond the brokenness of our world and the messiness of our lives, because it is based on our faith in Christ. It is hope for a new life that rises out of the ashes of death and decay.  Such hope is not confined by the limits of our vision, or our human resources. Even when we are tempted to lose heart, God does not give up on us. His ultimate purpose in creation, reaffirmed in the incarnation, and gloriously manifested in the Resurrection of his Son, cannot fail.

We may feel overwhelmed at times like these when we hear that, because of the horrific slaughter in ‘The Holy Land’, there will be no Christmas Mass in Bethlehem this year. Yet, even when situations appear almost hopeless, we continue to hope, convinced that God will complete what he began when he sent us his Son. We may not know how or when this completion will happen, but, as surely as the dawn follows the darkness of night, it will happen.  It this hope that sustains us in these grim times, a hope based on the certainty that, in the words of St Paul, nothing can ‘come between us and the love of God, known to us in Christ Jesus, our Lord’ (Rm 8:39).

Fr Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below. 

REFLECTION FOR THE SECOND WEEK OF ADVENT – Fr Des Corrigan SMA

 
Each week until Christmas a short video reflection on the Season of Advent will be published on this website.  Each reflection has been recorded by an SMA Father and will focus on different aspects of our faith and Christian living as we prepare to celebrate the birth of Christ.  

The second in this series has been recorded by Fr Des Corrigan who lives and works in the SMA House Dromantine, County Down. 

Fr Des reflects on the autumnal falling leaves, so evident in the grounds of Dromantine.  The beautiful colours just before leaves let go and fall from the trees are, for him, a reminder that in our lives there are also things we need to let go – things that clutter up our lives and prevent the new growth of Spring. 

 

A Reflection based on the Readings for Saturday, 9th December 2023

Isaiah 30:19-21, 23-26      Matthew 9:35 – 10: 1,5,6-8

Matthew’s preferred image for Jesus is that of teacher. This is most evident in the Sermon on the Mount which takes up three chapters of his Gospel. The roots of this reach back into the scriptures of Israel when Isaiah reminds the people that God ‘is your teacher’. Today’s Gospel tells of Jesus travelling throughout ‘all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the Good News of the kingdom’.

But as the Second Vatican Council – in its document on Divine Revelation – teaches us, ‘To this people which He had acquired for Himself, He so manifested Himself through words and deeds as the one true and living God’. Both Isaiah and Matthew make clear that revelation involves both word and work. The evangelist expresses the motive for this – ‘when [Jesus] saw the crowds he felt sorry for them because they were harassed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd’. Message and mercy meet in revelation which one theologian has called ‘a verbal noun’. Thus revelation and salvation (from the Latin, salus, for health) are never separate, they are two sides of the one currency of God’s self-communication to humanity in history.

An educational and encouraging example of this faith in action is the photographic exhibition in the SMA Centre, Wilton (Cork) in the first week of Advent, entitled Daring to Hope – Irish Religious Sisters Embracing the Unknown (1923-2023). Here the history of their lives spent, at home and abroad, announces that faith and justice, truth and right action have been their motivation for mission. Dovetailing with today’s readings in Advent, the coming of God’s kingdom is both anticipated and awaited.

Fr Kevin O’Gorman SMA

Pope Francis to COP28: ‘Choose life, choose the future!’

Below is the message of Pope Francis to COP28 that was delivered by Cardinal Parolin on his behalf.  This powerful and hard hitting message urges world leaders not to postpone action any longer but to craft concrete and cohesive responses for the well-being of our common home and future generations.

I have the honour to read the Address that His Holiness Pope Francis prepared for this occasion: Mr President, Mr Secretary-General of the United Nations, Distinguished Heads of State and Government, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Sadly, I am unable to be present with you, as I had greatly desired. Even so, I am with you, because time is short. I am with you because now more than ever, the future of us all depends on the present that we now choose.

I am with you because the destruction of the environment is an offence against God, a sin that is not only personal but also structural, one that greatly endangers all human beings, especially the most vulnerable in our midst and threatens to unleash a conflict between generations. I am with you because climate change is “a global social issue and one intimately related to the dignity of human life” (Apostolic Exhortation Laudate Deum, 3).

I am with you to raise the question which we must answer now: Are we working for a culture of life or a culture of death? To all of you I make this heartfelt appeal: Let us choose life! Let us choose the future! May we be attentive to the cry of the earth, may we hear the plea of the poor, may we be sensitive to the hopes of the young and the dreams of children! We have a grave responsibility: to ensure that they not be denied their future.

It has now become clear that the climate change presently taking place stems from the overheating of the planet, caused chiefly by the increase of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere due to human activity, which in recent decades has proved unsustainable for the ecosystem. The drive to produce and possess has become an obsession, resulting in an inordinate greed that has made the environment the object of unbridled exploitation.

The climate, run amok, is crying out to us to halt this illusion of omnipotence. Let us once more recognize our limits, with humility and courage, as the sole path to a life of authentic fulfilment.

What stands in the way of this? The divisions that presently exist among us. Yet a world completely connected, like ours today, should not be un-connected by those who govern it, with international negotiations that  “cannot make significant progress due to positions taken by countries which place their national interests above the global common good” (Encyclical Letter Laudato Si’, 169).

We find ourselves facing firm and even inflexible positions calculated to protect income and business interests, at times justifying this on the basis of what was done in the past, and periodically shifting the responsibility to others. Yet the task to which we are called today is not about yesterday, but about tomorrow: a tomorrow that, whether we like it or not, will belong to everyone or else to no one.

Particularly striking in this regard are the attempts made to shift the blame onto the poor and high birth rates. These are falsities that must be firmly dispelled. It is not the fault of the poor, since the almost half of our world that is more needy is responsible for scarcely 10% of toxic emissions, while the gap between the opulent few and the masses of the poor has never been so abysmal.

The poor are the real victims of what is happening: we need think only of the plight of indigenous peoples, deforestation, the tragedies of hunger, water and food insecurity, and forced migration. Births are not a problem, but a resource: they are not opposed to life, but for life, whereas certain ideological and utilitarian models now being imposed with a velvet glove on families and peoples constitute real forms of colonization. The development of many countries, already burdened by grave economic debt, should not be penalized; instead, we should consider the footprint of a few nations responsible for a deeply troubling “ecological debt” towards many others (cf. ibid., 51-52). It would only be fair to find suitable means of remitting the financial debts that burden different peoples, not least in light of the ecological debt that they are owed.

Ladies and Gentlemen, allow me to speak to you, as brothers and sisters, in the name of the common home in which we live, and to ask this question: What is the way out of this? It is the one that you are pursuing in these days: the way of togetherness, multilateralism. Indeed, “our world has become so multipolar and at the same time so complex that a different framework for effective cooperation is required. It is not enough to think only of balances of power… It is a matter of establishing global and effective rules (Laudate Deum, 42).

In this regard, it is disturbing that global warming has been accompanied by a general cooling of multilateralism, a growing lack of trust within the international community, and a loss of the “shared awareness of being… a family of nations” (SAINT JOHN PAUL II, Address to the United Nations Organization for the Fiftieth Anniversary of its Establishment, New York, 5 October 1995, 14). It is essential to rebuild trust, which is the foundation of multilateralism.

This is true in the case of care for creation, but also that of peace. These are the most urgent issues and they are closely linked. How much energy is humanity wasting on the numerous wars presently in course, such as those in Israel and Palestine, in Ukraine and in many parts of the world: conflicts that will not solve problems but only increase them! How many resources are being squandered on weaponry that destroys lives and devastates our common home! Once more I present this proposal: “With the money spent on weapons and other military expenditures, let us establish a global fund that can finally put an end to hunger” (Encyclical Letter Fratelli Tutti, 262; cf. SAINT PAUL VI, Encyclical Letter Populorum Progressio, 51) and carry out works for the sustainable development of the poorer countries and for combating climate change.

It is up to this generation to heed the cry of peoples, the young and children, and to lay the foundations of a new multilateralism. Why not begin precisely from our common home? Climate change signals the need for political change. Let us emerge from the narrowness of self-interest and nationalism; these are approaches belonging to the past. Let us join in embracing an alternative vision: this will help to bring about an ecological conversion, for “there are no lasting changes without cultural changes” (Laudate Deum, 70). In this regard, I would assure you of the commitment and support of the Catholic Church, which is deeply engaged in the work of education and of encouraging participation by all, as well as in promoting sound lifestyles, since all are responsible and the contribution of each is fundamental.

Brothers and sisters, it is essential that there be a breakthrough that is not a partial change of course, but rather a new way of making progress together. The fight against climate change began in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, and the 2015 Paris Agreement represented “a new beginning” (ibid., 47). Now there is a need to set out anew. May this COP prove to be a turning point, demonstrating a clear and tangible political will that can lead to a decisive acceleration of ecological transition through means that meet three requirements: they must be “efficient, obligatory and readily monitored” (ibid., 59). And achieved in four sectors: energy efficiency; renewable sources; the elimination of fossil fuels; and education in lifestyles that are less dependent on the latter.

Please, let us move forward and not turn back. It is well-known that various agreements and commitments “have been poorly implemented, due to the lack of suitable mechanisms for oversight, periodic review and penalties in cases of non-compliance” (Laudato Si’, 167). Now is the time no longer to postpone, but to ensure, and not merely to talk about the welfare of your children, your citizens, your countries and our world. You are responsible for crafting policies that can provide concrete and cohesive responses, and in this way demonstrate the nobility of your role and the dignity of the service that you carry out. In the end, the purpose of power is to serve. It is useless to cling to an authority that will one day be remembered for its inability to take action when it was urgent and necessary to do so (cf. ibid., 57). History will be grateful to you. As will the societies in which you live, which are sadly divided into “fan bases”, between prophets of doom and indifferent bystanders, radical environmentalists and climate change deniers… It is useless to join the fray; in this case, as in the case of peace, it does not help to remedy the situation. The remedy is good politics: if an example of concreteness and cohesiveness comes from the top, this will benefit the base, where many people, especially the young, are already dedicated to caring for our common home.

May the year 2024 mark this breakthrough. I like to think that a good omen can be found in an event that took place in 1224. In that year, Francis of Assisi composed his “Canticle of the Creatures”. By then Francis was completely blind, and after a night of physical suffering, his spirits were elevated by a mystical experience. He then turned to praise the Most High for all those creatures that he could no longer see, but knew that they were his brothers and sisters, since they came forth from the same Father and were shared with other men and women. An inspired sense of fraternity thus led him to turn his pain into praise and his weariness into renewed commitment. Shortly thereafter, Francis added a stanza in which he praised God for those who forgive; he did this in order to settle – successfully – an unbecoming conflict between the civil authorities and the local bishop. I too, who bear the name Francis, with the heartfelt urgency of a prayer, want to leave you with this message: Let us leave behind our divisions and unite our forces! And with God’s help, let us emerge from the dark night of wars and environmental devastation in order to turn our common future into the dawn of a new and radiant day. Thank you.

Homily for the second Sunday of Advent 2023

Readings: Isaiah 40:1-5,9-11; 2 Peter 3:8-14; Mark 1:1-8
Theme: Prepare a way for the Lord, make his paths straight’ (Mark 1:3)

The note of joyful hope, rather than penance, dominates the season of Advent, as our first reading today shows: ‘Go up on a high mountain, joyful messenger of Zion. Shout with a loud voice, joyful messenger to Jerusalem. Shout without fear; say to the towns of Judah, “Here is your God”’ (Is 40:9). This was the good news that the prophet Isaiah brought to the crushed and dispirited exiles of Israel in the sixth century before Christ. He was telling them that their God had come to liberate them and bring them home. This is surely a message that must resonate with the many oppressed and ravaged people of our world today. We cannot help but think especially of the war-torn people of Ukraine and Gaza! How they must long for ‘the messenger who announces peace, who brings good news, who announces salvation’ (Is 52:7)

Our gospel reading opens with the proclamation of the ‘Good News about Jesus Christ, the Son of God’ (Mk 1:1), in whom Isaiah’s hope is fulfilled. In introducing his gospel, Mark highlights the role of John the Baptist in preparing the way for Christ. He presents him as the messenger foretold by Isaiah, the ‘voice that cries in the wilderness: prepare a way for the Lord, make his paths straight’ (Mk 1:3). From Jerusalem and the surrounding region of Judea large crowds of people travelled to the banks of the river Jordan to hear John.  These were people who had been, for a very long time, on the lookout for a sign of hope, for some indication that a fresh start was possible in their lives. John baptises them in the waters of the Jordan and summons them to repent and prepare a path in the desert for the one who comes after him, the one who will will baptise them with the Holy Spirit (cf. Mk 1:8). John’s baptism marks a new beginning for them, a time for them to turn away from sin and strive again to be faithful to God.

The desert John is referring to is not just a physical desert; it is a symbol for the desert of the world and of our hearts. And making a pathway in the desert indicates the work we need to do as we prepare to welcome Christ this Christmas and await his second coming: filling in the valleys of misery and injustice; razing to the ground the hills of stubbornness and pride; making straight the twisted paths of corruption and lies; and clothing ourselves with humility, integrity and holiness – tasks that this special season of grace summons us to undertake with a renewed sense of purpose. Our second reading today, from Saint Peter, reminds us of the vision that informs this sense of purpose and the kind of lives that reflect it: ‘What we are waiting for is what he promised; the new heavens and new earth, the place where righteousness will be at home. So, then, my friends, while you are waiting, to you best to live lives without spot or stain so that he will find you at peace’ (2 Peter 3:14).

Our readings today challenge us to examine our lives in the light God’s promise to make all things new in Christ. and be willing to change what needs to be put right.  There are surely areas in our lives that have yet to be touched by the healing power of God’s forgiveness, regions of our heart where the word of God has not penetrated. Advent offers us the graced opportunity to open up our hearts and allow God to remold us and make us new. Sometimes, we may think we don’t need to change, or to be changed. We can convince ourselves that we’re ok as we are. More than our sins, our complacency may be the greatest obstacle to God’s working in us. This is illustrated by a story in Luke’s gospel about Jesus’ visit to the home of a rich Pharisee, named Simon (cf. Luke 7:36-50). Simon learns nothing from Jesus’ moving encounter with the sinful woman who showed her love for him by washing his feet with her tears and drying them with her hair.  He simply disapproves of Jesus’ conduct. Simon’s attitude his well illustrated by the following Zen story:

A Zen master invited a visitor to tea.  The guest arrived, crossed his legs and sat in silence.  The Zen Master then took the teapot and started to fill the cup.  When he had filled it to the brim, he continued to pour until the tea was flowing over the saucer and on to the floor.  The guest was horrified and enquired why the Zen master was so careless.   ‘Because’, the master replied, I feel that your head is like this teacup – so full of certainty that it would be impossible for me to add anything to what you already know.  You cannot hear what I say.’ 

It’s going to be very hard for God to find a chink in our armour, if we are as complacent and closed as the Zen Master’s guest. So in the words of the Monaghan poet, Patrick Kavanagh, ‘Let us lie down again/Deep in anonymous humility’ And God may find us worthy material for his hand’ (Having Confessed).

I will conclude with an Advent prayer: ‘Clear a pathway, Lord, in our hearts to make them ready for your only Son, so that when he comes we may serve you in sincerity of heart. Amen 

Fr Michael McCabe SMA

 

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below. 

SMA International News – December 23

Welcome to the final edition of the SMA International News for 2023.  We round of this year with reports from: 

    • Zambia – we preview the release of a new documentary made by the SMA Media Centre, Ndola about the foundation of the SMA mission in Zambia fifty years ago. 
    • From Ireland we hear of the history and continuing work of the Family Vocations Community who raise funds for the education of SMA Missionary Priests. 
    • Fr Fabian Sognon SMA from Togo shares a reflection on the Season of Advent. 
    • The Bulletin ends with some general SMA news.   

 

 

REFLECTION FOR THE FIRST WEEK OF ADVENT – Fr Damian Bresnahan SMA

Each week until Christmas a short video reflection on the Season of Advent will be published on this website.  Each reflection has been recorded by an SMA Father and will focus on different aspects of our faith and Christian living as we prepare to celebrate the birth of Christ.  

The first in this series has been recorded by Fr Damian Bresnahan who lives and works in the SMA House Dromantine, County Down. 

Fr Damian reflects on Presents, Presence and Family – click to view. 

 

 

 

 

The Season of Advent

Kittelendan, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

Halloween is barely over when Advent arrives, at least in the shops and magazines. The secular appropriation of the season is commercial, concentrated on calendars which advertise products ranging from cosmetic items through chocolates and even football clubs to a selection of whiskeys. A small sample of the product placement appears for each day of the season. In mid-November a review of 20 of the best Christmas advent calendars to buy now ranged from ‘Lifestyle and beauty’ through ‘Food and Drink’ to ‘For Children’, referring to the selection as ‘some of the most luxurious, sustainable and exciting calendars out there to make the days leading up to the holiday almost as fun as the real thing’.[1] A review of ‘beauty advent calendars’ presented ten of these ranging in price from £50 to £350 sterling. The reviewer remarked that ‘if you do the maths, you’ll find that buying an advent calendar is much more economically efficient than buying the products individually’.[2] Economic efficiency is extolled as the measure of Advent, not evangelization as the traditional meaning of the season’s sequence. Culminating in Christmas as a celebration of consumption, the mercantile takeover of Advent throws up a huge spiritual challenge for the church at this time of year. Taking the commercial gloss off Advent gets to the very heart of the Gospel for Advent is the antidote to the major material anxiety experienced by people at this time of year.

God Comes
From the Latin, literally meaning ‘coming to’, Henry Wansbrough OSB writes that ‘with the beginning of Advent we turn to the idea of the coming of Christ, in history (that is, at Bethlehem), in mystery (that is, in the Church) and in majesty (that is, at the end of time)’.[3] These comings link the longing in faith of the people of God for the Messiah, the living in love of the church and the looking forward in hope to the time when Christ ‘hands over the kingdom to God the Father’ (I Cor 15:24). Each of these three comings of God – in prophecy, person and promise – presuppose a period of waiting on the part of God’s people, the wisdom of which is proclaimed in the words of Habakkuk: ‘For there is still a vision for the appointed time; it speaks of the end and does not lie. If it seems to tarry, wait for it; it will surely come, it will not delay’ (2:3). This threefold presence is praised as ‘the counsel of the Lord [which] stands forever, the thoughts of his heart to all generations’ (Psalm 33:11). This is poetically and prophetically portrayed by Hosea: ‘Let us know, let us press on to know the Lord; his appearing is as sure as the dawn; he will come to us like the showers, like the spring rains that water the earth’ (6:3).

Waiting on the Word
A lovely feature of Advent is the liturgy of the Word. Another way of seeing God’s coming into the world is through nature. A series of readings from the prophet Isaiah in particular present the desert becoming a waterway, fallow land becoming fruitful, flowers filling the wastelands, wild animals being tamed. These lyrical pictures are images of divine involvement because nature is a constitutive part of creation that God cares for. This paean to nature extends to other parts of the Bible as Pope Francis proclaims in his recent Apostolic Exhortation Laudate Deum (Praise God), that his namesake Saint Francis of Assisi ‘accepted the invitation of the biblical Psalms and reflected the sensitivity of Jesus before the creatures of his Father’. Francis finishes the first paragraph by asking: ‘How can we not admire this tenderness of Jesus for all the beings that accompany us along the way?’ Indeed the Advent scriptures indicate the tenderness of God towards all creation including human beings. Another beautiful and blessed feature of the liturgy of the Word is in the series of ‘O’ antiphons announced towards the end of Advent. These feature as both an acclamation and intercession for each day culminating in the call on Christmas Eve, ‘Morning Star, sun of justice, come and enlighten those who live in darkness’. Reprising key scriptural images and titles, they have been beautifully called ‘Seven Bells to Bethlehem’ because they bring us to Christmas, the birth of Christ, the Word made flesh. These antiphons are captured beautifully and sung blessedly in the hymn beginning O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.

Heading for Hope
Spiritually Advent streams between the moorings of memory and the horizon of hope. Longing leads the church through Advent, looking backwards for healing,  looking forwards in hope. In his 1977 Advent Pastoral Letter Cardinal Basil Hume wrote this assurance: ‘it seems to me that the feast of Advent is the feast of hope, Christian hope, which includes within it not only a looking forward to a time when all will be well, but an unshakeable confidence that, in the providence of God, things will work out in our own lives as well’.[4] Advent assures us that our wounds, weariness and worries do not have the last word in our lives and not to let our hearts be anxious or afraid because God is never absent from our world and our waiting is not in vain.

Our Lady of Advent
Mary features frequently in Advent. Advent associates us with the Virgin Mary as she prepares to journey with Joseph for the birth of Jesus in fulfilment of the beautiful prophecy proclaimed on a number of occasions during the season that ‘the young woman is with child and shall bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel’ (Is 7:14). The Feast of her Immaculate Conception (8th December) falls in the season and is followed by the memorials of Our Lady of Loreto (Italy) and Guadalupe (Mexico), testifying to the universality of devotion to Mary in the church. At the same time Mary accompanies the church as it anticipates in grace and awaits in glory the coming of the Lord. Following what the Second Vatican Council, called ‘her pilgrimage of faith’, we find a pre-eminent example and encouragement for our own Advent journey. Her accompaniment allows us to be aware of the many moods and movements of our hearts associated with the time of year, excitement and endurance, joy and sadness, brightness and darkness. Mary shows the spirit of Advent, accepting, awaiting, anticipating, arriving.

An Advent theme that tragically touches today’s world is the need for peace and the end of warfare. The first and second days of the season show how the coming of peace is central to Advent. The scriptural readings underscore the urgency of peace which sadly is lacking in so many war-torn parts of today’s world where people are struggling for supplies to simply support survival. On Monday of the first week the prophet Isaiah proclaims that the nations are called to ‘go up to the mountain of the Lord’ where ‘He will wield authority over [them] and adjudicate between many peoples; these will hammer their swords into ploughshares, their spears into sickles. Nation will not lift sword against nation, there will be no more training for war’.  On Tuesday Isaiah indicates the Messianic peace with images of the wolf and lamb lying down together while the infant inserts his hand ‘into the viper’s lair. The Psalmist links peace with justice in the response, ‘In his days justice shall flourish and peace till the moon fails’. This Advent the church asks with an added agony, Our Lady, Queen of Peace, pray for us.

A wise spiritual director once asked with all the talk in Advent of God’s coming, what about our going to God. This Advent offers us the opportunity to answer that anew.

Fr Kevin O’Gorman SMA

[1] Irish Independent, 16th November 2023.
[2] The Observer Magazine, 12th November 2023.
[3] The Sunday Word, (London: Burns & Oates, 2012), 5.
[4] A Spiritual Companion – Reflections Through the Year (Brewster, Mass: Paraclete Press, 2000), 115.

COP28 and Laudate Deum

COP stands for “conference of the parties”, with parties being the 197 countries that have signed up to the UN climate treaty (UNFCCC) to avoid “dangerous interference” with the climate.  Its main areas of focus are preventing climate change (mitigation), adapting to climate change (adaptation), and dealing with the negative impacts of climate change (loss and damage). 

In Laudate Deum, Pope Francis recent apostolic exhortation the urgency and seriousness of the climate crisis is clearly stated. “Our responses have not been adequate, while the world in which we live is collapsing and may be nearing the breaking point. (2) Later the document points to the response that is needed. The necessary transition towards clean energy sources such as wind and solar energy, and the abandonment of fossil fuels, is not progressing at the necessary speed.”  (55) 

It is no accident that Laudate Deum was published in October 2023, just weeks in advance of the COP28 meeting.  The document stresses that not enough is being done to address the climate crisis and that, while every person has a part to play, it is world leaders and Governments that bear the greatest responsibility in mitigating the climate crisis. 

Two chapters, numbers 4 and 5, in this document focus directly on the COP Summit process. The first of these acknowledges successes but also highlights the failure of many Summits to achieve progress, to meet deadlines (par 44) and failure to implement agreed funds for adaptation. (par 45)  Chapter 4 ends with the following statement; “the accords have been poorly implemented, due to lack of suitable mechanisms for oversight, periodic review and penalties in cases of noncompliance… international negotiations cannot make significant progress due to positions taken by countries, which place their national interests above the global common good”. (par 52) 

Key issues to watch at COP28
COP28 is important for several reasons, not least because it marks the conclusion of the first global stocktake (GST), the main mechanism through which progress under the Paris Agreement is assessed. It is clear the world is not on track to meeting the agreement’s goals, but the hope is that governments at COP28 will come up with a roadmap to accelerate climate action.

Other critical tasks facing negotiators in Dubai include getting the loss and damage fund (established at COP27) up and running and agreeing on a framework for the Paris Agreement’s global goal on adaptation (GGA). Other issues that are likely to receive much attention, and which may be reflected across several negotiating streams, include energy transition and food systems transformation. And, as is often the case, discussions and negotiations on climate finance are likely to be centre stage. 
https://www.chathamhouse.org/2023/09/what-cop28-and-why-it-important  

The fact that chapter five of Laudate Deum is called “What to Expect from COP28 in Dubai?” is a clear indication of the importance that Pope Francis places on this event.  He expresses the hope that COP28 “can represent a change of direction… towards clean energy sources such as wind and solar energy, and the abandonment of fossil fuels”.  This core issue of fossil fuels has been an unaddressed elephant in the room for decades.  

Laudate Deum is realistic in recognising that whether or not this summit succeeds remains in the balance.  “If we are confident in the capacity of human beings to transcend their petty interests and to think in bigger terms, we can keep hoping that COP28 will allow for a decisive acceleration of energy transition, with effective commitments subject to ongoing monitoring. This Conference can represent a change of direction, showing that everything done since 1992 was in fact serious and worth the effort, or else it will be a great disappointment and jeopardize whatever good has been achieved thus far.” (54)   Chapter 5 ends by expressing the hope: “May those taking part in the Conference be strategists capable of considering the common good and the future of their children, more than the short-term interests of certain countries or businesses”. (par 60)

For year’s COP Meetings have repeatedly kicked needed climate action down the road and failed to face-up to the core issue phasing out of fossil fuels.  Time is running out, the facts speak for themselves. 2023 is shaping up to be the hottest year on record, the last five years have all broken records and extreme weather events, floods and wildfires are increasing yearly. The UN Secretary General summed up what COP28 needs to achieve; 

“Leader’s must act immediately to limit global temperature rises to 1.5 degrees, protect people from climate chaos and end the fossil fuel age.”  

Achieving these three aims means a rapid reduction in global carbon emissions, compensating poorer countries for damage already suffered, funding them to adapt to climate change and agreement to end use of fossil fuels.  All of these aims are reflected in Laudate Deum.  In addition this document stresses the urgent need for concerted action to mitigate “the impact of climate change [which] will increasingly prejudice the lives and families of many persons. We will feel its effects in the areas of healthcare, sources of employment, access to resources, housing, forced migrations, etc.” (2)

There is a lot at stake in the coming weeks.  COP 28 must reach for radical change and a rapid scaling up of global efforts to address the climate crisis. An increasing number of countries  want to include an objective to phase out all fossil fuels on the agenda of this COP. This will likely be a central topic for the first time and no doubt a divisive one.

The failure of previous COP agreements to address the needs of poorer nations most effected by climate change has led to their distrust of developed and industrialised countries who ignore global wellbeing and the impact on the poor in favour of their own short-term national interests. To address this, climate justice will need to be at the heart of the negotiations at COP28. It’s time for big decisions and also to put money on the table for adaptation, loss and damage and for rapid transition to renewables.  If the Dubai meeting fails to make very significant progress there is a real danger that the COP process will be irreparably damaged and that the cooperative engagement needed to mitigate the climate crisis will be undermined.

Homily for First Sunday of Advent 2023

ReadingsIsaiah 63:16-17,64:1,3-8; 1 Corinthians 1:3-9; Mark 13:33-37

Theme: ‘Stay Awake!’ (Mark 13:37)

Introduction: Today, the Church launches a new liturgical year, with the season of Advent – four weeks of preparation for the celebration of a birth that changed the course of human history.  The Advent season is designed to help us appreciate more fully the significance of Christ’s first coming among us, and to make more room for him in our hearts now, as we await his second coming. This is beautifully expressed in the following Advent prayer  ‘Increase our longing for Christ our Saviour and give us the strength to grow in love, that the dawn of his coming may find us rejoicing in his presence and welcoming the light of his truth.’ Advent is a time to be reborn, to wake up from our slumber, and embrace the dawn of a new day.

Three times in today’s gospel reading from Mark, Jesus urges his disciples to ‘stay awake‘ (Mk 13:33,35,37).  Staying awake means being alert, and paying attention to the presence and action of God in the world around us, thus allowing our hearts to come alive with wonder. The famous scientist, Albert Einstein, said once: ‘The one who can no longer pause to wonder and stand in awe is as good as dead.’  In the words of the English poet, Gerard Manly Hopkins: ‘The world is charged with the grandeur of God‘.  The fingerprints of God are all around us, but we must open our eyes and look. The Welsh poet, William Davies challenges to be still and notice the beauty that is all around us: ‘What is life if, full of care, we have no time to stop and stare/no time to stand beneath the boughs, and stare as long as sheep or cows.’  This is what Jesus tells us, too: ‘Look at the birds in the sky… Think of the flowers growing in the fields….Not even Solomon in all his regalia was robed like one of these’ (Mt 6: 26, 28, 30).

Advent is a grace-filled, precious time for us to try and recover our childhood sense of wonder at the ordinary miracles of life that surround us – basic elemental things, like the smile of a child, the most natural and spontaneous sacrament of the divine, or the warmth of the Sun as it kisses a new day into being, or the changing colours of an autumnal landscape.   Let us, then, turn to the simple things, the things we take for-granted, the things that, in the words of the American poet, Edward Estlin Cummings, ‘I cannot touch because they are too near.’  

It is the quality of our experiences that enrich us, not the quantity.  We are easily seduced by the myth that the more we experience, and the more we have, the happier we will be. The world of Advertising feeds on and nurtures that myth. But it is never enough, as the words of the hit song from the 2017 movie, The Greatest Showman, highlight:

All the shine of a thousand spotlights
All the stars we steal from the night sky
Will never be enough
Never be enough
Towers of gold are still too little
These hands could hold the world but it’ll
Never be enough
Never be enough

It is precisely this insatiable desire for more that kills wonder. It deadens our capacity to appreciate the quality things in life, and we end up with hearts that are cold and indifferent.  If we try to taste too much too quickly, we become unable to really relish anything. Even the most beautiful things lose their wonder for us and leave our hearts ‘high sorrowful and cloyed’ (Keats). Letting go of the desire for more is the key to letting wonder in. It is when we resist this destructive desire of the ego, that we awaken to the inner beauty in things and in people. We become open to the mystery all around us and come to see things as we never saw them before. We will find ourselves enthralled by a myriad of little things we hardly ever noticed before, like the changing colours of the sky, the sound the wind rustling through the trees, or the singing of the birds at dawn. 

We live in an age of inflation in more ways than one. Our senses are being constantly bombarded with a thousand and one impressions.  Through the media, especially TV, computers and mobile phones, we are pummeled by information and images hitting us from every part of the world. Wonder had been sucked from our hearts. In the words of the Monaghan poet, Patrick Kavanagh, ‘Through a chink too wide there come in no wonder.  We may even get to the stage where we do not feel anything except confusion, hostility, boredom.  How could it be otherwise? Our senses were made for our hearts, not the other way round. We need to draw back from the forces launching themselves at our senses, and give our hearts time to cope, to focus, to filter and assimilate the multitude of impressions hitting us.  Advent is a time for such screening and focusing, taking in less, but learning to appreciate more, and waking up from our slumber and alive to God’s presence all around us.

So we pray, in words borrowed from today’s first reading: ‘Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay. You are the potter; we are all the work of your hand. You are not yet finished with us. Remold us and make us new again. Amen  (cf. Is 64:8).

Fr Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below. 

Homily for the 34th Sunday Year A

The Solemnity of Jesus Christ, King of the Universe

 Readings:  Ezekiel 34:11-12, 15-17; 1 Corinthians 15:20-26,28; Matthew 25:31-46

  The solemnity of Christ the King marks the end of ordinary time and the completion of the Church’s liturgical year. Instituted by Pope Pius XI in 1925, this feast was created to promote devotion to the Universal Lordship of Christ in response to the growing secularism of the Western world. In 1969, Pope Paul VI gave the celebration a new title ‘Jesus Christ, King of the Universe’ and moved it from the last Sunday in October to the last Sunday in the liturgical year. He also transformed it from a feast to a ‘Solemnity.’ But what does it mean to serve Jesus as King? And what kind of kingship are we celebrating?

Our Scripture readings today present us with two different, but complementary, images of the kingship of Christ. In the second reading, from the First Letter to the Corinthians, Paul presents Christ as the victorious ruler of the world, the conqueror of ‘every sovereignty, authority and power’ (1 Cor 15:24). And his reign will last until ‘he has put all his enemies under his feet and the final enemy to be destroyed is death’ (1 Cor 15:25). Unlike the kings of this world, who attain and maintain their power by force and fear, and invariably reap a harvest of death and destruction, the kingship of Christ is a rule of love that is life-giving and life-enhancing: ‘I have come that they may have life, and have it more abundantly (Jn 10:10).

Another image of kingship that emerges from today’s first reading from Ezekiel, is that of a loving shepherd who tends his sheep with consummate care. In this reading, the Lord, the God of Israel, assures his people of his loving concern for them in words of great tenderness and compassion: ‘As a shepherd keeps all his flock in view when he stands up in the middle of his scattered sheep, so shall I keep my sheep in view. I shall rescue them from wherever they have been scattered during the mist and darkness… I shall look for the lost one, bring back the stray, bandage the wounded and make the weak strong (Ezek 34:12, 16). In his ministry, Jesus presents himself as the embodiment of the Good Shepherd, prepared to give lay down his life for his sheep. He launches his Kingdom mission in words that reflect the promises of the Shepherd King: ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring good news to the afflicted. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives, sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim a year of favour from the Lord (Lk 4:18-19).

Yes, Jesus Christ, is a king, but his Kingdom is not of this world (cf. Jn 18:36), though it is meant for this world. Christ has no stately palace, no mighty army, no marble throne. He resides among the needy and the vulnerable of our world: the hungry, the naked, the thirsty, the stranger, the sick and those in prison.   The king we are called to worship and serve, as today’s gospel reading illustrates, is a king who identifies himself with the neediest and most neglected of God’s children.  And the way he wants to be served is by practical care and concern for these brothers and sisters of ours: ‘I was hungry and you gave me food. I was thirsty and you gave me drink; I was a stranger and you made me welcome; naked and you clothed me, sick and you visited me, in prison and you came to see me’ (Mt 25:35-36). 

The challenge of today’s gospel is aptly illustrated by the following story I came across some years ago:

‘There was a queue outside the gates of heaven. Each person was asked the question: ‘Why do you think you should be admitted?’ The first person in the queue, a deeply religious man, said, ‘I studied the Bible every day.’  ‘Very good’, said the Lord. ‘However, we shall have to carry out an investigation to see why you studied the Bible. So please step aside for the moment.’  Next in line was a woman, noted for her piety. She said, ‘Lord, I said my prayers every day without fail.’ ‘Very good’, the Lord answered. ‘However, we’ll have to check out your motives. So step aside for the moment.’  Finally, a publican approached the heavenly gates rather gingerly and said, ‘Lord, I wasn’t a particularly religious man, but my door was always open to the homeless, and I never refused food to anyone who was hungry.’Very good,’ said the Lord. ‘In your case no investigation is needed. Go straight ahead.’

I end with a though-provoking poem about the Kingship of Christ from the pen of Malcolm Guite:

Our King is calling from the hungry furrows
Whilst we are cruising through the aisles of plenty,
Our hoardings screen us from the man of sorrows,
Our soundtracks drown his murmur: ‘I am thirsty’.
He stands in line to sign in as a stranger
And seek a welcome from the world he made,
We see him only as a threat, a danger,
He asks for clothes, we strip-search him instead.
And if he should fall sick then we take care
That he does not infect our private health,
We lock him in the prisons of our fear
Lest he unlock the prison of our wealth.
But still on Sunday we shall stand and sing
The praises of our hidden Lord and King.

Fr Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

Laudate Deum”: a call to respond to the Climate Crisis

In October 2023 Pope Francis published this Apostolic Exhortation in which he develops themes expressed in his 2015 encyclical, Laudato Si’  Its opening paragraphs communicate a sense of urgency: I have realised that our responses have not been adequate, while the world in which we live is collapsing and may be nearing the breaking point. (2)   Climate Change is a global social issue and one intimately related to the dignity of human life. (2). The core message of this document is that;

Not enough is being done to address the climate crisis. All of us and especially those in power have a responsibility to act before it is too late.

This relatively short Church document is laid out in six chapters, the main points of which are given below. 

Chapter One:  The global climate crisis.  Pope Francis outlines the global climate crisis. The text:

  • Rejects the arguments of climate change deniers – the signs of climate change are here and increasingly evident. (5)
  • Asserts that human activity as the major cause of climate change. (5)
  • Links Climate change to the lifestyle of the rich and the developed world. (9)
  • States that it will not be possible to halt the enormous damage we have caused. We barely have time to prevent even more tragic damage. (16)
  • Reiterates the connection between humanity and the natural environment – Everything is connected and No one is saved alone. (19)

Chapter 2: The growing technocratic paradigm.   The Pope returns to the theme of the technocratic paradigm, a phenomenon rejected in Laudato Si’ as an erroneous and distorted worldview that sees science, technology and financial growth as the means of solving all the world’s problems be they environmental or social. 

  • Pope Francis laments that this paradigm seems to be advancing and, in the pursuit of maximum gain at minimum cost, continues damaging the environment and the long-term wellbeing of people. (21)
  • The document warns of the dangers that misuse of technology can bring. It is chilling to realize that the capacities expanded by technology have given those with the knowledge and especially the economic resources to use them, an impressive dominance over the whole of humanity and the entire world.…In whose hands does all this power lie …It is extremely risky for a small part of humanity to have it.  (23)
  • Contrary to this technocratic paradigm, we say that the world that surrounds us is not an object of exploitation, unbridled use and unlimited ambition. Nor can we claim that nature is a mere “setting” in which we develop our lives and our projects. (25)
  • A healthy ecology is also the result of interaction between human beings and the environment….The technocratic paradigm has destroyed that healthy and harmonious relationship. (27)
  • We need to rethink among other things the question of human power, its meaning and its limits….we have turned into highly dangerous beings, capable of threatening the lives of many beings and our own survival.(28)
  • The mentality of maximum gain at minimal cost, disguised in terms of reasonableness, progress and illusory promises, makes impossible any sincere concern for our common home and any real preoccupation about assisting the poor and the needy discarded by our society. (31)

Chapter 3: The weakness of international politics.  Pope Francis calls for renewed efforts to promote international and multilateral co-operation. This need not necessarily be through an existing international political authority or bodies, new initiatives are needed. He also emphasises the need for subsidiarity – civil society groups can achieve what international political authorities cannot achieve.  Multilateral and international bodies must have real authority to achieve goals.  

  • For there to be solid and lasting advances…. preference should be given to multilateral agreements between States. (34)
  • Many groups and organizations within civil society help to compensate for the shortcomings of the international community, its lack of coordination ….and its lack of attention to fundamental human rights. (37)
  • A multilateralism “from below” and not simply one determined by the elites of power….can end up pressuring the sources of power. (38)
  • A different framework for effective cooperation is required. It is not enough to think only of balances of power but also of the need to….consolidate respect for the most elementary human rights, social rights and the protection of our common home. (42)

All this presupposes the development of a new procedure for decision-making and legitimizing those decisions, since the one put in place several decades ago is not sufficient nor does it appear effective….It is no longer helpful for us to support institutions in order to preserve the rights of the more powerful without caring for those of all. (43)

Chapter 4: Climate Conferences: progress and failures.  This short Chapter gives a candid overview of the history of the past Climate COPs pointing to the positive decisions made, the failures, difficulties and their often poor and disappointing results. After this it concludes by stating;

  • …the accords have been poorly implemented, due to lack of suitable mechanisms for oversight, periodic review and penalties in cases of noncompliance….international negotiations cannot make significant progress due to positions taken by countries, which place their national interests above the global common good. (52)

Chapter 5: What to expect from COP28 in Dubai. If it is to provide hope, it must, unlike previous meetings be drastic, intense and count on the commitment of all (59). It will be a success if it leads to energy transition targets that are efficient, obligatory and monitored. If vested interests can be overcome COP 28 could be a decisive acceleration in transition – Alternatively, it might be a disappointment and jeopardize any good that has been done so far.

  • Despite the many negotiations and agreements, global emissions continue to increase…. the necessary transition towards clean energy sources….is not progressing at the necessary speed. (55)
  • We must move beyond the mentality of appearing to be concerned but not having the courage needed to produce substantial changes. (56)
  • To suppose that all problems in the future will be able to be solved by new technical interventions is a form of homicidal pragmatism. (57)
  • Let us finally admit that it [the climate crisis] is a human and social problem….it calls for involvement on the part of all…. to exercise a healthy pressure. (58)
  • If there is sincere interest in making COP28 a historic event ….then one can only hope for binding forms of energy transition that meet three conditions: that they be efficient, obligatory and readily monitored. (59)
  • May those taking part in the Conference be strategists capable of considering the common good and the future of their children, more than the short-term interests of certain countries or businesses. (60)

Chapter Six: Spiritual motivations:  We are reminded that caring for our common home is integral to faith – authentic faith not only gives strength to the human heart, but also transforms life, transfigures our goals and sheds light on our relationship to others and with creation as a whole. (60) Individual action is important but the big changes must come from political decisions.

  • ….responsibility for God’s earth means that human beings, endowed with intelligence, must respect the laws of nature and the delicate equilibria existing between the creatures of this world. (62)
  • The universe shows forth the inexhaustible richness of God.… it is not a matter of indifference to us that so many species are disappearing and that the climate crisis endangers the life of many other beings.(63)
  • Let us stop thinking, then, of human beings as autonomous, omnipotent and limitless, and begin to think of ourselves differently, in a humbler but more fruitful way. (68)
  • I ask everyone to accompany this pilgrimage of reconciliation with the world that is our home and to help make it more beautiful, …At the same time, I cannot deny that …the most effective solutions will not come from individual efforts alone, but above all from major political decisions on the national and international level. (69)
  • Yet what is important is … to realize that there are no lasting changes without cultural changes, without a maturing of lifestyles and convictions within societies, and there are no cultural changes without personal changes. (70)
  • Efforts by households to reduce pollution and waste, and to consume with prudence, are creating a new culture. ….are helping to bring about large processes of transformation rising from deep within society. (71)
  • a broad change in the irresponsible lifestyle connected with the Western model would have a significant long-term impact. As a result, along with indispensable political decisions, we would be making progress along the way to genuine care for one another. (72)
  • Praise God” is the title of this letter. For when human beings claim to take God’s place, they become their own worst enemies. (73)   Human beings through praising themselves, i.e. though greed and self interest have caused the climate crisis. By Praising God, i.e. putting Him first we can restore a right relationship with Him, our neighbour and creation – everything is connected. 

Respect for Mother Earth and harmony between peoples in the life of a missionary

Fr Silvano Galli SMA

You can see many two-story fortified houses scattered in the meadows, in the forests, and on the hills of Benin Republic and Togo. This is what the Batammariba people, who number about 270,000 people are world-famous for. They are known as Tamberma in Togo and Somba in Benin.

Italian SMA Father Silvano Galli, who lives and works as a missionary in Togo, describes remote areas that testify to this ancient people’s respect for nature. We live in a time of great global climate change, in an environmental crisis that is causing so much damage to nature and humanity as a whole. Pope Francis continues to call for the protection of our ecosystems.

In light of this, Father Silvano was inspired by a visit to some Tamberma villages. He was guided by locals through the Atakora Mountains in north-eastern Togo to the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Koutammakou. “The way there was not the easiest,” he told FIDES. “Even on the way through the UNESCO World Heritage Site there were numerous difficulties because of the water and mud puddles. In Pimini, a suburb of Nadoba, we stopped at the Tamberma houses, called Takyiènta, which resemble real earth fortresses and are between three and five meters high”.

Ji-Elle, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia

“They are residential houses often surrounded by large trees, which have different shapes and sizes depending on the location, period and social status of the owner,” he explains. “They are usually a series of two-story houses, which are connected by a wall and an upper terrace and house the main ancestral house on the ground floor. The structure of these houses shows respect for the surrounding nature. Through logs in the shape of gallows in which the steps are carved, one reaches the upper floors and the terrace. One enters them, one by one, through a single opening that gives access to a room without light. Above the ancestral room is the owner’s room, while the children’s room is above the entrance and the barn. On the terrace there are other rooms where the grain is dried”. “The Batammariba live in communion with nature, the animals, the family deities, under the protection of the ancestors and the watchful eye of Kouyé, the supreme deity to whom people offer the first fruits of the harvests and sacrifices. Man, animals, and the elements of nature are intrinsically linked, live together in harmony and are interdependent,” Fr Silvano concludes, explaining the attitude to life of the local people.  With thanks to Agenzia Fides, 14/11/2023 for the information in this article.

Tata_a_Kouaba-Balkass-CC-BY-3.0-via-Wikimedia

 

Togo _ Pays Tamberma _ Guillaume Colin & Pauline Penot _ Flickr CC

 

 

Homily for the 33rd Sunday of Year A

Proverbs: 31:10-13, 19-20, 30-31
1 Thessalonians 5: 1-6
Matthew 25:14-30

READY FOR THE JOURNEY…

As the liturgical year draws to a close, November days remind us of the end of times. The readings these days too remind us of the end of times.

Today’s Gospel sounds a note of caution… We must be ready. Entry into God’s kingdom should not be taken for granted. But we should be up and doing, not burying our treasure in the field.

The Christian way is about dedication to duty and work. It might be prudent to bury the talent in order to ensure it is not lost. But Christianity is not about being careful or being complacent or being lazy.  It is about using our gifts. It is about showing love. In a real sense Jesus is telling us not to be afraid to take a risk, to use our imagination, to take initiatives, to challenge our world and its attitude and values. The talent we have received above all is the Word of God and every one of us is charged with the responsibility to spread that Word, the Good News.

So we have to be up and at it. Using our talents for the good of the community. We have to get on with living, living in the light of Christ. While some might think it best to sit around and wait for the Lord’s Coming, that is not what Paul advises the Thessalonians. There is not much point in waiting because we do not know when the Coming will happen. Much better therefore to be wide awake and sober and preparing.

The Second Coming will mark a new Easter night of eternity… Believers will find the fulfilment of all their baptism means – meeting Christ, they will pass from sleep to wakefulness and from darkness to light. That is worth being ready for!

Fr Tom Curran SMA, Ranelagh, Dublin

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

NOVEMBER 2023| For the Pope

Francis opens his heart and asks for prayer to fulfill his mission

In  his video for November, Francis reveals that “being Pope is also a process” and he asks us to pray for him so that  in the exercise of his mission, he may continue to accompany in the faith the flock entrusted to him by Jesus.”

The video for November is a moving confession in which Francis emphasizes that “the fact that someone is Pope doesn’t mean they lose their humanity,” and acknowledges that the faithful people’s prayer “give me strength.”

TEXT OF POPE’S MESSAGE

Pray to the Lord that he will bless me.
Your prayer gives me strength and helps me to discern and to accompany the Church, listening to the Holy Spirit.
The fact that someone is Pope doesn’t mean they lose their humanity. On the contrary, my humanity grows each day with God’s holy and faithful people.
Being Pope is also a process. The person becomes aware of what it means to be a pastor.
And in this process, he learns how to be more charitable, more merciful, and, above all, more patient, like God our Father, who is so patient.
I can imagine that at the beginning of their pontificate, all the Popes had this feeling of trepidation, apprehension, knowing that he will be judged harshly.
For the Lord will ask us Bishops to give a serious account.
Please, I ask you to judge benevolently. And that you pray that the Pope, whoever he might be, today it is my turn, may receive the help of the Holy Spirit, that he may be docile to that help.
Let us pray for the Pope, so that in the exercise of his mission, he may continue to accompany in the faith the flock entrusted to him by Jesus, always with the help of the Holy Spirit.
Let us make, in silence, this prayer: your prayer over me.
And pray for me! Favorably!

Pope Francis – November 2023

Homily for the 32nd Sunday of Year A

Readings: Wisdom 6:12-16 p 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 – Matthew 25:1-13

Let your light shine:  Today’s Gospel from the 25th chapter of St Matthew is the fifth time Jesus speaks about the ‘the last things.’

When Jesus gave the Sermon on the Mount [Mt 5] he speaks about letting our light shine so that others will see the good things we do. Hopefully they will be inspired not only to say: look, see how these Christians love one another but also begin to do good things to.

In today’s Gospel Jesus speaks of what makes light shine: oil! We need to be up and doing good things in order that our light shines. We cannot be like the foolish virgins in the Gospel – needing to borrow ‘goodness’ from others.

Sadly, the foolish virgins weren’t ready when the bridegroom arrived. All of them needed sleep, after all ‘twas late in the evening. But, despite the late hour when the bridegroom arrived, they should have been ready with their oil to trim their lamps. A lesson we can draw from this Gospel is that we need to be alert at all times, ever-ready to meet whatever is the need.

But Jesus is also saying something about the 10 virgins – they didn’t have a common mentality, some were properly-prepared while five weren’t. These five expected that the others would come to their assistance. But this has a deeper meaning: we can’t borrow the good works of others; we can’t expect others to do the good works on our behalf. Each one of us must be up and doing our part. I can’t count how often I hear phrases such as: my wife is the pray-er in our house; she goes to Mass for us all and other such nonsense.

At Baptism, each of us was commissioned to be a light to others, to go out and to bear fruit.

The door of the wedding hall is a symbol of the door into the kingdom, eternal life. All ten virgins had been given the key to the kingdom at baptism. What turns the key is our life on earth. If we’re not practising our Christian life – prayer and actions – our key won’t work. And we might we hear the words the foolish virgins heard: I don’t know you.

As Christians, each of us has a responsibility which we cannot expect others to fulfil on our part. Jesus has called each of us by name; he expects each of us to answer for ourselves.

And so I pray:

Lord God, as this church year draws to a close, may I refresh my lamp with good works and prayer so that my key will turn easily when I hear your call and may it be, ‘come you blessed of my Father, come inherit the kingdom prepared for you since the foundation of the world….

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

SMA International News – November 23

Welcome to the SMA International News Bulletin for or the Month of November.

 In this edition we have stories from:

  •  ROME – Where we hear of the visit of the Bishops of Cote d’Ivoire to the SMA General House to thank the SMA for the work of evangelization which was begun more than 125 years ago.
  •  NIGERIA  – we have a story of a session of Ongoing Formation for priests with between 7 and 15 years of priesthood.
  • LYONS, (France) – we hear of the Installation of 2 SMA confreres, one as administrator in Montferrier and the other as parish priest in Castelnaudary on the 1st and 8th of October.

The Bulletin concludes with items of general news.

 

The Good Shepherd

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/76/StJohnsAshfield_StainedGlass_GoodShepherd_Portrait.jpg
StJohnsAshfield StainedGlass GoodShepherd Portrait.jpg

Based on the reading for Saturday 4th November 2023 – Memorial of Saint Charles Borromeo: Romans 12:3-13:2; John 10:11-16.)

A couple of years ago a surprise bestseller in England was the story of a shepherd and his family. Set in the Lake District one of the memorable lines was a comment or complaint by one of the shepherd’s daughters – ‘The problem with you, Dad, is that it’s all about the sheep’.

Shepherd is a major symbol in the scriptures, seeing God as the shepherd of his flock. Psalm 23 epitomises this with its opening line – ‘The Lord is my shepherd’ – which is often sung in religious services. John Paul II picked the image to indicate and indeed identify the ministerial priesthood in his document on its formation – Pastores dabo vobis – ‘I will give you shepherds after my own heart’ – taken from the Prophet Jeremiah. The verse continues – ‘who will feed you with knowledge and understanding’. While a philosopher Pope would be expected to indicate the importance of intellectual formation, he insisted on its ‘pastoral character’:

The whole formation imparted to candidates for the priesthood aims at preparing them to enter into communion with the charity of Christ the good shepherd. Hence their formation in its different aspects must have a fundamentally pastoral character. (par. 57)

This fundamental principle applies to formation for all forms of ministry in the church.

Jesus makes major use of the symbol of shepherd in his ministry. Matthew recounts how ‘when he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd’ (9:36) while Luke relates the parable of the lost sheep – the one lost out of 100 that the shepherd leaves ‘the ninety-nine in the wilderness’ to seek out and save (15:3-7). While this frustrates the figures of economics, it has the feel of the ‘smell of the sheep’ that Pope Francis proposes as a basic pastoral principle for mission and ministry, met and mediated through genuine encounter with people. Today’s Gospel goes beyond the risk of leaving the ninety-nine and refers to the shepherd himself. Here, in the Gospel of John, Jesus presents himself twice as ‘the good shepherd’, who will sacrifice himself for the sake of the flock entrusted to him. This self-sacrifice of Jesus is the supreme standard, the state of self-emptying of himself to death, death on the cross because what is at stake is salvation of others. Indeed, in the end evangelisation is all about the sheep!

Fr Kevin O’Gorman, SMA

Homily for the 31st Sunday of Year A

Readings:   Malachi 1:14 – 2:2,8-10; 1 Thessalonians 2:7-9,13; Matthew 23:1-12

In today’s gospel reading from Matthew, Jesus addresses his followers on the important subject of leadership. He proposes to his disciples a new model of leadership radically different from the leadership style of the scribes and Pharisees. The Pharisees were not priests, but lay people who were noted for their strict observance of the Law (The Torah). The scribes were not priests either, but professional scholars, skilled in the interpretation of the law and the prophets. Many of them were Pharisees.

As portrayed in the gospels, the Pharisees come across as pompous, hypocritical, legalistic and self-righteous. However, not all of them were like that, as I learned during my biblical renewal programme in Jerusalem in the spring of 2008. One of our teachers, a woman Rabbi, went so far as to describe Jesus as ‘a good Pharisee’! In the course of his ministry, Jesus had more interaction with Pharisees than with any other religious group in the Israel of his day. And he acknowledges their legitimate authority: ‘The scribes and Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat; therefore do whatever they teach you and follow it’ (Mt 23:2-3). Some Pharisees were impressed by his teaching and invited him to eat in their houses (cf. Lk 7:36-50). A number of them became his disciples, notably Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea. St Paul describes himself as ‘a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee’ (Acts 23:6) before his encounter with the Risen Christ transformed him into the greatest Christian missionary of all time. So we should be careful to avoid ‘Pharisee bashing’, or using the term, ‘Pharisee’ as a label of abuse.

At the same time, Jesus pulls no punches in pointing out the faults and failings of some leading members of the Pharisee party and he warns his disciples not to follow their example, since ‘they do not practice what they preach’ (Mt 23:2). His criticisms, however, could apply to religious leaders anywhere in the world at any time. Using practical examples from his own experience, Jesus illustrates the attitudes and kinds of behaviour he wants his disciples so avoid, while proposing to them a style of leadership in-keeping with their new identity as children of God’s kingdom. I wish to highlight three dominant features of the style of leadership Jesus is proposing.

Firstly, Jesus wants the leaders of his new community to be models of the standard of behaviour they expect from those they serve. They should be able to say, as St Paul says to the Christian community of Corinth, ‘Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ’ (1 Cor 11:1), rather than ‘Do as I say, not as I do’. As Peter reminds the elders of the Christian community, their calling is not to lord it over those in their care, but to be an example for them to follow (cf. 1 Peter 5:3). In the ordination ceremony for deacons, the bishop instructs newly ordained deacons in the following words: ‘Receive the Gospel of Christ, whose heralds you have become. Believe what you read, teach what you believe, and practice what you teach.’

Secondly, Jesus wants leaders who are prepared to share and ease burdens, not impose them. In applying the Law of Moses to the daily lives of the people, the Pharisees had added hundreds of rules and regulations, impossible to observe. As Jesus says: ‘They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on the shoulders of others; but they themselves are unwilling to lift a finger to move them’ (Mt 23:4). In contrast to such leaders, Jesus wants the leaders of his new community to be good shepherds familiar with ‘the smell of the sheep’ (Pope Francis); leaders acquainted with the burdens and tribulations of the people they serve; non-judgemental leaders who ‘open doors closed by despair, discover the best in others and set it free’; leaders ‘who reach out to strengthen the fearful, protect the weak, lift up the fallen, share burdens and wipe away tears’ (Michael Fitzgerald and Rene Dionne, Mafr).

Thirdly, Jesus wants leaders who are truly servants of others, not peacocks who crave attention and expect to be treated with deference by the rank-and-file members of the community. He warns his disciples against seeking honours and titles, like ‘Rabbi’, ‘Teacher’ or ‘Father’ as they are all brothers and sisters, sons and daughters of their heavenly father. In the course of its history, the Church, contrary to the instruction of Jesus, has attached many titles and honours to its traditional roles of leadership. Since the Second Vatican Council, the Church has begun to shed some of these honorific titles but it has still a long way to go if it is to recover the vision of leadership proposed by Jesus to his disciples.
The disavowal of titles and privileges does not mean the rejection of specific leadership functions in the life of the Christian community. What it does mean is that these functions are seen as roles of service without having any special status attached to them. Surely this is in line with the Jesus’ clear instruction to his disciples: ‘The greatest among you must be your servant’ (Mt 23:11). Today’s gospel challenges all of us to help create a community that reflects the standards outlined by Jesus – a community where there is no pulling of rank, no demand for special respect or privileges, no double standards, but a deep sense of equality and mutual respect, a desire to serve, to share what we have and are for the benefit all. May the celebration of this Eucharist sustain us in our efforts to respond to this challenge of Jesus!

Fr Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

Going Forwards…

Based on the Mass Readings for Saturday, 28th October, 2023
Feast of Saints Simon and Jude   (Readings: Eph 2:19-22; Luke 6:12-19)

Today is the last working day of the so-called Synod on Synodality in Rome and the readings for today’s Mass presents three themes that are central to our Catholic understanding and underpinning of the terms of the process:

1] holiness through participation by the people of God,

2] communion with the hierarchy

3] and healing through the mission of the church.

Paul heralds holiness while his protégé Luke holds up hierarchy and healing. 

All Christians in whatever state or walk of life are called to the fullness of Christian and this holiness is conducive to a more human way of living even in society here on earth’.

These words from Vatican II – on the Church – have framed thinking and talking about what has been termed ‘the universal horizon of holiness’. Of course, Paul would be primary in proclaiming that holiness is not an idea but an incarnate habit that integrates the moral and spiritual lives of Christians. Pope Francis devoted an Apostolic Exhortation, Rejoice and Be Glad (2018) to the task of holiness. Subtitled On the Call to Holiness in Today’s World he set out his    method in the following terms:

What follows is not meant to be a treatise on holiness, containing definitions and distinctions helpful for understanding this important subject, or a discussion of the various means of sanctification. My modest goal is to repropose the call to holiness in a practical way for our own time, with all its risks, challenges and opportunities. For the Lord has chosen each one of us “to be holy and blameless before him in love” (Eph 1:4) (Par. 2)

Communion with the hierarchy is not an assertion of authoritarianism but an assurance of continuity with apostolic foundations, the mandate of the twelve chosen by Jesus who we heard today ‘called them apostles’. Literally meaning ‘those sent out’, they are not managers but missionaries, mindful of the mission mentioned by Pope Paul VI: ‘Those who have received the Good News and who have been gathered by it into the community of salvation can and must communicate and spread it’ (Evangelii Nuntiandi, 1974, par.13). Ecclesial  communion is not centralisation but concerned with union, mindful of Pope Francis’ call in another Apostolic Exhortation:

‘The strength of what unites all of us as Christians is supremely important. We can be so attentive to what divides us that at times we no longer appreciate or value what unites us’. (Querida Amazonia,108)

Hierarchy serves in the church to shepherd communion with God and within the People of God through the strength of the Holy Spirit. Joseph Ratzinger (Pope Benedict XVI) brings out the meaning of communion in the church:

‘The intimate mystery of the communion between God and humankind is accessible in the sacrament of the Body of the Risen Lord; the mystery requires our body and is realised in one body: the Church constructed by means of the sacrament of the Body of Christ must itself be a body, and a single body, and, conformably to the unity in the Lord, must be expressed in unity and coherence with the teaching of the Apostles.[1]

After announcing the choice of the apostles Luke shows Jesus straightaway in action, in the middle of ‘those who had come to hear him and to be cured of their diseases’. Hearing the word of God and healing are at the heart of the Gospel. This flows from Jesus’ announcement in Luke of his mission ‘to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to captives, sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free’ (4:18-19). When the time came for him to send out the Twelve, Jesus instructed them as follows: ‘And as you go, proclaim that the kingdom of Heaven is close at hand. Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, drive out demons. (Matt 10:7-8).  This fits with Pope Francis’ favourite image of the church, that of the field hospital which takes in and treats the weak, worn out and wounded.

The thing the church needs most today is the ability to heal wounds and to warm the hearts of the faithful; it needs nearness, proximity. I see the church as a field hospital after battle…Heal the wounds, heal the wounds…. And you have to start from the ground up.[2]

Participating by faith in the pilgrimage towards holiness, being in communion in charity with the bishops as beacons of unity, promoting the healing mission of the church, the people of God go forward together in hope.

Fr Kevin O’Gorman SMA

[1] Journey Towards Easter, (St Paul Publications, 1987), 139.

[2] ‘A Big Heart Open to God’, America, 19th September, 2013.

Moving tribute from a new bishop to his father

https://angelicum.it/alumni-news/2023/10/19/63492/

Bishop-elect Gerald Mamman Musa, the first Hausa-speaking Nigerian to be appointed bishop in Nigeria, thanks his late catechist-father for instilling in him a passion for the Catholic faith.

A new bishop for a new diocese: Pope Francis on October 16 created the new Diocese of Katsina from territory taken from Sokoto Diocese in northern Nigeria, and appointed Father Gerald Mamman Musa, son of a local catechist and currently a communications professor, as its first bishop. 

Detailing how the example of his father motivated him, Bishop-elect Musa told La Croix International in an exclusive interview that “as a catechist, he made me realize the importance of the Eucharist and as a translator he has made me develop interests in translating sacred texts, spiritual books or some official books of the Church into the Hausa language.”

Hausa is a Chadic language spoken by the Hausa people in the northern parts of Nigeria, Niger, Ghana, Cameroon, Benin and Togo. The Hausa are a native ethnic group in West Africa and most Hausa speakers are Muslims.

The newly appointed bishop’s late father, Emmanuel Musa, a Hausa speaking native, spent over 30 years as a teacher at Sokoto Diocese’s Catechetical Training Centre in Katsina State, translating Christian literature from English to Hausa.

This included the Hausa Bible; “Africa Our Way” series by Father Michael McGrath SMA and Sister Nicole Gregoire SA that deals with issues as catechetics, counselling, marriage, homiletics; and the book about the Billings Method of natural family planning “Love and Life” by Sr. Dr. Leonie McSweeney MMM who worked in Nigeria for almost 60 years.

Mentored by his catechist-father: Recalling his days as a youth, Bishop-elect Musa, 52, stated that, “as a child, I never knew that someday I’m going to be involved in translation. Providentially, today, I am involved in revising some Hausa texts from the English language to the Hausa language. I watched my father train catechists at the Catechetical Training Centre and I have witnessed how passionate he was in teaching children catechism in the parish.” 

He recounted how his dad “was not only involved in teaching catechism at the parish level, but at home,” stressing that “he taught us the fundamentals of the faith and always led the family in morning and night prayers.”

According to Bishop-elect Musa, there were primarily two values he learned from his father. “The first is that of perseverance. He remained steadfast in his Christian faith from the moment he embraced Christianity and was baptised. When the missionaries came to his village in Argungu in the 1930s he was among those who were converted as a child. Despite persecution and discrimination, he held on to his faith. His perseverance inspires and motivates me in the face of challenges,” he said.

 “The second value that I learned from him is that of commitment to our mother, the entire family and to his work. He worked for over 30 years as a formator of catechists, translator of Christian literature,” Bishop-elect Musa said.

A lay Catholic who knew “Catechist Musa” told La Croix International that, “he will be fondly remembered by Catholics” across northern Nigeria “for being an astute teacher responsible for the training of catechists and religious teachers who are beneficiaries of his translated works.”

Pastoral priorities, plans for the new diocese: Bishop-elect Musa in his first interview since his appointment, laid out his pastoral priorities and plans for the new diocese. “For now, I wish to align the pastoral plans of the diocese very closely with the vision of [John Paul II’s 1995 post-synodal apostolic exhortation] Ecclesia in Africa, which describes Church as a family. The principal themes of Ecclesia in Africa derived from the African Synod will serve as guiding principles,” said Bishop-elect Musa, the first Hausa speaking Nigerian to be appointed a bishop in Nigeria.  

In terms of grassroots evangelisation and inculturating the faith, Bishop-elect Musa, who is the Head of Department of the Centre of African Culture and Communication pointed out that “In Africa, we have common challenges, and those pillars of the synod are relevant almost in all nooks and crannies of the continent. In line with the vision of the African Synod, I shall concentrate on primary and renewed evangelization in the Diocese of Katsina.”

“Another area to focus on is that of inculturation in a Church that is relatively young in Nigeria. Inculturation will help us to reflect on the intersection where culture and faith meet. Since the people of Katsina have been Christianised, it is important to consider how Christianity can be ‘Hausanised’.” 

He said his episcopacy would also stress integral development and interreligious dialogue. “A key pillar of my pastoral plan is to work on the integral development of the people while addressing the root cause of injustice, poverty, and insecurity, especially for the minorities in the rural areas who have been marginalized. Besides, I plan to see how we can engage our Muslim brothers and sisters in interreligious dialogue. Very importantly, I shall work with the youth, the future of the church to see how we can collectively work as a team,” Bishop-elect Musa said. 

Education, teaching, pastoral duties, demographics of Katsina: At the time of his appointment, Bishop-elect Musa was a professor and director of the Center for the Study of African Culture and Communication at the Catholic Institute of West Africa in Port Harcourt, Nigeria, a position he has held from 2013. 

Bishop-elect Musa, ordained a priest in 1996, has a Doctorate in Communication Studies from the School of Journalism and Communication of University of Queensland in Saint Lucia, Brisbane, Australia, a Master’s in Dogmatic Theology from the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas (Angelicum), and a Licentiate in Social Sciences, with specialization in Communication, from the Pontifical Gregorian University, Rome. 

He served as Vicar of the Administrator of the Holy Family Cathedral, Sokoto, and Diocesan Secretary at the Diocesan Chancery of Sokoto (1996-2000), secretary of the Christian Association of Nigeria, Sokoto State (1998-2000) and executive committee member of the Nigeria Interreligious Council. Bishop-elect Musa has also had parish work experience in Sokoto Diocese as well as the Australian Archdiocese of Brisbane.

Katisina Diocese was created as the seventh suffragan of the Metropolitan See of Kaduna alongside Kafanchan, Kano, Kontagora, Minna, Sokoto, and Zaria dioceses. Before Katisina Diocese was carved out from Sokoto Diocese, it had the largest territory in Nigeria — covering the four states of Sokoto, Katsina, and Zamfara and some parts of Kebbi. 

The new Katisina Diocese has a territory size of 29,000 square kilometres, a population of 9.66 million out of which only 19,000 are Catholics in 10 parishes and 72 mission stations served by 11 diocesan priests, three fidei donum priests, a religious priest, five nuns and 48 catechists. The diocese runs 16 primary and secondary schools, and a clinic. It will have St. Martin de Porres Church as its cathedral.

By Justine John Dyikuk | Nigeria                               October 24, 2023

Reprinted with permission from La Croix

Read more at: https://international.la-croix.com/news/religion/moving-tribute-from-a-new-bishop-to-his-father/18565

Homily for the 30th Sunday of Year A

Readings: Exodus 22:20-26; 1 Thessalonians 1:5-10; Matthew 22:34-40

Love, in the words of a popular 1960’s song, ‘makes the world go round’.  The famous American novelist, Arthur Miller, underlined the importance of love when he wrote: The one thing we can never get enough of is love. And the one thing we never give enough is love.’  Love is the greatest of the commandments, the mother of all the virtues, and the pulsating heart of the Christian message. We are created in the image of a God who is Love; so we cannot live without love. In the words of Pope Francis, ‘The human being aspires to love and to be loved. This is our deepest aspiration: to love and be loved; and definitively.’ We can all say with St Paul, ‘Without love, I am nothing’ (1Cor 13:2).

In today’s gospel reading from Matthew, one of the Pharisees, a lawyer, asks Jesus to identify ‘the greatest commandment of the Law’ (Mt 22:36).  In response, Jesus quotes the great shema prayer recited daily by all devout Jews (cf. Deut 6:4-5). This prayer exhorts us to love God with our whole heart, mind and soul. Jesus immediately adds a second commandment, familiar to his audience (cf. Deut 6:4-5), namely, ‘love your neighbour as yourself’ (Mt 22:39).  As the First Letter of John makes clear, love of God and love of neighbour are inseparable, two sides of the same coin:  ‘Let us love one another since love comes from God, and everyone who loves is begotten by God and knows God. Anyone who fails to love can never have known God, because God is Love’ (1Jn 4: 7-8).

The prophets spoke of the God of Israel (Yahweh) as a God of ‘faithful love’ (hesed), a God who always keeps his promises: ‘I have loved your with an everlasting love and therefore I am constant in my affection for you’ (Jer 31:3). God’s love is both constant and universal; it is for all creatures, and it is especially the poor and defenceless.  Here is the foundation of the Lord’s command [in our first reading today] to the people of Israel to show mercy to strangers, widows, and orphans (cf. Ex 22:20–22). God’s love is manifested supremely in Jesus Christ, the human face of the God of love.  When the Apostle Philip asked Jesus to reveal the face of the Father, Jesus replies ‘To see me is to see the Father’ (Jn 14:10). Jesus was sent by the Father so that we would see and know the depth of the Father’s ever faithful and unconditional love, a love that ultimately led him to give his life for us. 

Sadly, the word ‘love’ is so overused in contemporary discourse that it has lost much of its meaning. We speak of love of work, love of country, love of sport, love of food, love between friends, love of parents for their children, romantic love, etc. There are indeed many kinds and forms of love. In his first encyclical letter, God is Love, Pope Benedict XVI distinguishes three main kinds of love: eros, the spontaneous attraction between a man and woman that tends towards union; philia, the mutual love that exists between friends; and agape or self-less and self-sacrificing love, supremely manifested in Jesus Christ. While these three forms of love may be distinguished, they must not be separated. Any love worthy of the name involves a costly process of growth from the search for self, to the surrender of self for the sake of others.  Writing about erotic or romantic love in his famous novel, Captain Corelli’s Mandolin, the English novelist, Louis de Bernières, states: ‘Love is not breathlessness. It is not excitement. It is not the promulgation of eternal passion. That is just being-in-love, which any fool can do. Love itself is what is left over when being-in-love has burned away.’

Genuine love is manifested in action; it is practical and outgoing. In the words of St Augustine: ‘It has the hands to help others. It has the feet to hasten to the poor and needy. It has the eyes to see misery and want. It has the ears to hear the sighs and sorrows of people.’ Such love is demanding. It summons us to leave our comfort zones, to give our time, our energy, our talents, and, indeed, our very selves to others. And to do this not just when we feel in good form good or for a short time, but to do it in season and out of season, in good times and bad, until, in the words of St Paul, our life has been ‘poured out like a libation’ (2 Tim 4:6).

The manner in which the early Christians understood and lived the great commandment of love is illustrated by the testimony of a second century philosopher, Aristides. Writing to the Emperor Hadrian in defence of the Christians he stated that: ‘Christians love one another. They never fail to help widows; they save orphans from those who would hurt them.  If one member of the community has something, he gives freely to those who have nothing…. There is something divine in them.’ Through their experience of the Risen Christ and the outpouring of his Spirit, the first followers of Jesus had left behind the darkness of night and emerged into the dawning light of God’s love – a love that transformed their lives utterly. May the celebration of this Eucharist strengthen us as we strive to imitate the example of the early Christians and love others as God loves us.

Fr Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

Mission Saturday – A reflection for the Month of Mission 2023

Based on the Mass readings for Saturday 21st October 2023

Jesus does not usually call attention to himself in the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke – The ‘I AM’ sayings in the Gospel of John are another study). On the rare occasions that he does he is referring to his mission to proclaim/make present the Reign of God and to reveal his relation with his heavenly Father. The Reign/Kingdom of God is the central and continuous reference point for the preaching and practise of Jesus. This revelation of his mission is the fulfilment of the faith of Abraham spoken about in today’s first reading, faith the Psalmist proclaims that God ‘remembers his covenant for ever, his promise for a thousand generations’.

Today’s Gospel from Saint Luke contains three sayings of Jesus, referring to himself and to the Holy Spirit. Each saying includes our involvement with Jesus and the Spirit respectively. Firstly, declaring openly for Jesus in public in contrast to denying him shows faith and serves hope in his mission. Secondly – in the first of two references to the Holy Spirit – Jesus’ statement that whoever ‘blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven’ sends a shudder while the surety that the same Spirit will stand by those who are indicted for identifying and insisting on their faith is a source of consolation. Clearly the evangelist was conscious of the opposition – both religious and civil – that the fledgling church was facing, a situation that is not unknown to the church today in different parts of the world.

Pope Francis issues the invitation to identify Jesus and with his mission:

Just as you cannot understand Christ apart from the kingdom he came to bring, so too your personal mission is inseparable from the building of that kingdom: “Strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness” (Mt 6:33) (Rejoice and Be Glad, par. 25).

Inseparable from his mission, the kingdom is the meaning of Jesus’ own identity as Son of God, to the extent that Origen once called him ‘the kingdom-in-person’. In his Gospel Luke insists that this is a kingdom unlike others in the world and history, the Reign of God represented and realised by mercy not mastery, compassion not control, hospitality not harm, inclusion not exclusion. This call to identify with Christ is a ‘personal mission’ which involves ‘a commitment to build with him that kingdom of love, justice and universal peace… committing yourself, body and soul, to giving your best to this endeavour’ (par. 5).   

To blaspheme against the Holy Spirit is to block the mission of the same Spirit whom Saint Pope John Paul II wonderfully called ‘the principal agent of the whole of the Church’s mission’.  In his encyclical Mission of the Redeemer (1990), he states that ‘the mission of the Church, like that of Jesus, is God’s work or, as Luke often puts it, the work of the Spirit’ (par. 24). This ‘work of the Spirit’ sends us out today (and tomorrow) to be missionaries, witnesses who publicly declare for Jesus the Son of Man, Son of God, who promote (and not prevent) the power of the Holy Spirit through our graced efforts of goodness.  As John Paul II puts it succinctly, ‘mission is based not on human abilities but on the power of the risen Lord’ (par. 23). Therefore, ‘it is the Spirit who is the source of the drive to press on, not only geographically but also beyond the frontiers of race and religion, for a truly universal mission (par. 25). This is the mission ad gentes, the mission of the church to all peoples that ‘the kingdom of God be proclaimed and renewed throughout the whole world’ (Vatican II – Decree on the Church’s Missionary Activity, par. 1).

We can imagine mission as the golden thread of grace that comes from Jesus through the Spirit, sent not to tie us up but free us to witness to and work for God’s truth, peace and love among people(s).

Holy Saturday is celebrated once a year, after Holy Thursday and Good Friday, before Easter Sunday. While it does not have a liturgy of its own, spiritually it is the day of surrender, of deathly silence, of descent into hell, the sign of the complete offering by Jesus in obedience to his mission. Having once spoken of the need for the seed to die, Jesus lays down his life, leaving it to his Father to fulfil his mission through his resurrection and the releasing of the Holy Spirit. This day is Holy because it offers the space in history to be filled by the Holy Spirit, sanctifying every other Saturday/day and sending us out to share the Good News.

(Readings: Romans 4:13. 16-18; Psalm 104:6-9, 42-43; Gospel of Luke 12:9-12)

Fr Kevin O’Gorman, SMA

Peace is not made with weapons – Fr Luigi Maccalli SMA

While in captivity I understood that peace is not made with weapons

“I am very saddened by what I hear and see in the news. Now the conflict between Israel and Hamas has overshadowed that between Russia and Ukraine, while Sudan hasn’t been mentioned for a long time, but this conflict has been going on for 6 months now and then… I can’t help but remember the situation in the Sahel, where I was as a missionary for 11 years and spent 2 years as a hostage”, stated Fr Pierluigi Maccalli SMA in an interview with Fides

Fr Maccalli shared his considerations and feelings regarding the current geopolitical context, characterized by endless wars. “I also think that many people have not noticed what is happening these days between Armenia and Azerbaijan, in the Karabakh region. There are so many images and news of wars and violence that I hear and that sadden me deeply”, he said. “I take sides with all victims of this senseless inhumanity. I am also saddened by so much ‘space’ given in the media to the ‘armed’ words of those involved. As long as the words are not disarmed, it is unthinkable to disarm hands that are only ready to shoot and drop bombs”, continues Father Maccalli. Faced with this bleak situation, says the missionary, “only Pope Francis is an exception. He never tires of repeating that war is a defeat for everyone. He does not repeat the word peace in vain, but offers himself as a mediator and insists that creative alternatives for peace are tried out.

In this World Mission Month, I would like to continue with my testimony that I will give on October 21st in Rome during the Missionary Vigil in the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls. My kidnapping and hostage-taking in the Sahel, where I was in the hands of jihadists from the al-Qaeda-affiliated group GSIM for over two years, showed me that peace is not made with weapons.

I have forgiven those who took away my freedom, chained me and despised me as an enemy.” Fr Maccalli recalls that he was freed three years ago at the beginning of October (see Fides, 9/10/2020): “Today I bear witness that peace comes through the narrow door of forgiveness. I have forgiven and I am at peace.” (AP) (Agenzia Fides, 18/10/2023)

With thanks to FIDES for this interview.

Homily for the 29th Sunday of Year A

Mission Sunday

Readings:  Isaiah 45:1,4-6; 1 Thessalonians 1:1-5; Matthew 22:15-21

Theme: ‘Hearts on fire; feet on the move’ (Pope Francis)

Today, World Mission Sunday, is the day set aside by the Catholic Church throughout the world to publicly renew its commitment to its universal mission, its calling to bring the Good news of Christ to the ends of the earth. Pope Francis has recently reminded us that service to the mission entrusted to it by Christ is the goal of the synodal journey on which the Church is currently embarked.  ‘This journey is certainly not a turning of the Church in upon herself; nor is it a referendum about what we ought to believe and practice, nor a matter of human preferences. Rather, it is a process of setting out on the way and, like the disciples of Emmaus, listening to the risen Lord. For he always comes among us to explain the meaning of the Scriptures and to break bread for us, so that we can, by the power of the Holy Spirit, carry out his mission in the world’. And this mission is the responsibility not just of priests and religious, but of the entire people of God.

The mission of Christ that the Church is charged and empowered to continue is to promote God’s reign ‘on earth as in heaven’. This is the heart of what is meant by the words of today’s gospel, ‘to give back to God what belongs to God (Mt 22:21), for everything belongs to God, and must be returned to him. Unlike the reign of Caesar, based on ruthlessly enforced power and control, which was bad news especially for the poor, God’s reign is good news. It is a reign of love and freedom, of truth and justice. Moreover, unlike the reign of Caesar, and all earthly kingdoms, it will endure forever. As lived and proclaimed by Jesus, God’s reign meant good news for the poor, healing for the sick, and liberation for the enslaved and oppressed: ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring good news to the afflicted. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives, sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim a year of favour from the Lord’ (Lk 4:18-19).

During his life on earth, Jesus was particularly concerned with those who were marginal to, or excluded from, the Jewish establishment of his time: the poor, the blind, the lepers, the tax collectors, those possessed by demons, the persecuted, and the downtrodden. Jesus wanted to end their misery and enable them to have life in abundance: ‘I have come that you may have life and have it to the full’ (Jn 10:10). Concern for the integral welfare of human beings, created in the image of a loving God, was at the very heart of Jesus’ message and ministry. As Christ’s disciples, we are all called and sent to be instruments of his compassion in the context of our broken, confused and anxiety riven world.

While all baptised members of the Church are called to bear witness to Christ and the Gospel of love, wherever they are, there is also, within the Church a special calling to mission outside one’s own cultural or national setting. Down through the centuries the Church’s mission to the nations was carried out by the members of missionary congregations and societies, ready and willing to embark upon a courageous outreach to  peoples and cultures outside their homelands. Irish missionaries and their supporters have made, and continue to make, an outstanding contribution to this missionary outreach.  Without the inspiration and leadership given by these women and men, the missionary impulse of the Church would have gradually diminished and died out, and the Church would have never realised its essential vocation to bring the Good News to the ends of the earth.  

Today we need such missionaries just as much as in the past. In his Message for this special Sunday, Pope Francis, states: ‘Today more than ever, our human family, wounded by so many situations of injustice, so many divisions and wars, is in need of the Good News of peace and salvation in Christ. I take this opportunity to reiterate that everyone has the right to receive the Gospel and Christians have the duty to announce it without excluding anyone, not as one who imposes a new obligation, but as one who shares a joy, signals a beautiful horizon, offers a desirable banquet.’

The Church’s missionary outreach is a great act of love.  Its purpose is not to transplant the Church as we know it to new places,  but to bring about ‘a new creation’, one that respects the culture of the people.  Missionaries nurture the seeds of the God’s Word already present in the lives and cultures of the people among who they work, so that these seeds may come to full flowering in the light of the Gospel of Christ. In this way, the Catholic Church becomes what it is called to be – truly Catholic and universal. I end with the fervent exhortation of Pope Francis: ‘Let us set out to make other hearts burn with the word of God, to open the eyes of others to Jesus in the Eucharist, and to invite everyone to walk together on the path of peace and salvation that God, in Christ, has bestowed upon all humanity.’

 Our Lady of the Way, Mother of Christ’s missionary disciples and Queen of Missions, pray for us!’

Fr Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

OCTOBER 2023| For the Synod – Video Message of Pope Francis

Pope Francis invites us to embrace listening and dialogue through the Synod:

The Pope Video for the month of September is a call to pray for the Synod which takes place this month.  The Pope prays that the Church might allow herself “to be guided by the Holy Spirit towards the world’s peripheries,” reaching out to everyone, “without excluding anyone.  

TEXT OF POPE’S MEASSAGE
Mission is at the heart of the Church. And even more when a Church is in Synod. This synodal dynamic alone carries its missionary vocation forward – that is, her response to Jesus’ mandate to proclaim the Gospel. 
I would like to recall that nothing ends here. Rather, we are continuing an ecclesial journey here. This is a journey we will travel, like the disciples of Emmaus, listening to the Lord who always comes to meet us.

He is the Lord of surprises. Through prayer and discernment, the Holy Spirit helps us carry out the “apostolate of the ear,” that is, listening with God’s ears in order to speak with the word of God. And thus, we draw near to the heart of Christ. Our mission and the voice that draws us to him spring from him.

This voice reveals to us that the heart of mission is to reach out to everyone, to seek everyone, to welcome everyone, to involve everyone, without excluding anyone.
Let us pray for the Church, that she may adopt listening and dialogue as a style of life at every level, allowing herself to be guided by the Holy Spirit towards the world’s peripheries.

28th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year A – A Reflection

 Isaiah 25.6-10
Philippians 4.12-14, 19-20
Matthew 22.1-14

The Banquet is prepared. The Hall is ready. The food is on the table. The King has issued the invitations for his son’s wedding feast. You have received one. Your name and RSVP is written on it. He is waiting for your reply. Come!

The feast we are called to share is the eternal banquet that awaits the redeemed in heaven, but we must remember that it begins here on earth. Heaven does not begin when we die; it begins the moment we open our lives to God and decide to follow him. The aperitif is already available for those who don the wedding garment. Ask anyone who has already responded and they will tell you.

The Bridegroom will feed us now (The Eucharist – his Body and Blood; The Scriptures – his Word) so long as we approach him wearing the right heart and mind, dressed in the right attitude and openness, and clothed with a sincere desire to be spiritually fed.

The Bridegroom longs to have us share in his banquet but to be admitted to the Hall and to receive the foretaste it is necessary that we respond now to his invitation and be of the right disposition (the wedding garment) to receive what he wants to give. We must not presume we will be admitted otherwise. We must not put it off to later. Later may be too late.

Do you have any excuses at this moment in your life for turning down his invitation? Are you really so foolish?

A Reflection by Fr Pat Kelly SMA first published in 2017

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

Billiri Parish – helping ourselves and help from our friends

Fr Sam Ebute SMA, Parish Priest St Andrew's, Billiri

Billiri Mission, called St Andrew’s Parish in Bauchi State, Nigeria was founded by SMA’s in 1953.  It was the first parish established in an area that would later become part of Bauchi Diocese, whose first Bishop was the late and much missed, John Moore SMA.   This year the Parish is 70 years old and in addition to the main Mission located in Kalmai there are 12 out-station churches.  Back in the 1950’s Billiri Mission covered a much larger area but since then the church has grown and in the intervening years what was one Parish has now divided into four. 

The parish is in a predominantly an agricultural area, with the population of around 2,500 Catholics. We have other Christian denominations like ECWA, Living Faith, Methodist Church, Anglican Church, Assemblies of God Church, Lutheran Church, Redeem Christian Church, just to mention but a few.

Help from our Friends:  Recently, thanks to a grant from the Irish SMA Province we were, as shown in the photograph, able to install a 5KVA solar light that powers the rectory and the Church for our worship. Another important blessing the Solar system brought to us was on the aspect of security, we now have security lights around the house and the parish. Again, before now, we practically would live in the dark at night. More so, with the advent of light around the parish, we have activities in the evening into the night. After parishioners come home from their daily work in the farm, market or at school they can come to the Mission and engage in Church activities.  For young people it is also a boon – students come to study, learn, practice and pray in their different youth groups and Church societies. 

Before this project came about, we rarely had a mains supply electricity in the area.  Instead we relied on generators, powered by expensive diesel fuel for a few hours each night.  We also had to maintain the equipment and this, along with the cost of fuel, was a drain on our resources.  With the advent of the Solar system, we have been saved from the task of buying fuel, the noise pollution, air pollution, and the cost of maintenance every week.  We are grateful to the Irish Province and to friends in Ireland whose donations provided this important resource for our Parish.

Helping Ourselves: We also raise our own resources to support parish activities. One project is growing Ground Nuts, also known as Peanuts.  We can do this because of the sandy nature of the land here, and also because groundnuts can thrive without fertilizer, which we cannot afford. Parishioners provide the labour to do the planting, weeding and harvesting.  Then they come together to shell the peanuts and prepare them for selling in the Market.  The proceeds supplement the Parish income and help to cover running costs.  In addition, on Thanksgiving Sundays, families also support the Church with other produce like corn, beans, soya beans, rice and yams.  This communal work and collaboration reflect our Parish Motto:   One Big Happy Family. 

In these ways – by our faith, with help from friends and by working together to help ourselves the Parish begun by Irish SMA’s long ago continues to flourish today.

 In conclusion, we so grateful to God for the great support we got from the Irish Province. We ask him to continue to bless the work of your hands especially our benefactors and benefactresses. We equally thank him for the gift our faith, strength and family spirit he’s given us in the parish to be able to cultivate and harvest something to build his house. May the name of the Lord be praised both now and forever.

Our thanks to Fr Sam Ebute SMA, the Parish Priest of St Andrews Parish for the information and photographs in this article.  

If you would like to help the SMA Irish Province support similar parish projects in Africa you can do so via the donation button on the Homepage by contributing to the General Donation Fund. 

Our Lady of the Rosary – 7th October 2023

Our Lady of the Rosary, Lawrence OP, Flickr CC

In the first week of October we have commemorated and celebrated the lives of three of the  greatest saints in the church – Saints Thérèse, Francis and Bruno. Each of them bring a special grace and genius – the so-called ‘Little Flower’ who promised to shed roses on the earth from heaven, a tender gesture of gentle and gracious love; if Thérèse longed to be love at the heart of the church Francis is the most loved of all Christian saints, his poverty and simplicity of life so attractive and appealing to people of all faiths and none. Bruno is the least known of the three, probably because he founded the Carthusians and they are a constant (though not conspicuous) reminder of Saint Paul’s half line that ‘your life is hidden with Christ in God’ (Colossians 3:3).

Mary possesses and practices pre-eminently each of these virtues – love, poverty and hiddenness. Her love of God and of His only-begotten Son knows no bounds which is the basis of her love for the church. Mary’s poverty of spirit is proclaimed in her Magnificat – ‘My soul magnifies the Lord for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant’. The hiddenness of her home life and care for Jesus from childhood through to adulthood is done in an almost absolute anonymity with Nazareth both a seed and symbol for the contemplative life in the church. Today’s Memorial adds another title – Our Lady of the Rosary –  to the honours and holiness of the Mother of God. The Second Vatican Council placed her with and within the church so that Our Lady is with the church in history and hopefully in heaven. The focus today is on prayer. The recitation of the rosary with its four cornerstones – Joyful and Sorrowful, Glorious and Mysteries of Light  – reveals how her intimate involvement with the Son of God helps to relate to our sorrows, joy and hope of seeing the glorious light of heaven.

The prayer of the Ave (Hail Mary) falls into two parts, praise and petition. Acknowledged as being ‘full of grace’ and announcing the double blessing of both herself and ‘the fruit of [her] womb’, Mary is assured of God’s presence and power. It is God who has given this absolute grace which allows us in turn to address her as ‘holy Mother of God’ and ask for her assistance ‘now and at the hour of death’. Acknowledging on our part that we are sinners recalls the reply of Pope Francis who, in his first interview, identified himself as a sinner. Without sin herself ‘by her motherly love she cares for her Son’s sisters and brothers who still journey on earth surrounded by dangers and difficulties, until they are led into their blessed home’ (Second Vatican Council, The Church). All the more then can we approach her as her children in confidence, coming and standing before her ‘sinful and sorrowful’ asking in her ‘mercy [to] hear and answer’ us (Memorare).

Writing in the Jesuit magazine America after the death of the Cistercian Fr Thomas Keating in October 2018, Tim Shriver recalled his instruction about the Ave: ‘And say just one Hail Mary, but say it slowly so you can feel the unconditional trust that made it possible for Mary to allow God’s love to take over her life…Meet her and understand her model of trust in God and let her heal you’. 

Fr Kevin O’Gorman SMA

 

MISSIONARY VOICES – PODCAST 5

This week we bring you the fifth and last Missionary Voices Podcast in this series. 

Sr Juvenale Yevide OLA who lives and works in Maradi, Niger speaks with Mr John McGeady, former Justice Officer for the Sisters of Our Lady of Apostles and Mr Gerry Forde, Justice Officer for the Society of African Missions.  This podcast was recorded before the recent political changes in Niger.

This episode delves into the far-reaching and consequences of climate change in Niger and Burkina Faso, which is driving a significant rural-to-urban migration trend.  This migration is not only reshaping the social fabric of communities but also affecting crime rates, and perhaps most concerning, pushing teenage schoolgirls into early marriages.  Sr. Juvenale provides  a perspective that sheds light on the unique struggle of women and girls in the face of environmental change.

If there was one thing that came across very strongly from all five speakers in this series, it is the fact that climate change is already having a very significant and negative impact on land, livelihoods and societies in countries across Africa and that this is likely to increase.

We hope and pray that Pope Francis latest Exhortation, Laudate Deum helps to inspire action for change that will lessen the unjust effects of Climate Change in Africa.

Click here to listen to the podcast

This link also gives access to the previous podcasts in this series. 

Homily for the 27th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year A

Readings: Isaiah 5:1-7; Philippians 4:6-9; Matthew 21:33-43

 Theme: Tenants in God’s Vineyard

The images of vines and vineyards loom large in the Scriptures. They feature today in the first reading, the responsorial psalm, and the gospel.  Vineyards were as important for the people of Israel as dairy farms were, and indeed still are, for people in Ireland. The cultivation of vineyards and the production of wine was no less demanding than is the production of milk. A lot care and hard work went into the production of quality vines and vintage wine. Because vineyards and vines were so central to the everyday life of the Israelites, they are often used symbolically in Scripture to represent God’s relationship to Israel and its people. A fruitful vine was a symbol of an Israel fidelity to God, while sour grapes were an indication of Israel’s infidelity (cf. Jer 2:21).

Our first reading today, taken from the prophet Isaiah, illustrates God’s attentive and loving care for the people of Israel, using the image of a vine-grower’s who did everything possible to produce grapes of the highest quality. ‘He dug the soil, cleared it of stones and planted choice vines in it. In the middle he built a tower and cut a wine-press as well. He expected it to yield a crop of good grapes, but sour grapes were all that it gave’ (Is 5:2). What God expected from the people of Israel, after all the love and care he had shown them, was justice and integrity. Instead what he found was bloodshed and a cry of distress (cf. Is 5:7). Isaiah goes on to paint a sad picture of Israel as an abandoned vineyard, ‘a wasteland, neither pruned nor cultivated, overgrown with briers and thorns’ (Is 5:6).

 In our gospel reading, Jesus expands and develops the parable of the vineyard in light of his own experience of rejection. He is speaking ‘to the chief priests and elders of the people’ (Mt 21: 33), who refused to accept him as the Messiah. He tells them a story about a landowner who planted a vineyard, developed it, and leased it out to tenants.  Then, when harvest time drew near, he sent his servants to collect the grapes.  However, the tenants seized, thrashed, stoned and even killed these servants. And this happened not just once but several times. Jesus is here referring to the rejection of the prophets whom God sent to remind the Israelites of their calling to be a holy and faithful people, a model of truthfulness and upright behaviour for other nations. Finally, as Jesus develops the parable, the landowner sends his son, thinking that they will respect him at least. Instead, the kill him, too, in order to take possession of the vineyard themselves. This represents precisely what happened to Jesus himself, the beloved Son sent by the Father to the people of Israel, but rejected by the chief priest and elders of the people. Jesus was ‘the stone rejected by the builders that became the keystone’ (Mt 21:42).

Our readings today are not merely an account of Israel’s ingratitude and infidelity, or of Jesus’ rejection by the chief priests and elders of the people. They are addressed to us here today. They challenge us to ask ourselves what God expects of us, after all the love and care he has shown us? We are privileged, by baptism, to be called to work in the Lord’s vineyard. Every Sunday we are invited to gather together to hear the Gospel message and to make it part of our lives. We are God’s new people, called to be faithful and active members of the Body of Christ, the Church. We are those ‘other tenants’  whom the Lord expects ‘to deliver the produce to him when the season arrives’ (Mt 21:41). What kind of grapes do we produce? Are they sweet and luscious, or dry and sour?  Have we lived up to the Lord’s expectations of us as a community of his beloved disciples?  What kind of impact do we have on the world around us?  Can we honestly say that we are people of justice and integrity? Am I a person of justice and integrity? 

In today’s Second Reading, St Paul offers us practical guidance on how to produce good fruit in our lives and live up to the Lord’s expectations of us. ‘Finally, brothers and sisters, fill your minds with everything that is true, everything that is noble, everything that is good and pure, everything that we love and honour, and everything that can be thought virtuous or worthy of praise’ (Phil 4:8). If we follow Paul’s instruction, we do not need to worry about the kind of fruit we will produce. ‘That peace of God, which is so much greater than we can understand’ will guard our hearts and our thoughts, in Christ Jesus’ (Phil 4:8) and ensure that we produce the fruits of love.

I will end with a prayer based on today’s readings from the pen of Flor McCarthy SDB, entitled Planted by God;

Lord you planted me on this earth.
You fenced me around with the love of family and friends.
Their care towered over me.
In the shelter of this tower I grew in safety and peace.
I put out early blossoms; I filled with leaves.
People had great hopes for me.
You had great hopes for me.
But now the year of my life is passing.
The harvest is approaching. 
What fruit have I to show?
What if, after all this care,
I had nothing to offer but sour grapes?
May you, Lord, have mercy on me,
and with your patient urging
help me to produce the fruits of love.

Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

SMA International News – October 23

Welcome to the October edition of SMA International News.  This month we hear from 

 Côte d’Ivoire –  we hear of a spiritual and cultural experience from an Italian group who visited the region.

Lyon – where the SMA house At 150 Cours Gambetta reopened its doors to a new era.

Ireland –  where over 500 young people attended this year’s  SMA Summer Camps at their house at Dromantine, Northern Ireland.

 

Feast of St Jerome, 30th September 2023

Today we celebrate the Memorial of Saint Jerome – associated with the Bible, long advertised by The Jerome Biblical Commentary – now in its third edition. The opening prayer of the mass announces that he had ‘a living and tender love for Sacred Scripture’.

The readings for the Memorial bring out the vital role of the Bible in the life of the church. Paul reminds Timothy that he has ‘known the holy scriptures since childhood’, encouraging him ‘to learn the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith in Christ Jesus’. Wisdom occupies a large and last part in the Old Testament – for Paul and the evangelists, especially John, the incarnation of heavenly wisdom in Christ leads them to a realization that the Wisdom of God’s word is revealed in Jesus.

The well-known biblical scholar Henry Wansbrough tells of meeting an English bishop during the first session of Vatican II – ‘Oh, you are a student of the Bible. I suppose that means you don’t believe in it’. Thankfully there is a via media between naivety and cynicism – and we can occupy and own that space thanks to the wonderful work of many like Wansbrough who have critically communicated the Bible so that in Paul’s wonderful words it ‘can profitably be used for teaching, for refuting error, for guiding people’s lives and teaching them to be holy’. In these four marks we find a brilliant basis for Bible study and prayer.

Matthew’s preferred image of Jesus is that of teacher. We see this in the final line of the Gospel – the ‘householder who brings out from his storeroom things both new and old’. Scripture is the church’s storeroom and we have seen how since Pope Pius XII – with his groundbreaking green light given to biblical studies – announced while the Second World War was raging – the Popes have drawn richly from the Bible in encyclicals and exhortations, messages, letters and addresses.

Indeed in 2000 Pope Francis issued an Apostolic Letter to celebrate the sixteen hundredth anniversary of Saint Jerome. He describes him as a ‘servant of the word of God, in love, as it were, with the “flesh of scripture” who ‘saw his studies not as a pleasant pastime and an end unto itself, but rather as a spiritual exercise and a means of drawing closer to God’.

Fr Kevin O’Gorman, SMA

SMA OLA PODCAST SERIES No 4

To mark the Season of Creation a collaboration between the Sisters of Our Lady of Apostles and the Society of African Missions has produced a series of five Podcasts on the theme “Witnessing Climate Impact in Africa
 

This week we bring you the fourth podcast in this series – a conversation between Mr John McGeady, former Justice Officer for the Sisters of Our Lady of Apostles, Mr Gerry Forde, Justice Officer for the Society of African Missions and Fr Patrick Kwis SMA originally from Jos, Plateau State but now based in the Nigerian capital Abuja from where he works as the General Coordinator of the JPIC Office for SMA Nigeria Province. 

Fr Patrick gives an overview of climate change and its widespread effects in Nigeria which in turn has contributed to societal changes such as distrust and fear between people.  Climate change is exacerbating social tensions. 

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THE PODCAST  
This link may also be used to access the earlier podcasts in the series. 

The final podcast in the series will be published on Thursday the 5th of October and will feature Sr Juvenale Yevide OLA who lives in Niger.

Homily for the 26th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year A

Ezekiel 18:25-28

Philippians 2:1-11
Matthew 21:28-32

Today’s Gospel reminds us of how people can change their minds, or their way of life, for good or for evil. There are many such accounts in the Gospel: from Joseph who had decided to divorce Mary informally, to Mary Magdalene; from the woman caught in adultery to Peter the anointed leader who denied Jesus three times; from the doubting Thomas who declared he would not believe unless… to Judas Iscariot, one of the chosen twelve. 

In today’s Gospel we find the two sons, each doing the opposite to what they declare; while Jesus tells us that tax collectors and prostitutes paid attention to John the Baptist and they changed too.

There is plenty of common ground between those bible figures and our own fickle behaviour. 

One day we can be full of fervour and keen to profess our Christian faith, come what may. The next we can’t pray. We ask where is the God of yesterday? Does he exist at all? Is all our time wasted? Those who reject belief, faith, Church, religion and moral responsibility continue life as contented, apparently, as everyone else. Many of them were our classmates with whom we received our First Holy Communion and Confirmation. They don’t darken the door of the Church anymore. They changed their minds!

Of all the gifts given to us by God, the freedom of choice is perhaps the greatest. We’re not pre-determined beings; our choices are sacred and are literally our making, our doing and un-doing.

When we respond positively to God’s grace as also reflected in the best and noblest inspirations and aspirations of our environment, we’re shaping ourselves more firmly in the image and likeness of God our Creator.

Part of the challenge of our day is to ignore the choices made by others and content ourselves with our own good choices which uplift, and determine a better tomorrow for ourselves and society.

Let us pray for those who have changed their minds or way of life and turned away from God. May they experience afresh the fervour of their early faith and experience anew God’s gifts of peace and joy.

Edited from a Reflection of Fr Maurice Henry

 

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

World Day of Migrants and Refugees – 24th Sept

The Church has marked World Day of Migrants and Refugees since 1914. It is always an occasion to express concern for different vulnerable people on the move; to pray for them as they face many challenges; and to increase awareness about the opportunities that migration offers.

This year, 109th World Day of Migrants and Refugees,  the theme chosen by Pope Francis is Free to choose whether to migrate or to stay.  Unfortunately, this freedom is not enjoyed by many who are, because of poverty, hunger, drought, conflict and climate change are unable to live in peace and with dignity in their own countries and, are forced to leave their homeland.

In his message Pope Francis calls on us to work for a world in which migration is a free choice, a long process in which protecting human dignity and promoting the common good are essential elements. He also reminds us of our Christian duty to welcome, protect and integrate the stranger without distinction and without excluding anyone.


MESSSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS

FOR THE 109th WORLD DAY OF MIGRANTS AND REFUGEES 2023

Dear brothers and sisters!

The migratory flows of our times are the expression of a complex and varied phenomenon that, to be properly understood, requires a careful analysis of every aspect of its different stages, from departure to arrival, including the possibility of return. As a contribution to this effort, I have chosen to devote the Message for the 109th World Day of Migrants and Refugees to the freedom that should always mark the decision to leave one’s native land.

“Free to leave, free to stay” was the title of an initiative of solidarity promoted several years ago by the Italian Episcopal Conference as a concrete response to the challenges posed by contemporary migration movements.  From attentive listening to the Particular Churches, I have come to see that ensuring that that freedom is a widely shared pastoral concern.

“An angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said: ‘Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him” (Mt 2:13). The flight of the Holy Family into Egypt was not the result of a free decision, nor were many of the migrations that marked the history of the people of Israel. The decision to migrate should always be free, yet in many cases, even in our day, it is not. Conflicts, natural disasters, or more simply the impossibility of living a dignified and prosperous life in one’s native land is forcing millions of persons to leave. Already in 2003, Saint John Paul II stated that “as regards migrants and refugees, building conditions of peace means in practice being seriously committed to safeguarding first of all the right not to emigrate, that is, the right to live in peace and dignity in one’s own country” (Message for the 90th World Day of Migrants and Refugees, 3).

“They took their livestock and the goods that they had acquired in the land of Canaan, and they came into Egypt, Jacob and all his offspring with him” (Gen 46:6). A grave famine forced Jacob and his entire family to seek refuge in Egypt, where his son Joseph ensured their survival. Persecutions, wars, atmospheric phenomena and dire poverty are among the most visible causes of forced migrations today. Migrants flee because of poverty, fear or desperation. Eliminating these causes and thus putting an end to forced migration calls for shared commitment on the part of all, in accordance with the responsibilities of each. This commitment begins with asking what we can do, but also what we need to stop doing. We need to make every effort to halt the arms race, economic colonialism, the plundering of other people’s resources and the devastation of our common home.

“All who believed were together and had all things in common; they would sell their possessions and goods and distribute the proceeds to all, as any had need” (Acts 2:44-45). The ideal of the first Christian community seems so distant from today’s reality! To make migration a choice that is truly free, efforts must be made to ensure to everyone an equal share in the common good, respect for his or her fundamental rights, and access to an integral human development. Only in this way will we be able to offer to each person the possibility of a dignified and fulfilling life, whether individually or within families. Clearly, the principal responsibility falls to the countries of origin and their leaders, who are called to practice a good politics – one that is transparent, honest, farsighted and at the service of all, especially those most vulnerable. At the same time, they must be empowered to do this, without finding themselves robbed of their natural and human resources and without outside interference aimed at serving the interests of a few. Where circumstances make possible a decision either to migrate or to stay, there is a need to ensure that the decision be well informed and carefully considered, in order to avoid great numbers of men, women and children falling victim to perilous illusions or unscrupulous traffickers.

“In this year of jubilee you shall return, every one of you, to your property” (Lev 25:13). For the people of Israel, the celebration of the jubilee year represented an act of collective justice: “everyone was allowed to return to their original situation, with the cancellation of all debts, restoration of the land, and an opportunity once more to enjoy the freedom proper to the members of the People of God” (Catechesis, 10 February 2016). As we approach the Holy Year of 2025, we do well to remember this aspect of the jubilee celebrations. Joint efforts are needed by individual countries and the international community to ensure that all enjoy the right not to be forced to emigrate, in other words, the chance to live in peace and with dignity in one’s own country. This right has yet to be codified, but it is one of fundamental importance, and its protection must be seen as a shared responsibility on the part of all States with respect to a common good that transcends national borders. Indeed, since the world’s resources are not unlimited, the development of the economically poorer countries depends on the capacity for sharing that we can manage to generate among all countries. Until this right is guaranteed – and here we are speaking of a long process – many people will still have to emigrate in order to seek a better life.

 

FROM RESOURCES ON https://migrants-refugees.va/world-day-of-migrants-refugees/
For I was hungry and you gave me food

“For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me” (Mt 25:35-36). These words are a constant admonition to see in the migrant not simply a brother or sister in difficulty, but Christ himself, who knocks at our door. Consequently, even as we work to ensure that in every case migration is the fruit of a free decision, we are called to show maximum respect for the dignity of each migrant; this entails accompanying and managing waves of migration as best we can, constructing bridges and not walls, expanding channels for a safe and regular migration. In whatever place we decide to build our future, in the country of our birth or elsewhere, the important thing is that there always be a community ready to welcome, protect, promote and integrate everyone, without distinctions and without excluding anyone.

The synodal path that we have undertaken as a Church leads us to see in those who are most vulnerable – among whom are many migrants and refugees – special companions on our way, to be loved and cared for as brothers and sisters. Only by walking together will we be able to go far and reach the common goal of our journey.

FRANCIS

FROM RESOURCES ON https://migrants-refugees.va/world-day-of-migrants-refugees/PRAYER

God, Father Almighty,
grant us the grace to work tirelessly
for justice, solidarity and peace,
so that all your children may enjoy
the freedom to choose whether to migrate or to stay.

Grant us the courage to denounce
all the horrors of our world,
and to combat every injustice
that mars the beauty of your children
FROM RESOURCES ON https://migrants-refugees.va/world-day-of-migrants-refugees/and the harmony of our common home.

Sustain us by the power of your Spirit,
so that we can reflect your tender love
to every migrant whom you place in our path,
and to spread in hearts and in every situation
the culture of encounter and of care.

 

Dromantine hosts Novena in honour of the Little Flower

As well as the National Novena in honour of Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, the Little Flower, which is taking place at St Joseph’s SMA Church, Blackrock Road, Cork, the SMA community in Dromantine are also hosting the nine day Novena of Prayer for people living in the local area and beyond.

Click here to connect with the Dromantine celebration.

Mass is celebrated at 10am and 7.30pm each day from Saturday, 23 September to Sunday, 1 October [traditionally the Feast of St Therese].

Themes:
23 September: Invitation to shine with St Thérèse – Fr Damian Bresnahan, SMA
24 September: The changing face of the Church – Fr Des Corrigan, SMA
25 September: Faithful in abiding – my daily prayer time with God – Fr Pat Kelly, SMA
26 September: Keeping our eyes on Jesus – Fr Pat Kelly, SMA
27 September: Let go and let God – Fr Paddy O’Rourke, SMA
28 September: Celebrating Golden Years of Missionary Life – Fr Michael McKee, SMA
29 September: In the steps of St Thérèse – Fr Martin Kavanagh, SMA
30 September: The Synodal Pathways – Sr Kathleen McGarvey, OLA
1 September: Feast of St Thérèse – a wonder-filled celebration of love – Fr Christopher Emokhare, SMA

A Prayer in honour of St Thérèse

St Thérèse, Flower of Love, please intercede for us.
Fill our hearts with your pure love of God.
As we approach and celebrate your feast day
make us more aware of the goodness of God
and how God cares for us.

Instil in us your ‘Little Way’ of doing ordinary things with extraordinary love.
Give us the heart of a child who wonders at life
and embraces everything with loving enthusiasm.
Teach us to delight in God’s ways
so that divine charity may blossom in our hearts.

Little Flower of Jesus, bring our petitions before God, our Father.
O glorious St Thérèse, whom almighty God has raised to help and inspire the human family
I implore your intercession.
I beseech you to answer my petition
and to carry out your promise of spending heaven doing good on earth…
of letting fall from Heaven a Shower of Roses.

SMA OLA PODCAST SERIES No 3

To mark the Season of Creation  a collaborative effort between the Sisters of Our Lady of Apostles and the Society of African Missions has produced a series of five Podcasts on the theme of “Witnessing Climate Impact in Africa”. 

This week we bring you the third podcast in this series in which we hear a conversation between Mr John McGeady, former Justice Officer for the Sisters of Our Lady of Apostles, Mr Gerry Forde, Justice Officer for the Society of African Missions and two OLA Sisters based in different parts of Ghana.  They are Sr. Dora Sara Wilberforce OLA and Sr. Dorcas Obeng OLA. Together, they shed light on the many challenges facing the country due to climate change.

In this episode, we hear about the stark transformations occurring in the natural environment.  Beyond that, we learn about the heartbreaking consequences, such as the economic hardships driving women and girls into prostitution when crops fail.  Other knock-on effects of climate change are  urbanization, inflation and the far-reaching effects on crucial resources like energy, water, and food supply. Education, a cornerstone of progress, is also fundamentally affected by these challenges.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THE PODCAST  

This link may also be used to access the earlier podcasts in the series. 

Next week’s podcast which will be published on Thursday the 28st of September will come from Fr Patrick Kwiss SMA in Nigeria. 

Homily for the 25th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year A

Homily for the 25th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year A

Readings: Isaiah 55:6-9; Philippians 1:20-24,27; Matthew 20:1-16

Theme:   ‘Why be envious because I am generous’ (Mt 20:16)

Our readings last Sunday challenged us to imitate our heavenly Father by forgiving others as he forgives us. Today readings continue in a similar vein. They challenge us not to resent God’s magnanimity but strive, rather, to reflect his generosity in our relations with one another.  Our first reading from the prophet Isaiah reminds us that God does not think the way we think, nor act the way we act: ‘The heavens are as high above earth as my ways are above your ways, my thoughts above your thoughts’ (Is 55: 9).

Just how different God’s thoughts and ways are to ours is clearly illustrated in the parable of the Vineyard Owner in today’s gospel. It is important to note the significant elements of the story. The first noteworthy element is that it is the owner himself who goes out in search of workers for his vineyard. This was not the normal practice for an employer in Jesus’ day. If he needed extra workers he would send his foreman, or one of his employees, to the marketplace to pick them up. This Vineyard Owner however, goes to the marketplace himself. And he goes there several times, at different hours of the day, in search of workers to harvest his grapes. He is not just concerned about his business. He is clearly concerned also about the predicament of those who have been standing around all day in hope of finding someone to hire them.

The second significant element in the story has to do with the wages the workers receive at the end of the day. Starting with those who were employed last, which was standard procedure in Jesus’ time, the last to be employed receive their wages first, and they receive a full day’s wage, the same as those who have worked all through the day. If this happened today, the vineyard owner would have the workers’ Union on his back. Indeed, he would probably be forced out of business. We easily identify with the complaints of those workers who, having laboured throughout the heat of the day, expected to receive more money than those who had worked for just one hour. And yet, they have, as the parable makes clear, no justifiable grounds for their complaint. They received a just wage: the salary their employer had agreed with them.

Finally, we come to the main point of the parable, the sting in the tail – the last words of the Vineyard Owner: ‘Why be envious because I am generous’ (Mt 20:16). These words alert us to what the parable is all about. It is not about work and wages, about industrial relations or social justice. It is about God’s magnanimity of heart, his extravagant generosity, especially to the late-comers, those overlooked, left behind, or pushed to the margins of society.  God’s ways, while not contradicting the demands of social justice, infinitely transcend them. As Pope Benedict teaches in his encyclical letter, Caritas in Veritate (Love in Truth), God acts according to a higher logic than that which normally governs industrial relations – the logic of gift or gratuitous love, rather than the logic of entitlement. Only in the light of this logic can we understand the foolish generosity of the Vineyard Owner, or the lavish welcome of the Father in the parable of the Prodigal Son for his errant son. Only by this logic can we appreciate the extraordinary behaviour of Jesus in mixing with tax-collectors and sinners. 

Commenting on the parable of the Vineyard Owner, the great biblical Scholar, N.T. Wright, makes the same point as Pope Benedict. He states that  ‘God doesn’t make contracts with us, as if we could bargain or negotiate for a better deal. He makes covenants, in which he promises us everything and asks of us everything in return. When he keeps his promises, he is not rewarding us for effort, but doing what comes naturally to his over-flowingly generous nature.’   According to Shakespeare’s Hamlet, if we were treated according to what we deserve, ‘none of us would escape whipping’ (cf. Act 2, sc 2).  Fortunately, God does not treat us according to our deserts, but according to his boundless generosity, mercy and compassion, as today’s responsorial psalm proclaims.  

Today’s readings not only illustrate the divine logic, the logic of gift. They also challenge usto imitate God’s ways of thinking and acting in our relationships with one another. They challenge us to stop focusing on our entitlements or counting our deserts, and move from the narrow world of human calculation, of competition and rewards, into the magnanimous world of divine logic, where nothing has to be earned and everything is a gift; everything is free. In the words of a popular contemporary hymn: ‘Freely, freely, you have received. Freely, freely, give.’ I will end with a prayerful reflection on today’s readings from the pen of Flor McCarthy SDB:

‘My thoughts are not your thoughts,

nor are my ways your ways….’

How small our thoughts can be,

and how poor our ways of seeing and judging.

We think miserly thoughts, and act in miserly ways.

Why?

Because we have small minds and small hearts,

Lord, open our minds and enlarge our hearts,

so that we think more like you.

Let us not begrudge your goodness to others,

knowing that we too are undeserving of your favours,

and stand more in need of your mercy than of your justice.

Amen.

Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

 

National Novena in honour of St Thérèse of the Child Jesus 2023

National Novena in honour of St Thérèse of the Child Jesus 2023

This year’s Novena in St Joseph’s Church Blackrock Road, Cork takes place from Saturday September 23rd to Sunday 1st of October.  Mass will be at 7.30 pm each evening with the exception of Saturday when it will begin at 7pm.  

St Thérèse said: Upon my death I will let fall a shower of roses; I wish to spend my heaven in doing good upon the earth.” During our annual Novena we hold her to her word as we call upon her to intercede for our mission work  and our missionaries.  We also pray for personal ‘roses’ – our own special prayer-requests, in the belief that our prayers will be heard and answered.”  Fr Pat Kelly SMA

This year’s novena Masses will feature music from Ramelo Gregoria and the following Cork based Choirs:  St Joseph’s Parish Blackrock Road Choir, Scrubs CUH Workplace Choir, The Carrigaline Choral Group, The Cork Prison Officers Male Voice Choir and the City of Cork Male Voice Choir. 

DATES FOR LOCAL CHOIRS PARTICIPATING IN OUR ST. THÉRÈSE’S NOVENA

RAMELO GREGORIA – SINGER (23RD & 30TH)

THE CITY OF CORK MALE VOICE CHOIR (24th)

THE ST. JOSEPH’S PARISH BLACKROCK ROAD CHOIR (25TH & 29TH)

SCRUBS CUH WORKPLACE CHOIR (26TH)

THE CARRIGALINE CHORAL GROUP (27TH)

THE STROKE NOTES CHOIR (28th)

THE CORK PRISON OFFICERS MALE VOICE CHOIR (1ST OCTOBER)

Members of the public are welcome to attend and the Novena can also be viewed via the Blackrock Rd Church Webcam. A Button to access  the Webcam directly will be placed on the top of the SMA Website homepage on the day the Novena begins.  

 

Feast of Saints Cornelius [Pope] and Cyprian, martyrs

Feast of Saints Cornelius [Pope] and Cyprian, martyrs

St. Cyprian was originally a pagan public speaker and teacher from Carthage [in present-day Tunisia] who converted to Christianity around 246 AD. He studied Scripture and the writings of the first great Latin theologian from North Africa, Tertullian. He grew so rapidly in holiness and knowledge of the faith that he was appointed bishop of Carthage only two years later. He was martyred there on 14 September 258 AD by the pagan Romans, during the reign of the Emperor Valerian. He is considered the first bishop-martyr of Africa. As one of the first Saints of Africa he, along with St Augustine, are considered Patrons of the Society of African Missions [SMA].

His writings that survive are principally letters and other short treatises, including De Catholicae Ecclesiae Unitatis (probably dated 251 AD). This deals with the Unity of the Catholic Church and the importance of the Bishops as safeguards of this unity.

Before his execution, the Governor of Carthage accused Cyprian of setting himself up as an ‘enemy of the gods of Rome and our religious practices’. He then read out the sentence of death to which Cyprian replied, “Thanks be to God”.

He is honoured by the Western [Roman] and Eastern Churches on 16 September and by the Anglican Church on 26 September.

Fr Kevin O’Gorman, SMA, presents here a short reflection on what martyrdom means as we celebrate his feast day, which he shares with Pope St Cornelius. Cornelius was badly mistreated by the Romans and exiled to Civitavecchia, near Rome where he died in 253 AD. Though not actually killed by the Romans, the Roman Christians venerated him as a martyr because of the sufferings he endured as Pope and during his exile.

Here is Fr Kevin’s text:

“After the Exaltation of the Holy Cross and Our Lady of Sorrows we celebrate – indeed confess – the memorial of Cornelius and Cyprian, bishops (the former of Rome), both martyrs.

I say confess because sadly we hear and see people all over the world suffering for their faith in the crucified Christ and imitating him by laying down their lives in sacrifice. At the bottom of the page in the Liturgical Calendar there is a quotation from Pope Francis about participation in the Paschal Mystery in the liturgy; today the martyrs teach us how they have participated in the Paschal Mystery through their lives and through their deaths.

In today’s reading from the Gospel of Luke Jesus uses familiar images – a tree and a house. The principle is simple – ‘there is no sound tree that produces rotten fruit’. Jesus refers to this so many times as he does to the house built on a solid foundation. Throughout the summer we have seen images in so many places around the world of flooding and the devastation caused, houses, streets and villages swept away by the force of water flowing into them. There is no escape from the effects of environmental change. Like the examples in the Gospel, tree and house, without proper foundations, nature and humanity suffer catastrophic consequences.

The suffering of martyrdom is somewhat different. While it is caused by evil in the hearts of others, it is a witness freely chosen. Martyrs make their own way, conscious of the cost of discipleship.

Paul, no stranger to suffering for the sake of the Gospel and himself a martyr in the end, makes an amazing confession, claiming that he himself is the greatest example of God’s ‘inexhaustible patience’.  For Paul the mission of martyrdom is mercy. It is the supreme sign of sharing in the love of Christ who ‘came into the world to save sinners’.

Rooted in Christ the tree of life and founded on Him the true home of God in the world, martyrdom looks not to human failure but to heavenly fulfilment.”

Fr Kevin O’Gorman, SMA, Cork

SMA OLA PODCAST SERIES No 2

The Season of Creation  began on the first of September with the World Day of Prayer for Creation, and ends on the fourth of October, the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi, patron saint of ecology. 

To mark this season a collaborative effort between the Sisters of Our Lady of Apostles and the Society of African Missions has produced a series of five Podcasts on the theme of “Witnessing Climate Impact in Africa”. 

Below is a link to the second podcast in this series in which we hear a conversation between Mr John McGeady, former Justice Officer for the Sisters of Our Lady of Apostles, Mr Gerry Forde, Justice Officer for the Society of African Missions and Fr Ignatius Malwa the SMA Superior in Zambia. 

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THE PODCAST  

This link may also be used to access the first podcast in the series a discussion with Sr Cynthia Nwadike OLA who lives and works in Botswana. 

Next week’s podcast which will be published on Thursday the 21st of September will come from Ghana and feature Sr Dora Sara Wilberforce OLA and Sr Dorcas Obeng OLA. 

Homily for the 24th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year A

Readings: Ecclesiasticus 27:33 – 28:7; Romans 14:7-9; Matthew 18:21-35

Theme: To Forgive Is To Set A Prisoner Free And Discover That The Prisoner Was You (Lewis B Smedes)

Forgiveness is the most striking manifestation of God’s love.  The God of Jesus Christ is, above all, a God who forgives. This was shown supremely in Jesus’ death on the Cross, when he prayed to his Father to forgive those who were crucifying him. This was indeed an extraordinary act of forgiveness, the climax of a life and ministry in which Jesus constantly proclaimed and witnessed to God’s forgiving love. As the American poet, Robert Frost, memorably reminded us in his poem, A Masque of Mercy,

‘Christ came to introduce a break with logic
That made all other outrage seem as child’s play:
The Mercy on the Sin against the Sermon.
Strange no one ever thought of it before Him.
‘Twas lovely and its origin was love.’

Our scripture readings today challenge us to imitate the mercy and forgiveness of Jesus. Our first reading from the Book of Ecclesiasticus reminds us that we have no right to ask the Lord to forgive us unless we are ready to forgive those who offend us: ‘Forgive your neighbours when they wrong you, and then your sins will be pardoned when you pray. If we nurse anger against others, can we then demand compassion from the Lord?’ (Eccles 28: 2-3).

In our gospel reading we see Jesus insisting so strongly on the need to forgive those who wrong us that Peter gets annoyed with him and asks him, sarcastically: ‘How often must I forgive my brother if he wrongs me. As often as seven times? And Jesus answers: ‘Not seven, I tell you, but seventy times seven’ (Mt 18:21). What Jesus is saying is that there should be no limit to how often we forgive those who do us wrong. We must imitate the forgiving attitude of our heavenly Father in our relations with one another. St Paul is merely repeating what Jesus says when he writes to the Colossians: ‘Bear with one another; forgive each other as soon as a quarrel begins. The Lord has forgiven you; now you must do the same’ (Col 3:13).

Forgiveness, however, does not come easy to us because we are not like our compassionate and loving Father, ‘slow to anger and rich in mercy’ (Ps 102:8). Even in small things we find it difficult to forgive.  We can bear grudges for years against those we consider to have wronged us, to have let us down, or to have treated us unfairly. This can apply to family members, neighbours, friends and colleagues at work or in school. We often nurture bad feelings towards them. We avoid people with whom we have clashed or argued. We forget – or overlook the fact – that God continues to forgive us over and over again.

Why does Jesus insist so much on forgiveness?  It is because without forgiveness love cannot flourish and peace cannot exist between people. When we refuse to forgive what happens?  We simply close the doors of our hearts to love. Nursing anger and resentment is the best way to keep love out. The elder brother in the parable of the Prodigal Son is a striking example of this. He is someone cannot forgive because he has closed his heart to his younger brother and even to his Father. He never knew how much the father loved him too.

Pope John Paul II, in one of his New Year messages, stated that peace must be based on that form of love which is forgiveness. He goes on to underline the important point that this forgiveness is not a feeling but rather ‘a personal choice, a decision of the heart to go against the natural instinct to pay back evil with evil.’  The popular move, Philomena, which I watched for a second time recently, offers us a striking example of what forgiveness really is. The movie tells the story an elderly Irish woman’s search for her son, Anthony. She had become pregnant as a teenager, was sent to a convent to have her child, and later forced to give him up for adoption to an American couple. Yet she never stopped thinking about him and loving him.

With the help of a journalist, Martin Sixsmith, Philomena discovers that, following a distinguished career in politics, Anthony had died of AIDS. She also discovers that, before his death, he had travelled to Ireland in search of his Irish roots. However, the Sisters who negotiated the adoption had kept her in the dark about Anthony’s search for her. The highpoint of the movie comes when, along with Martin, Philomena meets the sister – now in a wheelchair – mainly responsible for frustrating her efforts to find her son, and tells her,  ‘I forgive you’. In truth, she had made the decision to forgive long before she spoke those words, and, because of that decision, she was blessedly free from bitterness and resentment.

 It is in forgiving that we are most like God, our Father, and Christ, his Son. It is in forgiving that we bring healing to ourselves and to others, that we restore broken relationships and release the seeds of love in our communities. It is in forgiving that we extend the reign of God’s love on earth. May the celebration of this Eucharist help us to become more forgiving persons.

Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

Memories – a Video about Wilton and Mary O’Flynn

Some weeks ago an article about the retirement of Mary O’ Flynn following her many years of service in SMA House Wilton was published on this website. Since then video footage recorded at her leaving celebration and an interview with Mary herself have been edited into a thirty minute video by Paul O’Flynn (No relation).  
 
In it Mary recalls some of the fond memories of her forty-five years working in Wilton, for example ringing the Angelus and almost ending up in the rafters, visits from various international and well known members of the SMA and also the days before Cork University Hospital was built.
 
This video is a heartfelt recalling of people and events it gives a view of the history of Wilton, the neighbourhood as well as of the SMA presence in the area.  Above all it is a reflection on Mary’s life as part of the SMA family not only metaphorically but also in actuality as she is an honorary member of the SMA.  This tribute to Mary captures many memories of her early life and time with the SMA. It is interesting and captivating – well worth thirty minutes of your time.
 
God bless Mary in her retirement.
 
 
 

September 2023| For people living on the margins

Let us pray for those people on the margins of society in subhuman living conditions, that they may not be neglected by institutions and never be cast out.

  • Pope Francis asks, “How is it that we allow the ‘throwaway culture,’ in which millions of men and women are worth nothing compared to economic goods, to dominate our lives?
  • “Please, let’s stop making invisible those who are on the margins of society, whether it’s due to poverty, addictions, mental illness or disability.”

TEXT OF POPES MESSAGE
A homeless person who dies on the street will never appear among the top stories of search engines or newscasts.
How could we have reached this level of indifference?
How is it that we allow the “throwaway culture” – in which millions of men and women are worth nothing compared to economic goods – how is it that we allow this culture to dominate our lives, our cities, our way of life?
Our necks are going to get stiff from looking the other way so we don’t have to see this situation.
Please, let’s stop making invisible those who are on the margins of society, whether it’s due to poverty, addictions, mental illness or disability.
Let’s focus on accepting them, on welcoming all the people who need it.
The “culture of welcoming,” of hospitality, of providing shelter, of giving a home, of offering love, of giving human warmth.
Let us pray for those people on the margins of society in subhuman living conditions, that they may not be neglected by institutions and never be cast out.

Pope Francis – September 2023

SMA OLA PODCAST SERIES to mark the Season of Creation

The Season of Creation  began on the first of September with the World Day of Prayer for Creation, and ends on the fourth of October, the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi, patron saint of ecology. 

Over the next five weeks, to mark this Season, a collaborative effort between the Sisters of Our Lady of Apostles and the Society of African Missions will publish a series of five Podcasts on the theme of “Witnessing Climate Impact in Africa”. 

In this message for World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation 2023 Pope Francis said:  “God wants everyone to strive to be just in every situation, to live according to his laws and thus to enable life to flourish. When we “seek first the kingdom of God” (Mt 6:33), maintaining a right relationship with God, humanity and nature, then justice and peace can flow like a never-failing stream of pure water, nourishing humanity and all creatures.”  Climate change is a clear manifestation of a wrong relationship between between humanity and nature. It is an injustice in which those who do least to cause climate change are suffering from its impact the most. 

In the podcasts we hear missionaries working in Botswana, Zambia, Nigeria, Ghana and Niger in conversation with John McGeady, former Justice Officer for the Sisters of Our Lady of Apostles, and Gerry Forde, Justice Officer for the Society of African Missions. The series  sheds light on the unexpected and startling impacts of climate change in different parts of Africa.

We begin with a discussion with Sr Cynthia Nwadike OLA who lives and works in Botswana.  The next podcast in the series will be a discussion with Fr Ignatius Malwa SMA from Zambia. It will be available here on the 14th of September. 

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THE PODCAST

Homily for the 23rd Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year A

Readings: Ezekiel 33:7-9; Romans 13:8-10; Matthew 18:15-20

Theme: Speaking the truth in love

Today’s gospel and first reading are at odds with the commonly held view that we should mind our own business, and let other people mind theirs; we are only responsible for our own behaviour.  It is, of course, true that each of us is responsible for his or her own behaviour. But the Scripture readings today remind us that we have a responsibility for others, one that may, at times, include correction. 

The words of Jesus in the Gospel reading are clear and unambiguous: ‘If your brother does something wrong, go and have it out with him alone, between your two selves’ (Mt 18:15).  It is important to note the context in which Jesus is speaking. He is instructing his disciples as a community called to proclaim and witness to God’s reign on earth, on how they should behave towards one another. He encourages them to challenge and help one another to live fully Christian lives, lives of integrity and loving service in accordance with God’s reign of justice and love. So, when they see that a member of the community is not living in accordance with their Christian calling, they should not speak of that person’s failings behind his back – which is what we all tend to do. Rather, they should go directly to the person in question and try to put him on the right path. And they should correct that person with love, not with self-righteous anger – which will most likely have the opposite effect to the one intended.

We have a notable example of successful fraternal correction in St Paul’s Letter to the Galatians, where Paul tells us how he confronted and corrected Peter over an issue that was at the core of the identity of the early Church, namely the acceptance of gentiles into the Christian community. While Peter has at first embraced the inclusion of gentiles, later, due to pressure from his fellow Jewish Christians, he stopped eating with gentiles (cf. Gal 2:11-21). We know that this confrontation did not break the unity of the early Church nor rupture the bonds of love and respect between Peter and Paul, because it was a correction given in love. And, as St Paul reminds us in the second reading today, ‘love is the one thing that cannot hurt your neighbour’.  Indeed, if we do not love the persons we wish to challenge or correct, then we had best not try to correct them at all.

Nelson Mandela, in his autobiography, Long Road to Freedom (1994), recounts a more recent example of how fraternal correction should be done, and of its transformative effects. This incident took place during Mandela’s years as a prisoner in Robben Island. One day, he was called to the main office to meet the army general who was visiting the island. The general wanted to know from Mandela if the prisoners had any complaints. The officer in command of the prison, Badenhorst, was also present. He was feared and hated by the prisoners and most of their complaints were about his harsh treatment of them. Courageously, but without bitterness or recrimination, Mandela informed the visiting general of the prisoners’ chief complaints. The general noted what he had to say, which amounted to a damning indictment of Badenhorst’s regime. The following day Badenhorst went to Mandela and said ‘I’m leaving Robben Island. I just want to wish you people good luck’. This response left Mandela dumbfounded. Later he said, ‘I was amazed. He spoke these words like a human being, and showed a side of himself I had never seen before. I thanked him for his good wishes, and wished him luck in his own endeavours.’

In Western society today we tend to think of correcting an erring brother or sister as inappropriate for a liberal and tolerant society. We have an exaggerated sense of our personal autonomy and independence of one another. We forget that we are all interdependent and that our lives are inextricably bound up with one another. This truth is captured in a single African word, ‘ubuntu’, which means ‘I am because we are’, and in the beautiful expression of St Paul that we all form ‘one body’. For good or ill, our lives impact on one another.  In the words of the poet Alfred Lord Tennyson, ‘Our echoes roll from soul to soul, And grow forever and forever’. If we believe this, we are obliged to help one another to grow together to be the best that we can be as a Christian community of witnesses to the reign of God. 

Often what inhibits us from speaking the truth in love to a brother or sister is our fear of rejection and conflict. We don’t want to take the risk of endangering our relationship with those we love.  But a relationship built on the avoidance of all conflict rather than on truth is on a very shaky foundation indeed. There is a healthy conflict that leads to growth just as there is an unhealthy peace that is really another word for indifference. So, instead of tolerating all sorts of unchristian and destructive behaviour, today’s gospel challenges us to correct one another in love and with respect, so that the entire Christian community, all members of the Church of Christ, may glorify the wonder and the beauty of God who has made each one of us in his image and who calls us to live as his children.

Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

SMA International News – September 2023

Welcome to this edition of SMA International News for the Month of September.  This month we have stories from:

              • Rome: We hear about the Doctoral thesis defense of Fr. Charles Adjoumani 
              • Zambia: Where we revisit a community housing project that was started in 2006.
              • Italy: We celebrate the Golden and Diamond Jubilee of  Fr. Lionello Melchiori and Fr. Lorenzo Rapetti.

 

MESSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS FOR THE WORLD DAY OF PRAYER FOR THE CARE OF CREATION

                                                                                                    1st September 2023  
Dear brothers and sisters!

“Let Justice and Peace Flow” is the theme of this year’s ecumenical Season of Creation, inspired by the words of the prophet Amos: “Let justice flow on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream” (5:24).

The evocative image used by Amos speaks to us of what God desires. God wants justice to reign; it is as essential to our life as God’s children made in his likeness as water is essential for our physical survival. This justice must flow forth wherever it is needed, neither remaining hidden deep beneath the ground nor vanishing like water that evaporates before it can bring sustenance. God wants everyone to strive to be just in every situation, to live according to his laws and thus to enable life to flourish. When we “seek first the kingdom of God” (Mt 6:33), maintaining a right relationship with God, humanity and nature, then justice and peace can flow like a never-failing stream of pure water, nourishing humanity and all creatures.

On a beautiful summer day in July 2022, during my pilgrimage to Canada, I reflected on this on the shores of Lac Ste. Anne in Alberta. That lake has been a place of pilgrimage for many generations of indigenous people. Surrounded by the beating of drums, I thought: “How many hearts have come here with anxious longing, weighed down by life’s burdens, and found by these waters consolation and strength to carry on! Here, immersed in creation, we can also sense another beating: the maternal heartbeat of the earth. Just as the hearts of babies in the womb beat in harmony with those of their mothers, so in order to grow as people, we need to harmonize our own rhythms of life with those of creation, which gives us life”. [1]

During this Season of Creation, let us dwell on those heartbeats: our own and those of our mothers and grandmothers, the heartbeat of creation and the heartbeat of God. Today they do not beat in harmony; they are not harmonized in justice and peace. Too many of our brothers and sisters are prevented from drinking from that mighty river. Let us heed our call to stand with the victims of environmental and climate injustice, and to put an end to the senseless war against creation.

The effects of this war can be seen in the many rivers that are drying up. Benedict XVI once observed that: “the external deserts in the world are growing, because the internal deserts have become so vast”. [2] Consumerist greed, fuelled by selfish hearts, is disrupting the planet’s water cycle. The unrestrained burning of fossil fuels and the destruction of forests are pushing temperatures higher and leading to massive droughts. Alarming water shortages increasingly affect both small rural communities and large metropolises. Moreover, predatory industries are depleting and polluting our freshwater sources through extreme practices such as fracking for oil and gas extraction, unchecked mega-mining projects, and intensive animal farming. “Sister Water”, in the words of Saint Francis of Assisi, is pillaged and turned into “a commodity subject to the laws of the market” ( Laudato Si’, 30).

The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has stated that acting now with greater urgency means that we will not miss our chance to create a more sustainable and just world. We can and we must prevent the worst from happening. “Truly, much can be done” (ibid., 180), provided we come together like so many streams, brooks and rivulets, merging finally in a mighty river to irrigate the life of our marvellous planet and our human family for generations to come. So let us join hands and take bold steps to “Let Justice and Peace Flow” throughout our world.

How can we contribute to the mighty river of justice and peace in this Season of Creation? What can we, particularly as Christian communities, do to heal our common home so that it can once again teem with life? We must do this by resolving to transform our hearts, our lifestyles, and the public policies ruling our societies.

First, let us join the mighty river by transforming our hearts. This is essential for any other transformation to occur; it is that “ecological conversion” which Saint John Paul II encouraged us to embrace: the renewal of our relationship with creation so that we no longer see it as an object to be exploited but cherish it instead as a sacred gift from our Creator. Furthermore, we should realize that an integral approach to respect for the environment involves four relationships: with God, with our brothers and sisters of today and tomorrow, with all of nature, and with ourselves.

As to the first of these relationships, Pope Benedict XVI spoke of the urgent need to recognize that creation and redemption are inseparably linked: “The Redeemer is the Creator and if we do not proclaim God in his full grandeur – as Creator and as Redeemer – we also diminish the value of the redemption”. [3] Creation refers both to God’s mysterious, magnificent act of creating this majestic, beautiful planet and universe out of nothing and to the continuing result of that act, which we experience as an inexhaustible gift. During the liturgy and personal prayer in “the great cathedral of creation”, [4] let us recall the great Artist who creates such beauty, and reflect on the mystery of that loving decision to create the cosmos.

Second, let us add to the flow of this mighty river by transforming our lifestyles. Starting from grateful wonder at the Creator and his creation, let us repent of our “ecological sins”, as my brother, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, has urged. These sins harm the world of nature and our fellow men and women. With the help of God’s grace, let us adopt lifestyles marked by less waste and unnecessary consumption, especially where the processes of production are toxic and unsustainable. Let us be as mindful as we can about our habits and economic decisions so that all can thrive – our fellow men and women wherever they may be, and future generations as well. Let us cooperate in God’s ongoing creation through positive choices: using resources with moderation and a joyful sobriety, disposing and recycling waste, and making greater use of available products and services that are environmentally and socially responsible.

Lastly, for the mighty river to continue flowing, we must transform the public policies that govern our societies and shape the lives of young people today and tomorrow. Economic policies that promote scandalous wealth for a privileged few and degrading conditions for many others, spell the end of peace and justice. It is clear that the richer nations have contracted an “ecological debt” that must be paid (cf. Laudato Si’, 51). [5] The world leaders who will gather for the COP28 summit in Dubai from 30 November to 12 December next must listen to science and institute a rapid and equitable transition to end the era of fossil fuel. According to the commitments undertaken in the Paris Agreement to restrain global warming, it is absurd to permit the continued exploration and expansion of fossil fuel infrastructures. Let us raise our voices to halt this injustice towards the poor and towards our children, who will bear the worst effects of climate change. I appeal to all people of good will to act in conformity with these perspectives on society and nature.

Another parallel perspective has to do with the Catholic Church’s commitment to synodality. This year, the closing of the Season of Creation on 4 October, the feast of Saint Francis of Assisi, will coincide with the opening of the Synod on Synodality. Like rivers in nature, fed by myriad tiny brooks and larger streams and rivulets, the synodal process that began in October 2021 invites all those who take part on a personal or community level, to coalesce in a majestic river of reflection and renewal. The entire People of God is being invited to an immersive journey of synodal dialogue and conversion.

So too, like a river basin with its many tiny and larger tributaries, the Church is a communion of countless local Churches, religious communities and associations that draw from the same shared waters. Each source adds its unique and irreplaceable contribution, until all flow together into the vast ocean of God’s loving mercy. In the same way that a river is a source of life for its surroundings, our synodal Church must be a source of life for our common home and all its inhabitants. In the same way that a river gives life to all kinds of animal and plant life, a synodal Church must give life by sowing justice and peace in every place it reaches.

In Canada, in July 2022, I spoke of the Sea of Galilee where Jesus brought healing and consolation to many people and proclaimed “a revolution of love”. Lac Ste. Anne, I learned, is also a place of healing, consolation and love, a place that “reminds us that fraternity is genuine if it unites those who are far apart, [and] that the message of unity that heaven sends down to earth does not fear differences, but invites us to fellowship, a communion of differences, in order to start afresh together, because we are all pilgrims on a journey”. [6]

In this Season of Creation, as followers of Christ on our shared synodal journey, let us live, work and pray that our common home will teem with life once again. May the Holy Spirit once more hover over the waters and guide our efforts to “renew the face of the earth” (cf. Ps 104:30).

Rome, Saint John Lateran, 13 May 2023

FRANCIS

Homily for the 22nd Sunday of Ordinary Time: Year A

Readings: Jeremiah 20:7-9; Romans 12:1-2; Matthew 16:21-27
Theme:   The Cost of Discipleship

Poor Peter! In last Sunday’s gospel reading, we saw Jesus declaring him blessed and naming him the rock on which he intends to build his church.  Today’s gospel reading presents us with a very different portrait of Peter.  Instead of being the ‘rock’  upon which he will build his Church, Jesus now calls him a tempter, an obstacle in the path he must take to fulfil his mission.  What a ‘put down’ for Peter! He must have been ‘on a high’ after the extraordinary accolade he had received from his Master. How could this passionate and outspoken disciple now suddenly become a stumbling block for Jesus?

While Peter had recognised and openly acknowledged that Jesus was indeed the promised Messiah, the One sent by God to establish his Kingdom on earth, he did not understand, any more than his companions, what this would mean for Jesus.  He expected Jesus to defeat the enemies of Israel and become King of a free and sovereign people.  So, when Jesus tells his disciples that he ‘must go to Jerusalem and suffer greatly at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised’ (Mt 16:21), Peter is shocked.  His very human and understandable response is to try and persuade his Master from risking his life.  Peter’s words almost sound like a prayer: ‘Heaven preserve you, Lord, this must not happen to you!’ (Mt 16:22).  But Jesus emphatically rejects Peter’s natural concern for his Master’s safety: ‘Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle in my path, because the way you think is not God’s way, but man’s’ (Mt:16:23).

If we are honest with ourselves, it is the vehemence of Jesus’ reply rather than the Peter’s words that we find shocking.  Would we not, like Peter, be similarly concerned for the safety of those we love?  We wouldn’t want them to become hapless victims of their enemies’ evil designs.  Why, then, does Jesus react so strongly to Peter and call him Satan?  To understand his reaction we need to recall an earlier scene at the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry where he retreats into the wilderness to prepare for the mission entrusted to him by his Father.  There he rejects the temptations of Satan who promises him victory over the world through wealth and power.  From that moment, Jesus knew and accepted that his mission would involve suffering and death.  Now, Peter unwittingly becomes an ally of Satan in seeking to deflect him from his chosen path, the path that would lead to the Cross. Hence his vehement rejection of Peter’s plea.

Jesus’ knew that to establish God’s Kingdom from on earth would entail the defeat of the powers of evil in the world. But those powers would not be overcome by military might but by enduring their destructive force with love, thus exposing them for what they were.  Peter and his companions wanted a kingdom without suffering, glory without the Cross.  Jesus wants his disciples to be under no illusion about what following him will mean.  It will be no ‘primrose path of dalliance’ (Hamlet), but a costly discipleship involving self-sacrifice and the cross:  ‘If anyone want to be a follower of mine, let him renounce himself and take up his cross and follow me’. For anyone who wants to save his life will lose it; but anyone who loses his life for my sake will find it’ (Mt 16:26). 

These words are as challenging for us today as they were for Peter and his companions.  They shake us out of our tendency to settle for a comfortable and conforming religion.  They unmask our evasions, our double standards, our desire for ‘cheap grace’ (Dietrich Bonhoeffer), our reluctance to involve ourselves in sacrifice.  The renunciation Jesus is calling for goes much further than our annual Lenten observance of denying ourselves our favourite foods or taking on a few penitential practices.  It involves, as St Paul reminds us in our second reading, developing a new way of seeing life, and changing our behaviour accordingly.  The instruction of Paul is clear: ‘Do not model yourselves on the behaviour of the world around you, but let your behaviour change, modelled by your new mind’ (Rom 12:2).

Becoming disciples of Jesus means learning to think the way God thinks, rather than the way we usually think.  And that will be for us, as it was for Peter and his disciples, a life-long process of ups and downs, successes and failures.  There may be times when we will feel a bit like Jeremiah in our first reading today.  Chosen by God to be his ‘prophet to the nations’ (Jer 1:5), fidelity to his calling ‘made him a daily laughing-stock, everybody’s but’ and brought him ‘insult and derision, all day long’ (Jer 20:7-8).  Though tempted to stop being a spokesman for the Lord, he could not give up because, as he states, ‘there seemed to be a fire burning in my heart, imprisoned in my bones’ (Jer 20:9).  Jeremiah had been, as he states, ‘seduced’ by God, and he had let himself ‘be seduced’ (cf. Jer 20: 7).  In other words, he had fallen in love with God so that nothing could stop him from doing God’s will, no matter where this might lead him.  The example of Jeremiah prompts us to ask ourselves the question:  Have we let ourselves be seduced by Christ so that we persevere in following and serving him, regardless of the consequences?

Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

PASSION of John the Baptist 29/08/23

Yesterday we celebrated Saint Augustine. One of the lines associated with him ‘Late have I loved you’ might be changed for today’s saint – John the Baptist to – ‘long have I loved you’. The stories of John and Jesus are intertwined in the Gospels – and also their fates, finishing with the Passion of both of them. After the little children around Bethlehem at the time of his birth, the Baptist is the first martyr to Christ, laying down – in the language of another John – his life in witness to the truth, not just an ideal but incarnate in Jesus the Word of God made flesh.

The readings present two very different portraits. Jeremiah – no stranger to taking a stand and suffering – sets out the stall of the man of God, telling him to ‘Stand up’ and speak what he is told by the Spirit of God, not ‘to be dismayed’, to be strong as the images of ‘a pillar of iron, a wall of bronze, a fortified city’ indicate. John the Baptist does not speak in today’s Gospel, he is the silent presence who received Herod’s protection which resulted in his execution. Caveat tutus – let the protected beware – a line that has a long history.  For all his power and pomp Herod is a weakling. It is to protect this status and not the man he gave protection to that he organizes the execution of John with the grotesque presentation of his head on a platter.

Not wanting to lose face Herod handed John over to the daughter of Herodias. Injustice doesn’t have to be dramatic and deadly as this; individuals are sacrificed in institutions to save the office of others, their outward appearance of propriety and protection of the status quo. Moral gutlessness and the Gospel do not go together; thankfully victims of such viciousness and violence can say with the Psalmist today – ‘My lips will tell of your justice’. John trusted in another, a higher, tribunal. As his death foreshadowed that of Jesus, Jesus’ resurrection foretold the vindication of John in heaven.

Received with Thanks from Fr Kevin O’Gorman SMA. 

Homily for the 21st Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year A

Readings: Isaiah 22:19-23; Romans 11:33-36; Matthew 16:13-20
Theme: ‘But who do you say I am?’  (Mt 16:15)

At the foot of Mount Hermon, on the border between Israel and Syria, where the river Jordan rises, King Herod the Great built a magnificent temple in honour of the Roman Emperor, Caesar Augustus. Herod’s son and successor, Philip, went on to establish a town there, naming it Caesarea and adding his own name to it, thus becoming Caesarea Philippi. Along with a group of pilgrims, I had the opportunity to visit this beautiful spot, known today as Banias, in the Spring of 2008. It was in this place that the scene described in today’s gospel took place.

The scene begins with Jesus conducting an opinion poll among his disciples about his identity. He asks them: ‘Who do the people say the Son of Man is? (Mt 16:13). In referring to himself as the Son of Man, Jesus is identifying himself with the Messianic figure mentioned in the Book of Daniel, the divinely chosen leader  sent by God to end Israel’s oppression, and establish God’s reign of justice, peace and integrity (cf. Daniel 7:13-14).  The response of the disciples shows that the people see him as a great prophet, a spokesperson for God, like Elijah, Jeremiah or John the Baptist, but no more than that.

Jesus makes no comment on the results of the poll because he has an altogether more pointed and personal question to put to his closest companions, those who shared his life on a daily basis, witnessed his miracles, heard him preach and saw him pray: ‘But you, who do you say I am’? (Mt 16: 15). This question is, in the words of Father Simeon, a Trappist monk, the ‘hopeful query of a Lover who needs to know to what extent he is known, understood, and accepted in his deepest identity by those he loves, those to whom he has been at pains to manifest himself’.  Simon, assuming a leadership role among the apostles, responds: ‘You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God’ (Mt 16:16). With these words, Simon is clearly confessing that Jesus, their teacher and guide, is indeed the long-awaited  Messiah, the one in whom God’s promises for the people of Israel are being realised. Clearly pleased with Simon’s response, Jesus affirms it as divinely inspired and declares Simon blessed: ‘Blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah! For it was not flesh and blood that revealed this to you but my Father in heaven’ (Mt 16:17).

Jesus then goes on to give Simon a new name, a new identity, a new authority within the community he is forming, and an awesome promise in relation to the future: ‘And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of the underworld can never hold out against it’ (Mt 16: 18). Peter (taken from the Aramaic root word for ‘rock’) is to become the rock, the foundation of the community that will carry the name and the authority of Jesus to the whole world. On him, together with his Apostolic companions as the faithful communicators of Jesus’ life and message, Jesus will build his Church, a Church that will endure, despite the assaults of the Evil One and his minions. 

We have here a testimony to the firmness of a foundation whose strength basically comes from the authority of Jesus and his promise to Peter: ‘I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven’ (Mt 16:19). These words echo the promise made by the Lord to Eliakim in our first reading from the prophet Isaiah: ‘I place the key of the House of David on his shoulder;  should he open no one shall close; should he close no one shall open (Is 22:22).  Jesus is conferring on Peter a unique role of authority in the Church. He is the one whose decisions in faith will be confirmed by God.

Catholics consider the Pope the successor of Peter, sharing the same charism or gift of leadership the Jesus conferred on Peter.  This leadership is not one of coercion and political power, but of example and service. Traditionally the Pope has been called the ‘servant of the servants of God’. The Pope is not a dictator. He does not decide what the members of the Church should believe. Rather, he communicates to the Church at large what it already believes. He is the focal point of unity of the Church’s one faith and communion in the Spirit. He is the servant of the community of believers, united in one faith.

In the Church today, where there are so many different, and often conflicting, understandings of Jesus and what it means to be his disciples, the role of the Pope as a focal point of unity is perhaps more important than ever. However, it is a demanding and difficult role, as Pope Francis, has stated on numerous occasions. At present Francis is striving to reform the Church in the service of Christ’s mission of love, truth and justice through a synodal process launched two years ago.  We should not only pray for Pope Francis and for the success of the ongoing synodal process. We should also take him as our reference point in our own efforts to understand the One whose mission we serve and who is also asking us today: ‘Who do you say that I am?

Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

AFRICA – The rush for lithium: an opportunity for the continent?

Rome (Fides News Agency) – Africa holds 30-75% of the world’s reserves of lithium, phosphate, copper, chromium, manganese, gold, platinum, diamonds and aluminum Some of these are minerals, such as lithium, which are indispensable to the so-called energy transition, that is, going from a gas and petrol-based economy to one based on renewable sources. Zimbabwe – country where on August 23 presidential elections will take place – has Africa’s largest lithium reserves, which are also the fifth largest reserves of said mineral on the planet. In 2018, Zimbabwe and Namibia were among the top ten lithium producers globally. Zimbabwe should be capable of meeting 20% of the overall global demand in the coming years. The Bikita mine, in the province of Masvingo, in the southwest of the country, is the biggest lithium mine in Zimbabwe, holding approximately 11 millions tons of said mineral.

These known reserves are joined by those in the Democratic Republic of the Congo which could be the vastest on earth, turning the DRC into one of the world’s primary lithium suppliers. The DRC’s main lithium mines include Manono, which holds roughly 6,640,000 tons of lithium – according to the September 2022 estimates – like the Gatumba-Gitarama mine.

Then there’s Mali, whose principal mines are Goulamina with 1,570,000 tons of lithium and Bougouni (236,500 tons), as well as Nigeria, with some of Africa’s most promising lithium reserves. However, Nigerian production at the moment has stopped at the roughly the 50 tons of the mineral extracted in 2019.

Competing for African lithium are Chinese, American, Australian, Canadian, Indian and European interests. At the moment Beijing is leading the race, partly due to the fact that China already controls 60% of the global extraction and refinery of minerals, particularly lithium, cobalt, nickel and manganese. As far as lithium is concerned, the Chinese presence is reinforced by the fact that three Chinese companies have acquired shares in lithium mines in Zimbabwe, within the purview of Beijing’s policy of diversifying the supply of this mineral, especially now that China has the world’s largest electric vehicle market. China is present at full strength in the mineral sector in the DRC, especially when it comes to the production of cobalt and lithium. Chinese companies have launched projects not just for the extraction, but also the refinery of lithium in the DRC and in Zimbabwe. Competing with China’s presence in African lithium mines are American, Australian, Canadian, Indian and European companies.

This could lead to further criticism from the West regarding the fact that China is prioritizing its interests at the expense of African nations, in order to foster African opposition to Beijing’s mineral investments. The emphasis is above all on the potential environmental and social repercussions of the mining process, like displacing local communities and the environmental damage caused by the extraction and processing of minerals, which require clearing the terrain in ways that could damage both the soil and the water.

An 83% increase in the demand for lithium, on part of battery producers, is expected by 2027. This could be an extraordinary opportunity for African countries to fortify the continent’s global economic standing and enhance their position on the international stage. (L.M.) (Fides News Agency 19/8/2023)

SMA SUMMER CAMPS 2023

 

 

 

 

 

The SMA Summer Camp in Dromantine began over fifty years ago – This year, during August, over 600 participants attended, with two weeks for boys and two weeks for girls.  With plenty of both indoor and outdoor activities, the mixed weather did little to hold back the fun and enjoyment.

Fr Anthony Kelly SMA, who was present for the full four weeks said  “I feel wonderfully blessed to be here in the midst of so many young people in this day and age when young people are going away from the Church.”  Days during the camps began with Morning Prayer, followed by Breakfast and then hours jam-packed with games and activities.  During the week there was also Mass, Evening Prayer and times for quiet reflection.  Those present were also informed about the work of the SMA in Africa.  

The camps began on Sunday evening with the arrival of the young people. Many were accompanied by parents, who had themselves attended the camps during the 90’s and who reported that they greatly valued their experience as a time when they made lasting friends and were instilled with Christian values. They were therefore, happy that their own children could be part of the 2023 Camps. 

Some of those who are now helping to run the camp as volunteers also attended when younger. They too expressed similar sentiments about lasting friendships and the positive value of the formative experience and the faith expressed as part of the programme.  

This year when online booking for the Summer Camps opened it was booked out within two hours!  It will probably be the same next year. 

Homily for the 20th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year A

Readings:  Isaiah 56:1,6-7; Romans 11:13-15,29-32; Matthew 15:21-28

Theme:Woman, great is your Faith’ (Mt 15:28)

There is no more powerful force in this world than the love of a mother for her child. In truth, a mother’s love is the clearest human embodiment of that love which is God’s way of being. Today’s gospel reading shows the love and faith of a distraught mother who approaches Jesus to cure her seriously ill daughter. It is a strangely disturbing yet inspiring story which illustrates the length to which a mother will go out of love for the child of her womb.

 The story begins with Jesus and his disciples leaving their homeland and crossing over into the non-Jewish territory of Tyre and Sidon (present-day Lebanon). We are not sure why Jesus decided to leave Galilee. Perhaps it was because of the opposition he faced from some of his fellow Jews, scandalised by his rather relaxed attitude to Jewish purity laws and rituals. In any case, as he enters foreign territory, he is approached by a woman whose daughter is seriously disturbed.  Desperate to find some solution to her terrible predicament, she throws caution to the winds and shouts out: ‘Sir, Son of David, take pity on me. My daughter is tormented by a devil’ (Mt 15:22). Matthew tells us that the woman was a Canaanite. This means she was a gentile and member of an ethnic group despised by the Jews, who regarded the Canaanites as idolaters and, therefore, ritually unclean. This perhaps explains the initial reluctance of Jesus to have anything to do with her.

Fortunately, her awareness of her lowly status in the eyes of Jews does not deter this determined woman from approaching Jesus and pleading with him for help. We can presume she is aware of Jesus’ reputation as a healer.  Undaunted by his initial silence – ‘he answered her not a word’ (Mt 15:23), or by his insulting words – ‘It is not right to take the children’s food and throw it to the house dogs’ (Mt 15: 26), she continues to plead her cause with intelligence and humour, saying: Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table’ (Mt 15: 27). In an extraordinary reversal of Jesus’ usual interactions with foreigners, Jesus is outwitted by this formidable woman.   Taking her cue from the proverb Jesus used to refuse her request, she invites Jesus to look at her situation from the point of view of a despised outcast (‘a dog’).  Her response clearly stuns Jesus, bringing him to realise that the compassion she has for her stricken daughter reflects that of his heavenly Father for all his children. 

Completely won over by the woman’s faith, courage, humility and wit, Jesus answers her, ‘Woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish’ (Mt 15:28).  Matthew tells us that ‘from that moment her daughter was well again’. Through her faith and persistence, the Canaanite woman gets what she came for, the healing of her daughter. And she is presented by Jesus as a model of faith with words he used only for one other person (also a foreigner) that he met in the course of his public ministry.

We may well wonder why Jesus resists this woman’s plea for so long. It seems so out of keeping with his customary response to all who seek his help. In this instance, Jesus is presented as reflecting the prejudice of his fellow Jews toward gentiles – a prejudice shared by the disciples of Jesus and by the first Christians, all of whom were Jews. As Peter tells us in the Acts of the Apostles, it was ‘forbidden for Jews to mix with people of another race and to visit them’ (Acts 10: 28). It took a lengthy period of divine pedagogy before the early Christians realised that Gentiles could be filled with the Spirit of God and were also called to become followers of Jesus.

Following an extraordinary vision, Peter eventually came to realise that, for God, no one is profane or unclean (cf. Acts 10: 9-16, 28). However, it was Paul, originally a strict Jew, and member of the Pharisee party, who, following his conversion, grasped the implications of the all-embracing reach of God’s love and mercy, and spearheaded the early Church’s mission to the gentiles. As he states in our second reading today, ‘I have been sent to the pagans as their apostle, and I am proud of being sent’ (Rom 11:13).

 It may seem surprising us today to realise that it took so long for the early Church to accept the teaching of Isaiah (an Israelite prophet who lived in the eighth century before Christ) and become the Lord’s agents in the creation of ‘a house of prayer for all peoples’ (Is 56:7). The question, of course, that we should ask is, if we, disciples of Jesus in the twenty-first century, have yet fully embraced that same challenge. The current synodal process in the Church prompts us to ask: Who are the people who feel unwelcome in the House of God today, and what are we doing to reach out to them? Today’s gospel story invites us to let ourselves be questioned by the presence of the ‘Canaanites’ in our midst, to listen to them, and respond to their demands for respect and dignity. For we can be certain that, in listening to them, we are opening our minds and hearts to the voice of God, for whom no one is ever a stranger.

Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

Homily for the 19th Sunday of Ordinary Time – Year A

Readings: 1 Kings 19:9, 11-13; Romans 9:1-5; Matthew 14:22-33

Theme:    Faith in Stormy Times

It’s never easy, at any time, to keep faith but to hold on to it in stormy times, as many people are going through at present is particularly difficult. Today’s Scripture readings encourage us not to lose heart, or give in to despondency, but to trust in the Lord who is with us even when we are unaware of his presence.

In the first reading today, we find the great prophet, Elijah, in deep trouble.  He had drawn on himself the ire of the evil queen, Jezebel, the wife of King Ahab, who ruled the Northern Kingdom of Israel during the ninth century BC. Under her malign influence, the weak King had introduced pagan customs and rituals into Israel, building pagan shrines and opening his palaces to a horde of false prophets and cronies of his wife.     Elijah confronted these charlatans, shamed them publicly, and had them slaughtered. Now, Jezebel wants him dead. Frustrated, despondent, and on the verge of despair, Elijah retreats to the wilderness, taking refuge in a cave. His spirits are so low, he wants to die. He prays: ‘O Lord, I have had enough. Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors’ (1 Kgs 19:4). However, in the cave near Mount Horeb, he experiences the presence of the Lord in ‘a gentle breeze’ (1 Kgs 19:12) and, comforted by this experience, he finds the strength and self-confidence to continue his prophetic mission.

In our gospel reading from Matthew, we see the disciples of Jesus caught up in one of those violent storms to which the Sea of Galilee is prone. They are battling heavy waves and a strong headwind, and losing the battle! This dramatic story reflects the experience of the early Church at the time Matthew wrote his gospel, fifty years after the death of Jesus. The boat represents the Church, while the night storm represents the opposition the young Church is facing. Sailing on stormy seas has been a constant experience of the Christian community from earliest times up to the present day. In the words of Pope Francis, ‘The boat at the mercy of the storm is an image of the Church, which in every age encounters headwinds, sometimes very hard trials.’ 

To return to the gospel story, Jesus approaches his disciples walking on the water. Far from being reassured, the disciples become even more terrified. Imagining him to be a ghost, they cry out in fear. However, the ghost turns out to be Jesus, who reveals himself to them, saying: ‘Courage! It is I! Do not be afraid’.  Encouraged by the words of Jesus, Peter is the first to respond. At  his invitation, he walks towards Jesus across the water, but when he ‘feels the force of the wind’, his courage fails him and he begins to sink. In panic, he cries out to Jesus, ‘Lord, save me’ (Mt 14:30), and Jesus reaches out his hand to him and saves him. The story ends with Jesus calming the storm and being acknowledged as ‘Son of God’ by the disciples.

‘Courage! It is I! Do not be afraid’. These are the same words Jesus speaks to us today as we sail on the uncertain sea of life in the 21st century. He does not promise us a storm free voyage, but he does promise to be always there for us. The example of Peter teaches us that, to stay afloat on the sea of life, we need to fix our gaze on Jesus, not on the surging waves around us, or on the fears and doubts that well up in our hearts. Today’s gospel invites us to deepen our faith and to maintain our focus on Jesus. To quote again words spoken by Pope Francis during an Angelus address he gave in August 2020:  ‘Having faith means, in the midst of the storm, keeping your heart turned to God, to his love, to his tenderness as a Father. Jesus wanted to teach this to Peter and his disciples, and also to us today, in moments of darkness, moments of storms’.

In stormy times, there is always a tendency for us to retreat to a cave like Elijah, or to seek out some safe harbour, far from the stormy seas. But clearly that is not what Jesus wants. In today’s gospel, Matthew tells us that Jesus ‘made his disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side’  (Mt 14:22).  On another occasion, he tells Peter not to hesitate but to  ‘launch out into the deep’ (Lk 5:4). Jesus was calling his disciples, as he is calling us today, to join him in the greatest adventure known to human history: the realisation of God’s dream of a world transformed by the power of love. And, irrespective of what storms we encounter, we shall not fail, because Jesus is always with us. I will end with a sonnet by the poet, Malcolm Guite, which expresses beautifully this awesome call.

He calls us all to step aboard his ship,
Take the adventure on this morning’s wing,
Raise sail with him, launch out into the deep,
Whatever storms or floods are threatening.
If faith gives way to doubt, or love to fear,
Then, as on Galilee, we’ll rouse the Lord,
For he is always with us and will hear
And make our peace with his creative Word,
Who made us, loved us, formed us and has set
All his beloved lovers in an ark;
Borne upwards by his Spirit, we will float
Above the rising waves, the falling dark,
As fellow pilgrims, driven towards that haven,
Where all will be redeemed, fulfilled, forgiven.

Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

SMA International News – August 2023

Welcome to the August edition of the SMA International News.  This month’s bulletin features stories from:

  •  ROME: We hear about a visit of OLA Sisters to the SMA Generalate in via delle Nocetta, Roma.
  • COTE D’IVOIRE: A report about the second Peace Camp organised by the Shalom Network for conflict transformation and reconciliation.
  • TANZANIA: An account of how the SMA and friends celebrate the Golden and Silver Jubilees of one Irish and two Polish SMA’s.

 

SMA Celebrates the 40th Anniversary of Opening its Doors to African and Asian Students for the Priesthood

Fr. Fachtna O'Driscoll SMA

In 1952 a decision was made by the SMA to admit African candidates to the Society. However, due to the fact that there were very few local clergy in the countries where the SMA missionaries then worked the decision was ‘put on hold.’ Down the years, various requests came in to the SMA from young Africans who wanted to be missionaries in our Society. In the 1960’s the Vatican began a process of replacing ‘white’ bishops in Africa with local bishops. Nigeria, Ghana, Liberia, Kenya, Tanzania, to name a few saw ‘sons of the soil’ taking leadership in their local Churches. A new wind was blowing across Africa.

In 1969, Pope Paul VI – the first Pope to visit an African country [Uganda] – said in Kampala that “By now, you Africans are missionaries to yourselves. The Church of Christ is well and truly planted in this blessed soil … Missionaries to yourselves: in other words, you Africans must now continue, upon this Continent, the building up of the Church.” The Holy Father encouraged the African clergy to take up the responsibility that the foreign missionaries had carried thus far.  To read Pope Paul’s Kampala address click here

The SMA had seen the growth in diocesan vocations all over Africa. Conscious of this and attentive to the words of Pope Paul VI, the SMA decided – at its 1983 General Assembly – to admit Africans to the Society. We also committed to accepting Filipinos, Indians and Polish candidates. The Lord blessed that momentous decision. Today we number more that 350 priests from what were initially called “SMA Foundations.”

At a recent meeting in Lyon, France [birthplace of the SMA in 1856], the 40th Anniversary of this decision was celebrated.  Below is an edited version of the homily preached by a former SMA Superior General, Fr Fachtna O’Driscoll, during those celebrations.

Recently, I took out a subscription to the electronic version of America magazine. This is a Catholic magazine from the USA published by the Jesuits. I understand it has had an unbroken life service of over one hundred years. 

About one month ago there was an article concerning the Sisters of Charity of New York. At a recent Chapter they had taken the momentous decision to close down the Order. They would no longer accept new recruits or members into the Congregation and they were embarking on what they termed “the journey to completion”. They had previously merged with another Congregation but each retained its independence. This decision only concerned this party to the merger.

The article was fulsome in its praise of the Sisters: the courage and serenity with which they adopted the challenge to complete their journey and die. It listed their many outstanding ministries: health care (they owned and directed many sizeable hospitals); education (they had built and controlled many large schools); social work (they had many social workers among the membership); pastoral (some had been coordinators of parishes); mission outreach (especially to the Bahamas), among other ministries. It highlighted especially their care for the poor and marginalised, and referred to this as a dangerous memory.’

Overall, it was a very positive story and one got the impression of a group of caring, dedicated, loving, committed Christian women. And no doubt they were all that.

About two weeks later, America published a second article on the subject, titled ‘Letter to the Editor’. It was written by a young black female historian by the name of Shannen Dee Williams, an associate Professor of History at the University of Dayton, Ohio. It was a devastating piece of writing. It seriously castigated America magazine for allowing such an article to be published in the manner it was. Shannen pointed out that the truly ‘dangerous memory’ which was most relevant was not even hinted at. This memory has two prongs:

–  This Congregation had been involved in slave ownership (like many Catholic institutes of that era);

–  they had adopted and pursued a policy of racial segregation in intake of membership. Only white women were accepted and any black applicants were turned away. Such a policy continued into relatively recent times. Even in the mission to the Bahamas, the Black Sisters eventually separated and formed an independent Congregation. In other words, they were decidedly racist in attitude and policy.

If the SMA had not adopted the plan of the Foundations 40 years ago, receiving as members men from our mission lands and Asia, all the Provinces in Europe and North America would be well on the way of the road to completion. But a courageous decision was taken and we are joyfully living the fruits of that decision today. We only need to look at the membership of this Plenary Council.

This is a very positive situation. But before being carried away in too much positivity we might ask a challenging question of ourselves: could there be a dangerous memory in the SMA that we don’t like to think about. Why did it take so long to come to the decision taken in 1983? It is interesting to contrast the approach taken by the Sisters of Our Lady of Apostles [OLA] to the same pathway: for them there was almost no need of a discernment process; the answer was so obvious that they were able to move into a welcoming mode much earlier than SMA moved. Was there any element of racism operating in our delay? Maybe a good research topic for one of our students.

The decision of the SMA forty years ago to expand membership was only in response to the promptings of the Holy Spirit to continue to be a ‘light to the nations’, as Isaiah put it in our first reading. This section of Isaiah comes from the second of the “Four Songs of the Servant of the Lord”. The speaker presents himself as a prophet whose word carries God’s own power. Through him God renews his covenant with Israel, and by his obedience to God and solidarity with his people he can bring about conversion and salvation for both Israel and the nations.

Each SMA missionary through obedience to God and solidarity with his people helps bring about conversion and salvation for himself and his people.

Our second reading from Acts shows how Paul sees the Jews rejection of the Gospel message as a full justification for the gentile mission. He sees it as an instance of the biblical promises being fulfilled. This gentile mission is being carried out today by the SMA and others.

Our gospel comes from the opening chapter of Luke’s account. Naturally, today it focuses on the birth, circumcision and naming of John the Baptist. It’s not clear to me why the Church chose to omit from today’s reading Zechariah’s powerful prophecy, what is usually referred to as the Benedictus, the prayer we pray each day at our morning prayer.

There are a few points that strike me from this gospel segment that might help us as SMA moves forward after forty years’ experience of this new reality:

Zechariah was a man characterised by radical obedience to the word of God. One might have excused a certain resistance pursuant to being struck dumb. But there was not the slightest hesitation on his part.

Having been told by the angel that the child was to be called John, he withstood strong protestations from his family and neighbours to choose a name familiar to the family. But Zechariah was uncompromising. John, too, in his own day was uncompromising in his following of God’s word.

This virtue of obedience may need to be recaptured in our lived practice in SMA today. Not just listening to God’s word, but obeying the word of our superiors. Maybe not in such an autocratic manner as in the time of Father Planque and Bishop Pellet, but perhaps we have erred too far in the other way. Not too long ago, I picked up a small book at the District house in Monrovia with the quaint title of ‘Don’t trust the Abbot’.

I wish I had read that book more than twenty years ago! The author, himself an abbot of a Benedictine monastery in Arkansas USA, makes a point that I had not pondered on much before; that is that religious take vows to obey their superiors, not to trust them. You don’t necessarily have to trust your superior, but you do have to obey. The hope is that trust will develop if not already there. But one doesn’t take a vow to trust. That may help both leaders and others to evaluate mandates given in a fresh way.  

We also benefit from the example of John by radically listening to God’s word and pursuing its lead.

We can only do this through prayer. Prayer is essential for all missionaries and most especially leaders. Like Moses at the Tent of Meeting, we represent the concerns of our members and present them in prayer in order to seek direction. The people at the door of their own tent took great solace from seeing Moses entering the special tent to encounter God. In the same way our members take courage from knowing that the leader is connected regularly to the Lord in prayer.

So, as we move on as SMA into the next forty or one hundred years, let us commit ourselves again to the vision inherited from Melchior de Marion Brésillac and truly be missionaries from the bottom of our hearts.

Through the intercession of Mother Mary and Venerable Marion himself, may we get the strength necessary to radically live this mission.

Fachtna O’Driscoll SMA

 

Homily for the Feast of the Transfiguration

Homily for the Feast of the Transfiguration (6th August 2023)

Readings: Daniel 7:9-10; Peter 1:16-19; Matthew 17:1-9

Theme:  ‘I looked at Christ transfigured without fear’ (Patrick Kavanagh)

The Transfiguration of Jesus, portrayed in today’s gospel, has captured the imagination of artists down through the ages. Among the many paintings, icons and mosaics depicting this extraordinary event, the sixth century mosaic in the monastery of St Catherine in Sinai, the world’s oldest inhabited Christian monastery, is my favourite. I was blessed to have had the opportunity to see it during a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in the Spring of 2008. When I entered the basilica of the monastery, I was immediately struck by the beauty of this awesome mosaic, situated in the apse above the high altar.  At its centre is the figure of Jesus transfigured. His right hand is raised in blessing and his eyes directed towards us. His clothes are shining white with gold edging. From his body, rays of light emanate towards each of the five figures present: to his right, the prophet Elijah; to his left, Moses; around his feet, the Apostles John, Peter, and James. This marvellous mosaic captures the drama of this unique event: the three Apostles in a state of shock and bewilderment, while Jesus stands serenely above them, flanked by Moses and Elijah, who appear to be blessing him.

The Transfiguration took place at a critical moment in the life and ministry of Jesus. He had left behind the green valleys and gentle hills of Galilee and taken the road to Jerusalem where violent death awaited him. He realised that, in Jerusalem, he would meet the same fate as the prophets before him. He had already warned his disciples ‘that he was destined to go to Jerusalem and suffer grievously at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, to be put to death and to be raised up on the third day’ (Mt 16: 21). When Peter began to remonstrate with him, refusing to accept his prophetic words, he rebuked him in unusually harsh terms:  ‘Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle in my path, because the way you think is not God’s way but man’s’ (Mt 16:23).  Suffering and death were integral to his salvific mission.

As was the custom of Jesus when facing into danger, he withdrew to a quiet place (a mountain) to pray and reflect, taking with him three of his companions, Peter, James and John. In their presence he is transfigured – ‘his face shone like the sun and his face became as white as the light’ (Mt17: 2). And he appears in conversation with Moses and Elijah.  Then, as on the occasion of his baptism, a voice from ‘a bright cloud’, the voice of his Father, affirms his divine identity and messianic vocation: ‘This is my Son, the Beloved; he enjoys my favour. Listen to him’ (Mt 17:7). This affirmation and confirmation of the Father’s love must surely have strengthened him in the face of the dark and threatening future that lay ahead.

The transfiguration experience was important not just for Jesus but also for his beloved disciples. Their eyes were opened to catch a glimpse of Jesus in his glory and their ears were opened to hear the divine confirmation of Jesus’ identity as ‘beloved Son’, to whom they were commanded to listen. Captivated by the experience, Peter wishes to remain on the mountain in the exalted company of Elijah, Moses and Jesus. However, this was not to be. This glorious moment passes, and the three disciples find themselves alone with Jesus who warns them not to tell anyone about what they had seen ‘until the Son of Man has risen from the dead’ (Mt 17:9). The fact that the story of the transfiguration of Jesus is narrated in all three synoptic gospels – Matthew, Mark and Luke – indicates its significance for the early Christian community. In the words of the popular New Testament scholar, NT Wright: ‘It demonstrates, for those with eyes to see, and ears to hear, that Jesus is the place where God’s world and ours meet…. It forms part of a new set of signposts, Jesus-shaped signposts, indicating what is to come: a whole new creation, starting with Jesus himself as the seed that is sown in the earth and then rises to become the beginning of that new world.’

Today’s gospel may prompt us to recall transfiguration moments in our own lives  – moments of light, joy and peace; moments when we caught a glimpse of a transcendent beauty beyond the horizon of the habitual; moments that, in the striking words of the poet, Seamus Heaney, ‘catch the heart off guard and blow it open’. While such moments may not transform us, for they are always fleeting, they surely heighten our awareness of a sustaining presence that helps us cope with times of fear and uncertainty.  They carry us forward in hope of ‘a new world in the morning’, to borrow the title of a song by Roger Whittaker.  But, as Jesus reminded Peter, we cannot remain on the mountain and bask in warmth of such consoling experiences. We must return to the humdrum of daily living among our brothers and sisters.  In the words of Pope Francis, ‘Our Christian faith is not meant just to give us beautiful spiritual feelings. That is not the message of Jesus. We are called to experience the encounter with Christ so that, enlightened by his light, we might take it and make it shine everywhere’.  May our celebration of the Eucharist on this great feast help us to do just that!

Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

World Day Against Trafficking in Persons2023

The UN designated “World Day Against Trafficking” in Persons, marked on the 30th of July each year, highlights the fact that globally more than 40 million people are trapped in human trafficking. This can take many forms including forced labour, sex trafficking and domestic servitude. In Ireland, documented cases include human trafficking for sexual exploitation, labour exploitation, domestic work, forced begging, forced criminality and forced marriage. 

FACTS ABOUT TRAFFICKING
Trafficking comes in many forms, including:
– Forcing victims into prostitution.
– Subjecting victims to slavery or involuntary servitude.
– Compelling victims to commit sex acts for the purpose of creating pornography.
– Misleading victims into debt bondage. 

It’s estimated that 80% of trafficking involves sexual exploitation, and 19% involves labour exploitation.   

  • Nearly 70 percent of victims are female and many are children.
  • After illegal drugs and arms trafficking, Human trafficking is the third most lucrative international crime.
  • It reportedly generates a profit of $32 billion every year. Around half which is made in the developed world. 
  • Victims come from all age groups, however many are female and under 18 years old.
  • Only 1-2 percent of victims are rescued.
  • Only 1 in 100,000 Europeans involved in trafficking are convicted.
  • Approximately 30 million children have lost their childhood through sexual exploitation over the past 30 years.
  • Globally, the average cost of a slave is €120.     Source: – https://www.renate-europe.net/trafficking-resources/   

Trafficking in persons is a crime and a grave violation of human rights. Sadly, it is increasing throughout the world.

This year’s World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, with the theme “Reach every victim of trafficking, leave no one behind,” aims to raise awareness of disturbing developments and trends identified by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).  According to its website, global crises, conflicts, and the climate emergency are escalating trafficking risks, leaving more people vulnerable to exploitation by traffickers.  In addition, national responses, particularly in developing States, appear to be deteriorating. Detection rates and convictions are falling, illustrating a worldwide slowdown in the criminal justice response to trafficking. COVID-19 also changed the characteristics of trafficking, pushing it further underground and potentially increasing the dangers to victims by making the crime less likely to come to the attention of the authorities.  41% of victims who manage to escape their ordeal reach out to the authorities on their own initiative – a clear sign that anti-trafficking responses are falling short. “Leave no one behind”- the theme for this year’s World Day against Human Trafficking is also the central, transformative promise of Agenda 2030 and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

In the context of trafficking in persons, leaving people behind means:

  • failing to end the exploitation of trafficking victims,
  • failing to support victim-survivors once they are free from their traffickers, and
  • leaving identifiable groups vulnerable to traffickers.

According to the UN, “To end human trafficking, we cannot allow this crime to be met with increasing indifference and impunity. We must strengthen resilience against exploitation and the underlying socio-economic and cultural issues that are conducive to trafficking. We must sensitize everyone to the topic of human trafficking and thus push attention towards those who can make a difference in terms of changing policy and national resource management to strengthen prevention measures, improve identification of victims, increase support of survivors and end impunity.”  (Source: https://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/endht/index.html)

Ireland and Human Trafficking.
One of the most authoritative international sources of information about Human Trafficking is the annual Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report.  Researched and published by the US State Department the Report ranks the response of countries around the world to Human Trafficking within their borders on three levels: Tier 1. Countries whose governments fully meet the minimum standards specified by the US Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA); Tier 2. Countries whose governments do not fully meet TVPA minimum standards but are making significant efforts to do so; Tier 3. Countries whose governments do not fully comply with TVPA minimum standards and are not making efforts to do so.

This year’s TIP Report contains an extensive section reflecting the current reality of Human Trafficking in Ireland and our Government’s response. To access this click here

In Summary, the 2023 TIP report points out that systematic deficiencies in combatting human trafficking remain in Ireland. Therefore, for the second year running this means; “The Government of Ireland does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so…..therefore Ireland remained on Tier 2(TIP Report 2023).

While there were some positives (in terms of funding for victim care and awareness, making people in the fishing industry less vulnerable, assisting victims and in identifying ‘several’ child victims) the report is critical in key areas: “The government did not convict any traffickers – a decrease compared with the prior year – and has never convicted a trafficker for labour trafficking. Chronic and systemic deficiencies in victim identification, referral, and assistance persisted; and services for victims remained inadequate.”

In addition, the Report is also critical that “the government did not adopt an updated National Action Plan, amend its NRM, (National Referral Mechanism) or overhaul its accommodation framework for trafficking victims, which continued to leave victims with inadequate and unsuitable accommodations. Additionally, the government identified fewer trafficking victims among vulnerable groups, specifically sea fishers, and decreased investigations of trafficking crimes.”  The report goes on to make 14 recommendations to improve the State’s response, which, if implemented in the coming year, would allow Ireland to be categorised as Tier One in the 2024 TIP Report. 

Commenting on this year’s TIP Report, Edel McGinley, Director of the Migrants Rights Centre Ireland (MRC) said, ‘Progress on human trafficking in the State is too slow.  We continue to wait for new National Referral Mechanism legislation to be completed. The Government approved a proposal for a new Referral Mechanism (NRM) in 2021 – this would make it easier for trafficking victims to come forward and receive supports.  It would also make it easier for the State to provide that support and protection in a collaborative way across the range of departments and agencies, and working with key NGOs.  However the mechanism is still not in place.”  *

At present, in Ireland only the Garda can identify a person as a victim of trafficking thus making the protections of the NRM available to them.  NGO’s or Human Rights organisations cannot refer the victims they support through the NRM while victims themselves, who often fear police, will not approach the Garda and therefore cannot access the support they need.  The right to identify victims of Human Trafficking needs to be extended to NGOs.  Commenting further the MRCI Director said, “There is no reason why Ireland should not be on Tier 1. We need an effective National Referral Mechanism (NRM) urgently. In particular, incoming legislation for a new NRM must include the rights and entitlements of victims, such as a secure immigration status, so that people feel supported and
protected to come forward and report this terrible crime
’.* 

*Source:https://www.mrci.ie/2023/06/16/media-release-tip-report-shows-systemic-deficiencies-in-combatting-human-trafficking-remain/

SMA Sponsor, Kathleen Lowry reaches 107 years

Mrs Kathleen Lowry celebrates her 107th birthday this month. Hailing from Tuam, Co Galway, Mrs Lowry has sponsored the training and upkeep of  SMA  seminarians for more than 40 years as a member of the FVC – Family Vocations Community. Her daughter, Viola, with whom she lives, is the Head Sponsor of the group to which Kathleen contributes every year.

Our photo shows Kathleen with the FVC Director for the West of Ireland, Fr Frank McGrath, who is also a native of Tuam. Kathleen keeps a keen interest in the number of seminarians and how many priests are ordained for the SMA every year. Along with having a great age, Kathleen retains her wit and humour.

This year, the SMA ordained 18 priests – 3 each from Benin Republic, India, Ivory Coast and Nigeria; two from Togo and one each from the Central African Republic, Ghana, Kenya and Tanzania  (See image below). We pray God’s blessings on our new priests as well as on our 350+ seminarians at various stages of preparation for priesthood.

For further information about sponsoring a priest contact your local FVC Office / House at one of the following numbers:

Claregalway                   091 798 880
Blackrock Road, Cork      021 4616 316
Dromantine, Newry        028 3082 1224
Ranelagh, Dublin           01 4968 162 
You can sponsor a priest as an individual Sponsor or as part of an FVC group.  

 

Thank you Kathleen and Viola
and all our Sponsors for your support and prayers down the years.

Click on the photo to enlarge

 

Homily for the 17th Sunday of Year A

Readings:  1 Kings 3:5,7-12; Romans 8:28-30; Matthew 13:44-52

 Theme:   The Treasure Hidden in our Hearts

‘He is playing a game that I’m not familiar with.’ This was the comment of the legendary golfer, Jack Nicklaus, when, in 1997, a twenty-one year old Tiger Woods took the golfing world by storm, winning the prestigious US Masters tournament by a record breaking 12 strokes. Though God may not be familiar with golf, today’s gospel reading suggests a game he is familiar with and likes to play, a game played by children all over the world: Hide and Seek. Some years ago, I came across the following story that illustrates very well just how God wishes to play this game. 

One day God decided to launch a treasure hunt on earth. So he called his angels and gave them a priceless treasure to bring to earth, instructing them to hide it so that people would have to search for it and might have the joy of finding it. “Shall we hide it on the highest mountain”, the angels asked. “No”, answered God, “because only the fittest and healthiest could climb that mountain and the weak would have no chance”. Again the angels asked: “Shall we put it on the furthest shores of the ocean”.  “No”, answered God, “because only the rich people could afford to travel so far and the poor would have no chance”.  “Where then shall we put it?” the angels asked. And God instructed: “Put it within reach of everybody, rich or poor, healthy or weak. Plant it in the centre of their beings. Hide it in their hearts.”

 We are all treasure hunters. We seek the ‘pearl of great value’ (Mt 13:46) the one thing that will answer the deepest yearning of our hearts and make us truly happy. The problem is that we spend too much time looking for it in the wrong places – outside ourselves. And we invariably end up frustrated, with ‘hearts high-sorrowful and cloy’d’, to borrow a phrase from the poet, John Keats. The treasure we seek is the presence of God for which our hearts were made. In his famous autobiography, Confessions, St Augustine wrote, ‘You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless, till they rest in you’.  Augustine then goes on to describe his own experience of seeking and finally discovering the divine treasure. After a fruitless search for this treasure outside of himself, he finally discovered it in the depths of his heart. His moving words convey his unbounded joy on discovering the treasure for which he had been searching all his life:  ‘Late have I loved you, O Beauty ever ancient, ever new; late have I loved you! You were within me, but I was outside, and it was there that I searched for you. In my weakness I plunged into the lovely things you created. You were with me, but I was not with you. You called, you shouted, and you broke through my deafness…. You touched me, and I burned for your peace.’

 Today’s gospel invites us to attend to the divine presence within our hearts for it is there we will find the treasure we seek, the priceless pearl for which we must give up all we possess. Yes, there is a price to be paid for the divine treasure. We have to make choices, to let go of the things that distract us from the quest – things we foolishly imagine will make us happy, like success, wealth, and power. Like Solomon in our first reading today we need ‘a discerning heart’ (1 Kgs 3:9) to keep us on the right path, the path that leads us to the treasure hidden by the angels. Sometimes, perhaps, we may have found the treasure and then cast it aside, or forgotten about it in our foolish quest for things we thought might make us feel important. However, as the great Welsh poet, R. S. Thomas, reminds us, we can discover it again by slowing down, turning aside, and attending to a ‘brightness that seemed as transitory as your youth’. This is a line from a poem written as a reflection on the parable of the hidden treasure, entitled, The Bright Field. It’s short, so I’ll quote it in full.

I have seen the sun break through
to illuminate a small field
for a while, and gone my way
and forgotten it. But that was the
pearl of great price, the one field that had
treasure in it. I realise now
that I must give all that I have
to possess it. Life is not hurrying

on to a receding future, nor hankering after
an imagined past. It is the turning
aside like Moses to the miracle
of the lit bush, to a brightness
that seemed as transitory as your youth
once, but is the eternity that awaits you.

 One of the blessings of ageing, and of having to take our foot off the pedal and slow down, is the opportunity it gives us to notice and attend to, the everyday miracles around us, miracles we may have missed in our busy days of doing great things. We can begin to live more freely in the present moment, to embrace the eternity that awaits us, and appreciate the treasure hidden in our hearts –  a treasure beautiful beyond words and well worth whatever it takes to find it.  

Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

 

BEGINNINGS – The Birth of the SMA Irish Province – a New Documentary Film

 

 

 

 

The 19th of July 2023 is the one hundred and second anniversary of the death of Fr Joseph Zimmerman SMA, a Swiss national, who is acknowledged as the founder of the Irish Province of the Society of African Missions.  To mark this occasion a new documentary film about the birth of the SMA Irish Province is being released.

The idea of doing a film on the life of Fr Zimmerman was discussed over two years ago and shortly after the work of gathering the historical information that, in the following months, was used to write a film script began.  At this stage, in order to set the foundation of the Irish Province in the a wider context, is was also decided to broaden the storyline to cover the period before Fr Zimmerman came to Ireland, i.e. when the young Society of African Missions, then a French missionary group, recognised the need to seek English speaking recruits in Ireland to serve as missionaries in British colonies in Africa. 

This eventually led, largely through the efforts, dedication and persistence of Fr Joseph Zimmerman, to the emergence of an independent Irish Province of the Society of African Missions.  

The film is 43 minutes long and features images from the SMA archives in Cork and Lyon and also rare photos of Cork from more than a century ago.  Thanks to all who gave their time and efforts to making the film possible.  We hope you enjoy it and find it informative. Click on the red play icon below to view. 

 

Homily for the 16th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year A

Readings: Wisdom 12:13.16-19; Romans 8:26-27; Matthew 13:24-43

Theme: The Patience of God

Today’s readings highlight a virtue that is fast disappearing from our world: the virtue of patience. According to the British psychiatrist, Neel Burton, ‘Today more than ever, patience is a forgotten virtue. Our individualistic and materialistic society values ambition and action above all else…. Waiting, even for a very short time, has become so unbearable that much of our economy is geared at eliminating “dead time”.’ However, patience along with its inseparable companions – self-control humility, tolerance, generosity and mercy – is an essential ingredient of God’s world

The God we worship, as out first reading teaches, is patient and benign: a God  ‘who cares for every good thing’; a God who is ‘mild in judgement’ and who governs us ‘with great lenience’ (Wisdom 12:13,17). Today’s Gospel reading from Matthew also underlines the patience of God. Extending the parable of the sower, which we saw last Sunday, Jesus tells his disciples that when the good seed begins to sprout, weeds (darnel) appear among the wheat, much to the consternation of the servants who would like to root them out immediately. However, the wise farm owner asks them to be patient, and to wait until harvest time. He points out that, if they try to remove the weeds  now, they ‘might pull up the wheat with it’ (Mt 13: 29). So he tells them to let both grow together till the harvest. Then, the reapers can collect the weeds and burn them before gathering the wheat into the barn (cf. Mt 13:30).

The parable depicts a world with which we are familiar – a world where evil is mingled with good – weeds among the wheat. While the world is still God’s garden, it is not as God intended it to be. God planted only good seed. The Book of Genesis reminds us, when God had finished the work of creation, he ‘saw all that he had made and indeed it was very good’ (Gen 1:31). The presence of weeds is evidence of an enemy who has sneaked into the garden while the labourers were asleep and planted the bad seed (Mt 13: 25). Thus we have all kinds of evil in the world, from the most banal everyday variety, such as lies, jealousy, deceit, egotism and selfishness, to the most egregious – wars, human trafficking, mindless exploitation of earth’s resources,  labour camps and torture chambers.

Today’s gospel is not telling us that we should do nothing about these weeds in God’s beautiful garden. As the Irish Statesman, Edmund Burke reminds us ‘All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good people to do nothing’. There is much we can and must do, but we may not act prematurely to try and eliminate all evil from the world. We must not hasten the final judgement, which belongs to God alone. It is not for us to put ourselves in God’s place, as Joseph reminded his brothers who feared he might seek revenge for what they had done to him (cf. Gen 50: 1519). Unfortunately, history provides many examples of the disastrous outcome of ill-conceived attempts to rid the world of evil. More recently we have seen the tragic consequences of America’s wars in Vietnam (1954-75), Iraq (2003-’11) and Afghanistan (2001-’14). Even good people rarely get it right when they try to remove the weeds from God’s garden.

The history of the Church, too, has been marred by arrogant efforts to rid the Church of those regarded as propagators of error and confusion, resulting in witch-hunts and regular purges that continue right up to our time. I am thinking particularly of the shameful manner in which the Belgian theologian, Jacques Dupuis SJ, one of the finest theologians of the post-Vatican II era, was treated by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. In his letter to the recently appointed Head of this Congregation, Archbishop Fernandez, Pope Francis referred to the ‘immoral methods’ used by the Doctrinal Office in the past, ‘when rather than promoting theological knowledge it chased after possible doctrinal errors’. While acknowledging the importance of ‘safeguarding the faith’, Pope Francis insists ‘that nothing must overshadow the power and mercy of God’.  As we were reminded in our first Reading, the lesson we need to learn from the patient and tolerant manner in which God treats everyone is to always treat one another with kindness and understanding (cf. Wisdom 12:19). This must include those who differ from us or are even hostile to us.

The good news is that we have a master gardener (God) who assures us that all will be sorted out in the end. God’s kingdom grows slowly but surely, as the parables of the Mustard Seed and the Yeast in the Cake illustrate. This assurance should free us from a dangerous preoccupation with getting rid of the weeds in God’s garden, and lead us to focus instead on sowing seeds of the kingdom. We can confidently leave the problem of the weeds to the master gardener and look forward to the day when he will gather the wheat into his barn. I will end by leaving you with a maxim from an anonymous source, posted at the entrance to the nursing unit in our SMA House in Blackrock Road –  a maxim that gives me pause for reflection each time I read it: ‘Everyone you know is fighting some battle you know nothing about! Be Kind…Always.’  This is the best response to the challenge of today’s readings.

Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

 

“I count myself Lucky and Blessed” – Mary O Flynn Retires

 

 

 

 

 

 

An event to mark the retirement of Mary O’Flynn, who began work with the SMA on the 3rd of October 1977, took place on the 6th of June 2023.  That is almost 46 years or, as she said during her address to the gathering, “two-thirds of my life.”

Mary has always been the first person that those contacting or visiting SMA House, Wilton, spoke with or met when they called or arrived. She was responsible for the smooth running of the Reception Office and many aspects of the House administration that helped both the work of other staff and the lives of SMA’s living in the house community.

Many of the staff and SMA priests who worked with Mary down through the years joined in the celebration. Indeed, her association and involvement with the SMA began long before most of those who were present, including some of the SMA Fathers who first met Mary when they arrived as students to St Joseph’s College Wilton, the place where they began their journey towards the missionary priesthood. Mary’s constant presence and her contribution to the work and life of the SMA, especially the community in Wilton, is greatly appreciated and her knowhow and knowledge will be greatly missed – a  fact reflected in the comment made by Fr Noel O’Leary, the Wilton House Leader, when he asked Mary to keep her phone nearby as she can, into the future, expect many phone calls asking her how to solve this problem or that problem and to share the knowledge accumulated over decades.  Below are some of the comments made by those at the event. 

Fr Noel O’Leary SMA, Wilton House Leader: It has been a privilege to work with Mary. I was very blessed because I came in 1978. Mary is with the SMA is longer than I am…  There  are a number of us here in the room that came here as students and we have known Mary for many years. When we come to Wilton Mary is always been the face we’ve seen….On behalf of all of us SMA’s a very big thank you.”
Tom McHenry: I have been working with Mary since the time she came  (1977) … Mary is a lovely person and we got on fantastically well. I wish her all the best in her retirement and I hope she won’t forget us and call, off and on, to see us.
Fr Gus O’Driscoll SMA: “I have known Mary since the mid-eighties when I came to work in Wilton with the students and I found her to be so diligent, cooperative, very easy to get on with. She was willing to do whatever was requested. I’m also mindful of her personality, her spirituality, she had a great sense of God working in her life.”  
Fr Cormac Breathnach SMA: “Mary has given us an example of selflessness, dedication and devotion to duty far beyond the normal We’ve relied on her so much over the years for so many of our problems which she solved.” 

We leave the final words to Mary herself. 

“I count myself lucky and blessed to have had a job for so many years and I’ve been very happy here and I’ve made many friends among the staff and the community… Wilton and the SMA will always be part of my life and I will keep in touch so you haven’t seen the last of me. So thank you for taking the time to come here this evening. Thanks very much.” 

 

 

Homily for the 15th Sunday of ordinary time: Year A

Readings: Isaiah 55:10-11; Romans 8:18-23; Matthew 13:1-23

 Theme: Co-workers in the birth of a New Creation

Jesus’ favourite way of teaching was by using stories or parables. There are over 30 parables in Matthew’s gospel alone. We might wonder why Jesus adopted this method of teaching.  Well, for one thing, the use of stories was a method hallowed among the rabbis of Israel from time immemorial.  However, Jesus’ reason for using stories is perhaps best illustrated by the following fable:

 Once upon a time, Truth walked down a village street as naked as the day he was born. Horrified, the villagers ran back to their houses and locked their doors. Taken aback, Truth continued walking until he met Story coming down the road facing him, smiling and dressed to the nines and noticing his dejection, she asked him why he was so sad. ‘Nobody wants me, he said. As soon as they see me coming, the all run away’.  ‘That’s because you’re naked’, responded Story. ‘People are afraid of naked truth. Look, I’ll make you some nice clothes and we’ll see how people respond’. Reluctantly, Truth agreed, and two weeks later dressed himself in the suit Story had made for him. At first, he felt rather uncomfortable to be all covered up.  But when people began to accept him and welcome into their homes, he relaxed. Soon Truth and Story became best friends, eventually married and had three children: a boy and two girls. Their names were: Myth, Fable and Parable.

A story makes truth more approachable and leads us to discover it for ourselves. And it also makes it more memorable. We recall a story much more readily than an abstract discourse. Today’s gospel reading from Matthew narrates the familiar parable of the sower and the different kinds of soil on which the seed falls. This story encourages us to reflect on our lives and our response to the good news of God’s loving reign. It invites each of us to ask: What kind of soil am I? Am I receptive to God’s word?  Do I nurture it regularly and carefully? Do I let it to penetrate my heart, so that I become God’s co-worker in the birth of a new creation?

The sower, as depicted by Jesus, sows seeds with prodigious liberality, seemingly unconcerned that some may be lost or fail to bear fruit. This is an image of a God who, in the words of the Kerry poet, Brendan Kennelly, ‘goes about his work/determined to hold on to nothing’, the God who, ‘embarrassed at the prospect of possession/distributes leaves to the wind/and lets them pitch and leap like boys capering out of their skin.’  The word of God is strewn everywhere around us, in ‘pictures thrown behind hedges/poems that skitter backwards over cliffs’. Were we to but open out eyes and free up our hearts we could not miss the presence to this unbelievably generous God ‘who gives everything away’. Today’s gospel calls on us to open our hearts to the gracious seeds of God’s presence scattered so abundantly in our world –  a world that, in the striking words of the poet, Gerard Manley Hopkins, is ‘charged with the grandeur of God’. 

 The problem is that we so often don’t pay enough attention to that word or let it take root in the soil of our hearts. That soil can become dry and hard through neglect, or get choked with weeds – and there are a lot of weeds around in these days.  It may require clearing and cultivation to become receptive to the seed of God’s word.  For most of us, the cultivation of the soil of our hearts remains a constant and demanding challenge but, as Isaiah reminds us in today’s first reading, we must not lose heart.  God’s word will accomplish the purpose for which it was sent. And that purpose, as our second reading today makes clear, includes the transformation of all created things. ‘From the beginning till now the entire creation, as we know, has been groaning in one great act of giving birth’ (Rom 8: 21).

Creation is not destined for extinction, as some proponents of ‘Extinction Rebellion’ might have us believe. It is intended to share in the glory of Christ’s resurrection. However, it is surely groaning today under the relentless impact of human exploitation. Our destiny and the destiny of creation are inseparably connected, and we have a God-given responsibility to work for a renewed creation. While it is God who ultimately liberates and transforms, we are invited  to be his active representatives, working with him, and under his authority, to develop, heal, and restore the created world.

Creation will be freed from its enslavement to human greed only when our hearts are transformed by the seed of God’s word and we learn to live as his children and citizens of his kingdom.  St Paul’s reminds us that, while we have received the first-fruits of the Spirit, we, too ‘groan inwardly’ as we struggle to allow God’s Spirit to reign in our hearts, and transform us so that we become his co-workers in the birth of the new creation.  So, let us give thanks to the Lord for his invitation to us today, and let us continue to prepare the soil of our hearts to receive the seed of God’s word and enable it to produce abundant fruit.

Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

JULY 2023| For a Eucharistic Life

Opening ourselves to Jesus, opening ourselves to the world: Pope Francis invites us to put the Eucharist at the centre of our lives

Let us pray that Catholics place at the centre of their lives the Eucharistic Celebration, which transforms human relationships profoundly and opens up an encounter with God and their brothers and sisters.

TEXT OF POPE’s MESSAGE
If you are the same at the end of Mass as you were at the beginning, something is wrong.
The Eucharist is the presence of Jesus, it is deeply transforming. Jesus comes and must transform you.
In the Eucharist, it is Christ who offers Himself, who gives himself for us. He invites us, so that our lives may be nourished by Him and may nourish the lives of our brothers and sisters.
The Eucharistic Celebration is an encounter with the Risen Jesus. At the same time, it is a way of opening ourselves to the world as He taught us.
Each time we participate in the Eucharist, Jesus comes and Jesus gives us the strength to love like He loved, because it gives us the courage to encounter others, to go out of ourselves, and to open ourselves to others with love.
Let us pray that Catholics place at the centre of their lives the Eucharistic Celebration, which transforms human relationships and opens up an encounter with God and their brothers and sisters.

Pope Francis – July 2023

SMA Jubilee Celebrations in Dromantine

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Society of African Missions recently celebrated the Silver and Golden Jubilees of four SMA priests: Father Kevin Mulhern SMA from Waterside, Derry City [Silver] and the Golden Jubilees of Father Liam Brady SMA (Cork), Michael McKee SMA (Dungannon) and Tommy Wade SMA (Cork).

The Celebrations began with concelebrated Thanksgiving Mass in the Chapel of the African Missions, Dromantine, Newry, Co Down on Friday, 30 June 2023.  The main celebrant was the SMA Provincial Leader, Fr Malachy Flanagan who was joined on the Altar by the four Jubilarians, assisted by 30 SMAs who had gathered for the occasion. Fr. Tom McNamara was the homilist who shared with us Gods word and focused on the calling to S.M.A. priesthood and the generosity of the Jubilarians in responding to that call.  Fr. Liam Brady led a communion reflection to remember those from his class of 1973 who are no longer with us namely Vincent Glennon James Fegan and Michael Nohilly R.I.P.  To view the text of the Homily CLICK HERE

After the Mass the Dromantine Community along with representatives from all the S.M.A. houses in Ireland joined with the jubilarians for a celebratory meal.  In the course of the meal Fr Malachy Flanagan spoke in praise of the great service given by the Jubilarians to S.M.A. down through the years.  He also presented each with a gift.  In response, they in turn thanked S.M.A. for the great support received throughout the lives and all gave thanks to God for the many blessings received all through their ministry especially for good health.

We ask God’s continued blessing on the Jubilarians, on the work of all missionaries and on those who support and enable the SMA in its mission

Homily for the 14th Sunday of ordinary time: Year A

Readings:  Zechariah 9:9-10; Romans 8:9.11-13; Matthew 11:25-30
Theme:  The ‘Yoke’ of Jesus

 On the night of October 11, 1962, a large crowd of mostly young people, many carrying torches, made their way to St. Peter’s Square to celebrate the opening of the Second Vatican Council. Excited and gripped by an air of expectancy, they hoped to hear a few words from the Pope. Tired after a demanding day, Pope John XXIII was reluctant to speak once again. However, when he saw how many people were gathered in the Square, the good Pope asked for his stole and made his now famous impromptu ‘moonlight speech’. After some words of encouragement, he said: ‘When you go home give your children a hug and say “This is a hug from the Pope”’.

Today’s gospel reading feels like a hug from Jesus, a hug especially for all who feel the weight of the world on their shoulders. The reading contains some of the most consoling words in the Bible: ‘Come to me, all you who labour and are overburdened, and I will give you rest. Shoulder my yoke and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble of heart, and you will find rest for your souls’ (Mt 11:29-30). This is surely an invitation we cannot refuse!

In his invitation, Jesus uses the image of a ‘yoke’, an image familiar to the farmers of his time, though perhaps not so familiar to most people today. This was a curved wooden beam placed over the neck of two animals (usually oxen) to enable them to pull a cart or a plough.  In the bible the ‘yoke’  was often used as symbol of the bondage and oppression from which God had delivered  the enslaved people of Israel: ‘I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that you should not be their slaves; I have broken the bars of your yoke and made you walk upright’ (Lev 26:13).  

At the time of Jesus, the Torah, or Law of Moses, originally intended to help the Israelites to walk in the way of the Lord as a free people, had become another yoke, another form of oppression. This was because the religious leaders had added a whole plethora of man-made rules and regulations – 613 of them –  to the Ten Commandments God gave to Moses, thus placing an insupportable burden on the shoulders of the people. Growing up in Nazareth, Jesus lived and worked among ordinary people. He had first-hand experience of their struggles and frustrations.  He felt for them and reached out to them with compassion and kindness, healing their sicknesses, dispensing God’s mercy, casting out demons, and giving them hope. He excoriated the Scribes and Pharisees for crushing people with impossible demands, without ever lifting a finger to ease the burden (cf. Mt 23:4). Jesus wanted to free the people from unnecessary burdens.  So he invited them to surrender to his loving embrace and accept his gentle ‘yoke’.  And he promised them that, if they gave themselves to him, they would find peace and solace for their weary hearts.

Jesus is making the same invitation and the same promise to us today. He is not giving us a ‘soft sell’ or telling us that following him is always going to be easy. As we saw in last Sunday’s gospel, Christian discipleship is a ‘costly grace’ (D. Bonhoeffer). To embrace the ‘yoke of Jesus’ means choosing to live by the values and standards of the gospel, not those of the world around us.  And this involves resisting the permissive spirit of the age, that invites us to cast aside all restraints and create our own values. In such circumstances, embracing the ‘yoke’ of Jesus may prove demanding. But we are not left to our own resources. Jesus is always with us. We are ‘yoked’ to him. And, as our gospel reading reminds us, he is ‘gentle and humble of heart’ (Mt 11:29).

The ‘yoke’ of Jesus, unlike that of the heartless masters we may be tempted to serve – Wealth, Power, Fame – does not enslave. It frees us. Even when we sometimes fail to live by the demands of the Gospel, all is not lost. The Lord never rejects us. As our responsorial psalm reminds us: ‘The Lord is faithful in all his words and loving in all his deeds. He supports all who fall and raises all who are bowed down’ (Ps 144: 13-14). In tune with today’s gospel, Paul reminds us, in our second reading, that the Spirit of Christ is living in us, enabling us to resist the downward pull of our unspiritual selves and embrace the invitation and challenge of Jesus. Trusting in the Spirit and going all the way with Jesus is never a burden, but a constant source of liberation, peace and joy.

I end with an apt reflection from the pen of Flor McCarthy, SDB:

The Lord said to me, ‘Come to me. But I said, ‘I’m not worthy.’
‘Come to me’, he repeated. And I said, I’m afraid.’
‘Come to me.’ ‘I’m too proud.’
‘Come to me.’ ‘But I’ve no appointment.’
‘Come to me.’ ‘But I can’t afford the time right now.’
‘Come to me.’ With that I fell silent.
Then he said,
‘Come…sit down… take the load off your feet.
‘Sit here as in the shade of a tree.
Refresh yourself as at a running stream.
Here you will find rest. Here you will find peace.
And your yoke will become easy, and your burden light.’

Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

SMA International News – July 2023

Welcome to this edition of SMA International News For the Month of JULY.

 In this edition we have stories from: 

    • LYON and we have a report from the Plenary Council and their mid mandate gathering. The 40th Anniversary of the opening up of the SMA to recruiting African and Asian members was also marked at this occasion
    • GHANA – Fr Denis Etti SMA tells us about life and activities in his parish.
    •  STRASBOURG – where we hear of an SMA-OLA collaboration in a project.

 

SMA Parish Wilton supports the Field of Dreams

The Parishioners of St Joseph’s Parish Wilton have a long established a tradition of generously supporting charities down through the years. These have ranged from projects run by SMA Missionaries in African countries, to support for Ukrainian refugees and also donations to many local and national charities. 

In June donations from parishioners were collected for The Field of Dreams project run by Down Syndrome Ireland.  This project, begun in 2017, aims to meet the ongoing learning needs of adults with Down Syndrome across Cork City & County.

The project vision (and dream!!) is to provide opportunities for adults with Downs for ongoing learning and growth. To achieve this horticultural courses are offered at its 3-acre horticultural site in Curraheen, Cork city. These programmes, lasting between one and two years, are designed to meet the specific needs of the students. For some, this opportunity will move them towards a life of greater independence and self-reliance, for others, it will move them towards paid work. At present twenty-seven of those already trained are in paid employment.  In June this year 51 students graduated from the six training programmes provided.  

Recently Fr Michael O’Leary SMA, Parish Priest of Wilton Parish visited the Field of Dreams in Curraheen to present the funds collected.   Click on the play button below to view a 3 minute video recorded during this visit and edited by Mr Paul O’Flynn.

Homily for the 13th Sunday of Ordinary Time: Year A

Readings: 2 Kings 4:8-11,14-16; Romans 6: 3-4,8-11; Matthew 10:27-42

 Theme: The Cost of Discipleship

 The main theme of today’s gospel reading is the cost of discipleship. As Jesus reminds his disciples, there is a price to be paid by all who wish to be his disciples – by those willing to walk the walk, not just talk the talk: ‘Anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me’ (Mt 10:38). Any commitment that is real rather than notional is costly, involving sacrifices and self-less service of others. Take, for example, the commitment of parents to their children, or of doctors and nurses, who often put their lives on the line to serve others, as we say throughout the COVID pandemic.

Some people mistake involvement for commitment but they are not the same. The difference is illustrated by a humorous fable I heard many years ago. ‘One day a pig and a hen were walking down the road when the hen says to the pig: “I was thinking we should open a restaurant!” The pig replies: “Hm, maybe, what would we call it?” The hen responds: “How about ‘ham-n-eggs’?” The pig thinks for a moment and says: “No thank you. That would mean I’d be committed, but you’d only be involved.”

The noted German Protestant theologian, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, whose opposition to the Nazi regime cost him his life, wrote a famous book in 1937 entitled, The Cost of Discipleship. In it he spells out what it means to be a follower of Christ. He distinguishes between cheap grace’ and ‘costly grace’. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate. Costly grace ‘is the treasure hidden in the field; for the sake of it one will go and sell all one has. It is costly because it costs one’s life, and it is grace because it gives one the only true life….Above all, it is costly because it cost God the life of his Son’. Bonhoeffer’s words are as relevant today as when he wrote them.

There is no avoiding the cross if we really wish to be true followers of Him who gave his life for us. ‘If a person serves me, that person must follow me; wherever I am, my servant will be there too(Jn 12:26). The cross is an invitation to become like Jesus, who is our true Life. The beautiful song The Rose’ includes the striking line: ‘It’s the one afraid of dying who never learns to live.’  These words echo the words of Jesus in today’s Gospel: ‘Anyone who finds his life will lose it; anyone who loses his life for my sake will find it’ (Mt 10:39). This is the heart of the paschal mystery in which we are all called to participate. As St Paul reminds us in our second reading today, ‘When we were baptised in Christ Jesus, we joined him in death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the Father’s glory, we too might live a new life’ (Rom 6:3-4). We may not all be called to be martyrs, but we are all called to die to self, if we wish to follow Christ and share in his new life. The spirituality of ‘cheap grace, grace without the cross’, much in vogue today, is an illusion.  

Some time ago, I was listening to a BBC programme on old age and heard an Asian woman of 82 responding to the question: what were the most important ingredients for a happy life? Two things she said struck me: ‘Let go of being needful of the approval of others’  and ‘Don’t be afraid of death. If you’re afraid of death you will never live.’  Fear of death, fear of the cost of discipleship can paralyse us and prevent us experiencing the life of loving self-surrender to which Christ calls us. The struggle to overcome that fear begins the very moment we decide to commit our lives to Jesus Christ and to let him be our Master. There may be ties that bind us and that we need to break – things we  normally consider good, such as family ties: ‘Anyone who prefers father or  mother to me is not worthy of me’ (Mt 10:37). Even these ties may sometimes stifle our freedom to be fully committed to Christ.

The effort to let go of the ties that bind us and to give ourselves totally to the Lord is a life-long process which brings growth and freedom and life, but not without a daily struggle. However, God’s Spirit will be there for us always – supplying guidance and strength. In following Jesus we are set free; in dying to self we are reborn; and, if we persevere in the struggle, we can rest assured that we will be channels of Christ’s ‘costly’ life-giving grace to others, not purveyors of ‘cheap grace’. I will end with a short poem on discipleship by  Steve Page, entitled Counting the Cost.

Have I loved enough,
Have I denied myself?
Have I ducked the responsibility
That comes with so much grace?
Is mine a cost worth counting?
Is mine a cross worth lifting?
Have I reduced my discipleship
To a too comfortable pace?

Lord, I’m tired of this highway
With its crowded lanes and tolls to pay.

Let me live your love without speed limits
Along your narrow way

 May the good Lord continually grant us the grace to remain true and faithful missionary-disciples so as not to lose focus of Him nor prize our self-interest above our Christian calling. Amen

Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily  for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

The I64th Anniversary of the Death of the SMA Founder – 25th June 2023

Venerable Melchior de Marion Brésillac, SMA Founder

The 25th of June 2023 is the 164th Anniversary of the death of the SMA Founder, the Venerable Melchior de Marion Brésillac. 

We are thankful for his life and work and pray that God’s blessing and protection may be with SMA Missionaries working in countries all around the world.  May they continue to be inspired by his life example, self sacrifice and dedication to spreading the Gospel message.   

We invite you to view information and resources about the Founder on this website – To so click here. 

A short video about the life of Melchior de Marion Brésillac can be viewed here.     

CLICK HERE TO PLAY 

Gold and Silver Jubilees of SMA’s Celebrated in Tanzania

Fr Michael McKee has spent 20 years working in Argentina and 30 in Tanzania - Congratulations

At the end of April 2023, one Golden and three Silver Jubilees were celebrated at the SMA District House in Mwanza, Tanzania,  The event began with Mass led by Fr Michael McKee, the Golden Jubilarian and concelebrated by Silver Jubilarians, Frs  Janusz Machota, Arkadiusz Nowak and Marik Krysa.  Collectively these four missionaries have dedicated 125 years of their lives to missionary work.

The occasion was attended by SMAs, OLAs, Loretto Sisters and others who work in collaboration with the SMA.

Below is a short video in which Fr John Kilcoyne SMA, the District Leader of the Tanzanian Unit, introduces the event.  After this each of the Jubilarians give us their reactions on reaching these milestones in their lives and ministry as missionary priests.  

Homily for the 12th Sunday of Ordinary Time

Readings: Jeremiah 20:10-13; Romans 5:12-15; Matthew 10:26-33

Noli Timere’ (Do not be afraid) were the last words of the poet, Seamus Heaney, to his wife, Marie, before he died, ten years ago. They are the most frequent words spoken by Jesus to his disciples, and, in today’s gospel reading from Matthew, they occur three times.  But we need to pay attention to the text and the context to understand his words properly.   

Jesus is not giving his disciples the false assurance that they have nothing to afraid of. In last Sunday’s gospel, we heard how Jesus selected twelve of his disciples to collaborate with him in his revolutionary mission. He told them that he was sending them out ‘as sheep in the midst of wolves’ (Mt 10:16). Hence, they must be prepared to meet with opposition and persecution: ‘You will be dragged before governors and kings because… and you will be hated by all because of my name’ (Mt 10: 18,22).  So the disciples of Jesus had genuine reasons to be fearful. Indeed, it would be superhuman of them not to be afraid. What Jesus is saying to them, as he is saying to us today, is they must not be overcome or paralysed by fear, but continue to carry out the mission he has entrusted to them, trusting in the power of the Spirit to sustain them.

Our first reading sets before us the example of the prophet Jeremiah. A timid and sensitive youth, afraid to speak, Jeremiah was nevertheless chosen by the Lord to be ‘a prophet to the nations’ (Jer 1:5). It was only with reluctance that he accepted this mission. Fidelity to his prophetic vocation cost him dearly. It pitted him against the whole nation of Judah from the king, princes and priests down to the people in the streets of the Jerusalem. Indeed, Jeremiah was constantly derided, opposed and physically threatened, as the first words of our reading make clear. There were times when he was sorely afraid and tempted to give up being a prophet. However, he not succumb to his fears. He remained faithful to his difficult calling to the end of his life. And the foundation for this fidelity was his trust in the Lord’s promise to be with him always:  ‘The Lord is with me, like a mighty champion: my persecutors will stumble, they will not triumph’ (Jer 20: 10).  

Like Jeremiah, those called to continue the mission of Jesus must be prepared to meet with opposition, rejection and persecution. They cannot expect to be treated differently from their master (cf. Mt 10:24). Indeed. the absence of persecution may be a sign that the Church has diluted the gospel to suit the spirit of the times. The message and mission of Jesus were radical, indeed revolutionary. His words and actions represented a complete reversal of the value system that marked the society of his time. He was perceived as a threat to the powerful political and religious elites of his day. No wonder he opposed, tortured and crucified!

Down through the centuries, all true disciples of Jesus, those who continue to promote his vision of a world ruled by the love of God (the Kingdom of God),  have always met with opposition from those who benefit from the unjust status quo. In recent decades, violent persecution of Christians has been on rise  According to Pope Francis, conditions for Christians are worse now than they were in the days of the early Church. At the present time, 360 million Christians live in nations with high levels of persecution or discrimination. According to the 2023 World Watch List (WWL), nearly 6,000 Christians were killed for their faith last year; and more than 2,000 churches were attacked or closed. Sadly, sub-Saharan Africa, the epicentre of global Christianity,  is now also the epicentre of violence against Christians, as Islamist extremism continues to spread well beyond Nigeria. It takes a lot of courage to live as fully committed Christians in such situations.

Thankfully, in most countries of the world, Christians are not in danger of being  killed or driven from their homes. But they often are subjected to more subtle forms of opposition and persecution. Many western countries allow their citizens to believe what they want, but impose laws which render ineffective their capacity to influence public life, morals, or policy. In some countries, the name of Christ cannot be mentioned in public prayer, and the crucifix cannot be placed on the walls of public institutions. Such regulations constitute a form of discrimination and harassment that relegates Christianity to the private sphere, and keeps Christian influence from the public forum – perhaps in hope that it will eventually fade away.

In face of such opposition and persecution, Jesus urges his disciples not to allow their genuine fears to cripple them, but to continue to proclaim the truth of the gospel and to witness to him publicly. He assures them that the truth that the powerful elites try to cover up will eventually be revealed: ‘Nothing is covered up that will not be uncovered, and nothing secret that will not become known’ (Mt 10:26). He reassures them of the Father’s love and care for them: ‘Even the hairs of your head are all counted’ (Mt 10:30). And he ends by making them this awesome promise: ‘Everyone therefore who acknowledges me before other, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven’ (Mt 10:32). So we pray: Lord, grant us the courage to stake our lives on the truth of your blessed word. Amen.

Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily  for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

Homily for the 11th Sunday of Ordinary Time Year A

Readings:  Exodus 19:2-6; Romans 5:6-11; Matthew 9:36-10:8

Theme: The Compassion of Jesus

God’s tender love and compassion for his creatures is the dominant theme of our Mass readings today. In our first reading from the book of Exodus, God’s loving care for the people of Israel is conveyed in a beautiful image: ‘I bore you up on eagle’s wings and brought you to myself’ (Ex 19:4). The appropriateness of this image came home to me recently, as I was strolling along by the Atlantic pond near our house in Cork, and noticed a mother swan carrying her baby swans on her back. I was immediately captivated by the sight, as were several other people who were walking nearby.  This is surely a touching expression of motherly love and care for her fluffy little bundles of joy.  Later, I was informed that, while eagles do not carry their young on their back, as swans do, when the young eaglets are learning to fly, the mother eagle flies under them with her wings spread out to catch them in case they fall.  

When the Israelites became discouraged as they wandered through the  wilderness of Sinai, following their miraculous escape from Egypt, they needed to be reminded that God, who had intervened to facilitate their escape, would never desert them, but would accompany them always and make his people, ‘a kingdom of priests, a consecrated nation’ (Ex 19:6). We, too, need to hear those same words of encouragement, especially when we feel overwhelmed by the burdens of life.

In our second reading, St Paul underlines the unconditional quality of God’s loving care for us. God’s love, says Paul, is not like that of people who only love those who deserve it, and who might be prepared to give their lives for those they consider worthy of such a gesture. Just how different, and infinitely greater, is the love of God is shown by the fact that he sent his Son to die for us while we were still sinners (cf. Rom 5:8). Paul encourages us not to let ourselves become slaves to our fears and doubts, but to be filled with ‘joyful trust in God’ (Rom 5:11). Just imagine, he says, that if God loved us when we were estranged from him, how much more will he love us now that we have been made citizens of his Kingdom? Our weaknesses and sins can never be stronger than his love.  While we may be tempted to give up on him, he will never abandon us.

Our gospel reading from Matthew, gives us a lovely picture of the compassion of Jesus for the people he encountered in his ministry. The English expression ‘he felt sorry for them’ (Mt 9:36) does not even come close does to capturing the depth of his feeling for the pain and suffering of the poor and oppressed people  whose lives he wanted to transform.  Far from observing the pitiable conditions of the people – ‘harassed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd’ (Mt 9:36) – with detachment or disinterest, he was moved from the depth of his heart to respond to their plight. He knows that the political leaders and the religious authorities of his time have no real concern for them.  Their focus is on maintaining their privileged positions and feathering their own nests, while neglecting the hungry, the sick, and the oppressed of the land.  Jesus, in contrast, identifies with his people’s sufferings. His compassion leads him, not only to embark on a personal ministry of healing and hope, but also to choose and select a twelve of his disciples to collaborate with him in this mission

The mission on which Jesus sends his twelve chosen disciples, is clearly an extension of his own ministry: ‘Go and proclaim the message: The kingdom of heaven is near. Heal the sick, bring the dead back to life, cleanse the lepers, and drive out demons’ (Mt7-8). The demons and illnesses symbolise all that is opposed to human life—physical, mental, spiritual (Mt 9:35). The authority that Jesus confers on the twelve is an authority, not over people, but over evil. It is the liberating power of his word, which can overcome evil and create a new world. As disciples of Jesus, we, too, are called and sent to continue his mission of healing and hope in the world of our time.

The gospel reading concludes with the directive of Jesus to his apostles: ‘You received without charge, give without charge’ (Mt 10:8).  Those commissioned by Jesus do not work for personal benefit. They do not seek to become famous    or revered, and especially not to enrich themselves. They are happy to be instruments in the service of their Lord and Master, and to strive to live by the words of a popular contemporary hymn: ‘Freely, freely you have received; freely, freely give. Go in my name, and because you believe others will know that I live.’

I conclude with a thoughtful reflection on compassion from the pen of Flor McCarthy, SDB.

‘The person in misery does not need
a look that judges and criticises,
but a comforting presence.
Jesus looked at the ordinary people,
and seeing how needy they were,
he had compassion on them
and began to minister to them.
Compassion means that I suffer with you;
I accept into my heart the misery in yours;
I become one with you in your pain.
I may not be able to relieve that pain,
but by understanding it and sharing it,
I make it possible for you to bear it.
Lord give us warm and generous hearts
so that we may be agents of your compassion to others.’

 Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily  for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

JUNE 2023| For a non-violent culture

“Let us put a stop to this horror of torture!”: Pope Francis’s strong appeal to the international community 

  • The new video contains a powerful call for the abolition of torture: “It is essential to put the dignity of the person above all else,”
  • The Pope condemns not only the most violent forms of torture, but also those that are “more sophisticated, such as degrading someone, dulling the senses, or mass detentions in inhumane conditions.”
  • Horrified that it is currently still practiced, the Pope calls on the international community to “commit itself concretely to abolish torture, guaranteeing support to victims and their families.”

TEXT OF THE POPE’S MESSAGE
Torture. Oh my God – torture!
Torture is not past history. Unfortunately, it’s part of our history today.
How is it possible that the human capacity for cruelty is so huge?
There are extremely violent forms of torture. Others are more sophisticated, such as degrading someone, dulling the senses, or mass detentions in conditions so inhumane that they take away the dignity of the person.
But this is not something new. Let’s think of how Jesus himself was tortured and crucified.
Let us put a stop to this horror of torture. It is essential to put the dignity of the person above all else.
Otherwise, the victims are not persons, they are “things,” and can be mistreated mercilessly, causing death or permanent psychological and physical harm lasting a lifetime.
Let us pray that the international community commit itself concretely to abolish torture, guaranteeing support to victims and their families.

Pope Francis – June 2023

Homily for the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi)

Readings: Deuteronomy 8:2-3.14b-16a; 1 Corinthians 10:16-17; John 6:51-58

 Theme: Keeping Alive the Blessed Memory of Jesus

 In his book, Why Go To Church?, Timothy Radcliffe, O.P., tells a story that illustrates importance of the Eucharist. In the year 304 AD [at a time when Christians were being persecuted for their faith], a number of Christians were arrested in North Africa for gathering together in a house of a Roman Official to celebrate the Eucharist. When the Roman Pro-consul of the area asked the Official why he had allowed these people into his house, he replied that these people were his brothers and sisters. So he could not refuse them. And he added these striking words: ‘Without the Day of the Lord we cannot live’.

Celebrating the Eucharist was what gave meaning to the lives of the early Christians. They would risk imprisonment, or even death, rather than try to live their lives without the Eucharist. This has been true for many Christian communities down through the centuries. During the time of the Penal Laws in Ireland [the 17th to the early 18th centuries], the celebration of the Eucharist was forbidden. This did not stop many of Catholics from celebrating Mass in secret. Mass rocks were erected and used as altars, and Catholics would congregate at these sites despite the danger of being caught.

During his life on earth, Jesus’ favourite way of expressing his love for, and his desire to be one with people, especially for those who were rejected and unloved, was to share meals with them. Shared meals were, for the Jews, signs of acceptance and friendship. Like many of us, the Jews were rather selective about those with whom they shared meals. In seeking out sinners and tax collectors, Jesus was contravening their traditions. Most Jews invited only friends or powerful people to their meals.  In eating with sinners, Jesus was making friends with those who had no friends. He was showing them respect and love. He was drawing them into the family of God. He was letting them see themselves in a new light and become a new people. Instead of a people with no hope, no future, they were God’s beloved children and citizens of his Kingdom. Something they had never imagined had happened. The Kingdom of God was for them, too.

It should come as no surprise to us that Jesus’ last act before his death on the Cross was to share a meal with his disciples – his Last Supper. In the course of this meal he takes bread and wine, blesses them and gives them to his disciples saying: ‘Take and eat, this is my body; Take and drink, this is my blood. Do this in memory of me.’  Jesus commands his disciples to keep his memory alive by gathering together to break and share bread. And this is what we do every time we celebrate the Eucharist.

Jesus’  last meal with his disciples is inseparable from the sacrifice of his life on the Cross, his supreme act of love. Love is manifested supremely in self-sacrifice. ‘Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends’ (Jn 15:13). In celebrating the Eucharist we celebrate what the great German theologian, Johann Metz, called ‘the dangerous memory’ of Jesus – the memory of his suffering passion and death. It is also a blessed and joyful memory. We recall the values by which Jesus lived, and for which he died, and we commit ourselves to live by those same values: his passion for a world re-fashioned in the image of a loving God; his compassion for the poor and outcast; his mercy for, and forgiveness of, sinners; his hatred of hypocrisy; his abhorrence of violence and his commitment to peace.

In receiving the body and blood of Christ in the Eucharist, we become one, not only with Jesus, but with one another. As St Paul reminds us in our Second Reading today: ‘Though we are many, we form a single body because we share in this one loaf’ (1 Cor 10:17). This recognition of the oneness of all who partake of the Body and Blood of Christ is expressed in several ways throughout the Mass: the common acknowledgement that we are sinners; the common responses; the songs of praise; the Gloria; the Creed;  the Acclamation of Faith; the Great Amen; and the kiss of Peace [unfortunately in abeyance since the outbreak of the Covid pandemic]. When St Augustine preached to his assembled congregation on the meaning of the Eucharist, he told them:  ‘See what you are and become what you see: the Body of Christ… You are saying “Amen” to what you are: your response is a personal signature, affirming your faith. … Be a member of Christ’s body, then, so that your “Amen” may ring true!’

 Every Eucharist ends with a sending on Mission: ‘Go in Peace to love and serve the Lord’.  We are commissioned to bring the message of the Eucharist to the world. Just as the Jesus has become our Food, giving himself completely to us, so we, too, must give ourselves for the sake of the world.  Our celebration of the this great feast of Corpus Christi reminds us of our constant challenge: to keep alive the blessed memory of Jesus by becoming, in the context of our time, his flesh and blood given for the life of the world. So we pray: ‘Lord, we thank you for the gift of your Body and Blood through which we are nourished and strengthened to share your love with our brothers and sisters. Amen.

 Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily  for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

Dromantine Sunday – SMA Open Day – Family Fun Day 2023

dromantine ffd 2012 4

The Dromantine Sunday – Open Day and Family Fun Day takes place in  Dromantine this Sunday, from 1pm to 5.30pm.

There are all sorts of fun activities (Bouncy Castles, Obstacle Courses, Vintage Tractors, Beat the Goalie, a variety of Stalls and much more) lined up for all the family to guarantee an enjoyable afternoon at SMA Dromantine.

As well as the many activities to enjoy and the opportunity to relax and treat yourself at the Food Village, there will be renowned Country & Western singers to entertain you.

At 5pm we will draw the tickets for the Grand Raffle and hear who the winners will be this year. Tickets are available on the day or you contact the office on the number below and we can post some out to you.

At 5.30pm, Sunday Mass will be celebrated in the SMA Chapel for those who wish to close the day with prayer.

Dromantine Sunday and Family Fun Day could not happen without the goodness and generosity of so many people, from the local community around Dromantine and supporters from further afield. The SMA Community Dromantine are so grateful to all of you for your wonderful support.

Dromantine Sunday is our fund-raising event for the upkeep of our House and grounds so we really appreciate you coming to join us this Sunday.

We are situated 5 minutess north of Newry, just off the Belfast to Dublin A1 dual carriageway.

There is a £5.00 admission for each car (it doesn’t matter how many are in the car).

You can check out our website: www.dromantineconference.com

Tel: 028 30821964 for more information.

EVERYONE WELCOME

SMA International News – June 2023

Welcome to the June edition of the International News.  This month we have stories from Spain, Lyon, France and from Rome, Italy.

First we go to Spain where SMA confreres and friends of SMA organized a pilgrimage to Italy. This pilgrimage falls under the program called “Return to the Source” – an annual pilgrimage Programme to SMA sites organized by the Province of Spain.

Next from Lyon we hear about how, when on their way to their ad limina meeting in Rome, the Bishops of Papua New Guinea and Solomon islands decided to visit a missionary parish in France. And the location chosen was the SMA parish of St Josephine Bakhita in Lyon.  

From Rome we have a report on a gathering of  the founding congregations of the Inter-Congregational Ongoing Formation (ICOF) Program met on Monday May, 29th , at the SMA Generalate for a time of conviviality and sharing.

Finally, the bulletin end with some information about the forthcoming SMA Plenary Council taking place in Lyon in mid June. 

 

Homily on the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity 2023

Readings: Exodus 34:4-6, 8-9; 2 Corinthians 13:11-13; John 3:16-18

Theme:    ‘God of tenderness and compassion ‘ (Ex 34:6)

Many of you, I’m sure, remember the popular song, ‘From a Distance’. Composed by Julie Gold in 1985, it became a major hit for Bette Middler. It’s a beautiful hope-filled anthem, envisioning a world of justice, peace and harmony, as seen through God’s eyes, from a distance. The refrain goes like this: God is watching us; God is watching us; God is watching us, from a distance’.  Julie Gold’s lyrics remind me of a story I came across some years ago about a young boy who was intrigued by a colourful mural in the home of his aunt. It featured the biblical text: ‘You are the God who sees me’ (Gen: 16:13). Noticing her young nephew’s interest in the mural, the kindly aunt decided to explain the words to him. ‘Some people will tell you’, she said, ‘that God is always watching you to see if you are doing wrong. But this is not what the words mean. God is not watching you to catch you out, but because he loves you so much that he cannot take his eyes off you’.

Today’s gospel passage from John carries the same message. It presents a conversation between a Pharisee, and leading member of the Jewish Ruling Council, named Nicodemus, and Jesus. Impressed by the reports he has heard about Jesus, but fearful of reaction of his fellow-Pharisees, Nicodemus approaches Jesus under cover of darkness. In response to Nicodemus’ questions, Jesus makes the astounding declaration:  ‘God loved the world so much that he  sent his only Son … not to condemn the world but so that through him the world might be saved’ (Jn 3:16-17). 

This is the heart of the Gospel – the good news of God’s unconditional love for the world. We are not, to cite a frightful image used by Gloucester in King Lear.as flies to wanton boys [who] kill us for their sport’.  We are not creatures of a cruel and capricious deity, but children of a God of unimaginable love and tenderness.  The same truth is also affirmed in today’s first reading from the book of Exodus. Speaking with God ,Moses, is assured, that however unfaithful and headstrong the chosen people have shown themselves to be, God remains the God of faithful love, ‘a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love  faithfulness(Ex 34:6).

Today, Trinity Sunday, we are celebrating, not a mathematical conundrum, but the mystery of God’s unfathomable love. The God who dwells in inaccessible light and eternal glory comes to us in the face of Jesus and the activity of the Holy Spirit. The lyrics of Julie Gold’s song, to which I referred at the beginning of his homily, might seem to suggest that God is watching us from afar, from a distance. However the God revealed in the Bible is not some remote and distant deity, but a God who is close to us and involved with us.

The God revealed especially in the life and ministry of his Son, Jesus, is a loving Father who is interested in, and cares for, all creatures from the smallest to the greatest, a passionate and compassionate God, capable of being deeply moved by the sufferings of his creatures. In the words of Pope Francis, the Scriptures reveal a ‘God of Love who created the universe and generated a people, became flesh, died and rose for us, and, as the Holy Spirit, transforms everything and brings it to fullness’. This is the God who is Father, Son and Spirit.   

The Trinity is not just a dogma to be accepted in faith, or a formula to be recited in our liturgy. It is the generative and dynamic core of our Christian way of life.  It is ultimately about what it means to be human persons created in the image of the God of Love. To be human means to be like the God who created us, the God in whom all creatures live and move and have their being, and who are intimately connected with one another. It means to live in relationships of love and respect, nor only for our fellow humans, but for all God’s creatures with whom we share the gift of life.

Our liturgy today invites each of us to acknowledge and deepen our participation in the Trinitarian communion of Father, Son and Spirit through our loving communion with one another and, indeed, with all creation.  I can think of no better way of responding to this invitation than by reciting and reflecting on the great Trinitarian prayer of St Patrick, mindful that God loves us so much he cannot take his eyes off us.  I end with a few verses of Patrick’s Breastplate or Lorica.

I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through a belief in the Threeness,
Through confession of the Oneness
Of the Creator of creation….

I arise today
Through God’s strength to pilot me;
God’s might to uphold me,
God’s wisdom to guide me,
God’s eye to look before me,
God’s ear to hear me,
God’s word to speak for me,
God’s hand to guard me,
God’s way to lie before me,
God’s shield to protect me,
God’s hosts to save me…

 Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,
Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ on my right, Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down,
Christ in the heart of everyone who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
Christ in the eye that sees me,
Christ in the ear that hears me.

 Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily  for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

SMA GHANA – A Glance at the Pastoral Dimension of Our Life and Formation

After the resurrection, Christ commissioned his disciples in these words: “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely, I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Mt28:19-20) In the same ways, the founder of SMA, commissioned his fellows to continue spreading the Good News especially to the pagans.

At the SMA Formation House, Sowutuom, Ghana  the students, in addition to studies also engage in pastoral work as a way to witness to the Gospel.  They undertake activities such as pastoral visitation. In this, seminarians are sent to the hospitals where they pray with and for the sick, imploring God’s healing and blessings upon them. The students also benefit from this experience and learn by listening to the sick and, if needed, give advice when they can. This kind of involvement and work was very much at the heart of the SMA Founder, Melchior de Marion Brésillac’s mission. His advice was to  “seize every opportunity to preach the word of God”.

Another opportunity welcomed by our seminarians is going out to teach catechism in nearby parishes. As the Bible says, , Ephesians 2:10  Through this  work we help and guide people to know more about their faith, thus to bringing them closer to God and encouraging, especially the youth to give their life to Christ.  Seminarians also visit the elderly priests’ home at the SVD community.  This mission of presence is meant both to assure elderly priests that they are not forgotten and give the seminarians and opportunity to learn from the rich experience of these missionaries.  There is always joy and happiness experienced in this apostolate.

We also visit residents at “Hope for Life Centre”, a home for the disabled, located at the outskirts of Accra, a project started and run by the SMA.  This work allows our seminarians to carry on the mission of Christ who cared for the sick, the abandoned, the orphans and those in need of our help – “I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, in prison and you came to visit me”. Matthew 25:35-37)  

 In addition to this pastoral outreach the SMA Seminary Formation House at Sowutuom also seeks to engage with the local community by offering pastoral services, such as catechetical lessons liturgy and sacraments. Events such as talks and prayerful reflections are also ways used to engage with the local community and to spread the Gospel of Christ. The laity are welcomed to participation in the spiritual activities and life of the SMA formation community, its Masses, Adoration, Benediction, Vespers, Rosary, and other devotions.  The Seminarians also visit some families and they, in turn, are invited to social events such as picnics with our community.  All of these activities help in forming our student priests and in forming one Christian family. A Facebook page has also been created by the SMA Seminary Formation House, a way of spreading the Good News and of posting information about the important activities taking place. This is a modern way of motivating young people to her the Gospel message and perhaps even for some to join the SMA congregation.

Our thanks to Martoger Pouwerou Katanga (Seminarian) and Rev. Fr. Jonathan Malong, SMA (Rector) for the information and photographs in this article

 

 

 

 

 

Papal Award for Margret O’Regan of Blackrock Parish

During  Mass at the SMA Church in Blackrock Road on Sunday 21st of May, Margaret O’Regan, a parishioner and volunteer, was presented with the  Benemerenti medal  by Fr Malachy Flanagan, Provincial Superior of the Society of African Missions accompanied  by Fr Jerome Anoumou-Sassou, parish Curate.  This award is granted by Pope Francis as recognition for exceptional work on behalf of the Church. 

Margret O’Regan wearing the Bene Merente Medal

During his homily Fr Malachy spoke of the need for Christians to witness to their faith and noted that this ties in with the presentation of the Benemerente Medal in recognition of more than thirty years of service to the Church.  He said;

“We are honouring Margaret O’Regan for her commitment, her witness and service to the church in this parish since 1992.”  

During this time, she contributed to and helped in organising he life of the Parish in many ways through her involvement in activities such as, the Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, distribution of Holy Communion as a Minister of the Eucharist, the Church cleaning rota, bringing neighbours to Mass and helping in the Sacristy.  One Parishoner said:  “She could not say no to anything that involved the Church, she would always find a way. Margaret is a very reliable, loyal and helpful good friend to all of us.”  

After the presentation Margaret thanked all in Blackrock Rd, priests, sacristans and staff who have helped her over the years and especially in recent times, for the assistance given to bring her to the church and to go home.

“I would do it all over again if I was able and I hope there will be plenty of volunteers come to keep the Church well.” 

Congratulations on receiving this well- merited award. 

 

 

Homily for the Solemnity of Pentecost Sunday, Year A

Readings: Acts 2:1-11; 1 Corinthians 12:3-7, 12-13; John 20:19-23

Theme: ‘Receive the Holy Spirit’ (Jn 20:22)

Today, Pentecost Sunday, we come to the climax of our Easter celebrations. It is often referred to as the birthday of the Church. It is certainly the birthday of the Church’s mission, the birthday of the Church as a Spirit-filled community sent into the world to witness to Christ and his gospel of love and forgiveness. The readings today remind us of three important truths about the Church and its mission: first, that the Church is essentially missionary; second, that the Holy Spirit is the principal agent of Mission; and third, that the goal of mission is to create a unity that embraces diversity. A few brief words on each of these points.

The Church is, as The Second Vatican tells, “missionary by its very nature” (AG, no. 9). All its members, all who are baptised in the Spirit are consecrated as missionary disciples of Jesus and called to take responsibility for the evangelisation of the world. A Church that turns in on itself and stops being missionary is no longer the Church of Christ but simply a sodality, a group of like-minded people who simply enjoy each other’s company. Pope Francis, in his first Apostolic Exhortation, The Joy of the Gospel, urges the Church to be true to its missionary calling. He wants the church to reach out towards those on the margins, and bring healing and hope to the wounded of this world. He states: “I prefer a Church which is bruised, hurting and dirty because it has been out on the streets, rather than a Church which is unhealthy from being confined and from clinging to its own security” (EG 49). We need, he insists, a church ‘that knows how to open her arms and welcome everyone’.

The second truth that our readings bring out is that the Holy Spirit is the principal agent of the Church’s mission.  Corrie ten Boom, the well-know Dutch writer, who helped many Jews escape the Nazi Holocaust during World War II, uses the striking image of the hand in the glove to convey this truth. She says: ‘I have a glove here in my hand. The glove cannot do anything by itself, but when my hand is in it, it can do many things. True, it is not the glove, but my had in the glove that acts. We are gloves. It is the Holy Spirit in us which is the hand, who does the job. We have to make rood for the hand so that every finger is filled. The question on Pentecost is not whether God is blessing our own plans and programmes  but whether we are open to the great opportunities to which his Spirit is calling us.’  

Catholics have been accused of sometimes paying mere token respect to the role of the Holy Spirit in the Church. So we should ask ourselves: Do we put more trust in our resources and our expertise than in the action of God’s Spirit in our lives and in the lives of those among whom we work?  Do we leave enough room in our various ministries for the Spirit, the ‘God of surprises’, the God who chooses the weak to confound the strong, the God whose light invariably enters through the cracks in our lives rather than through our successes and achievements?   

Finally, the goal of Mission is to create a unity that respects diversity. Pentecost reverses the confusion of Babel (cf. Gen. 11: 1-9) On the day of Pentecost, as the first reading tells us, people of different linguistic and cultural backgrounds (Persians, Asians, Romans, Egyptians, Libyans, Cretans and Arabs) came together for this major Jewish feast but were unable to communicate with one another. However, through the gift of the Sprit, they were all able to understand the message of the apostles. ‘Surely, they said, all these men speaking are Galileans? How does it happen that each of us hears them in his own language?’ (Acts 2:7-8). The miracle of Pentecost was a miracle of mutual understanding, a restoration of the unity that humanity lost at Babel.

Today we might ask what gift of the Spirit, what language do we need so that everybody can understand no matter what their ethnic or linguistic background?  Yes, there is such a gift, such a language. It is the language of Love.  This is a language that all people understand. For example, everybody understands when you smile. Love is the language of the Spirit. In the words of Teilhard de Chardin, ‘Love is the only force that can make things one without destroying them’. It the only language capable of creating a unity that respects diversity – the kind of unity our divided Church and broken world sorely needs.

I will end with a lovely poem from the pen of Macolm Guite that, for me, captures the meaning of Pentecost.

 Today we feel the wind beneath our wings
Today the hidden fountain flows and plays
Today the church draws breath at last and sings
As every flame becomes a Tongue of praise.
This is the feast of fire, air, and water
Poured out and breathed and kindled into earth.
The earth herself awakens to her maker
And is translated out of death to birth.

The right words come today in their right order
And every word spells freedom and release
Today the gospel crosses every border
All tongues are loosened by the Prince of Peace

Today the lost are found in His translation.
Whose mother-tongue is Love, in every nation.

Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily  for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

Protecting Biodiversity – COP15

COP15, UN Biodiversity, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

This is the second article to mark Laudato Si Week 2023, which this year has the theme of “Hope for the Earth, Hope for Humanity.  Our ability to promote and protect Biodiversity is a not only a great source of hope for the earth – but also for humanity which is part of and not separate from Biodiversity. 


Background:
The 15th Meeting of the Conference of Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity, known as COP15, was originally scheduled for 2020 and set to take place in Kunming, China. But Covid-19 intervened resulting in its postponement and the transferring of the Conference to Canada in 2022.  The targets agreed at previous Biodiversity Conferences have not been met, largely due to a lack of funding and political will. Therefore, at COP15 there was pressure to put in place the financial and political support needed to achieve progress. 

COP15 closed, with the adoption of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. 196 nations agreed long-term goals and action-oriented targets to be delivered by 2030 and 2050. This agreement has been hailed as nature’s Paris Agreement and commits nations to actions to protect and restore nature and remove pollution. (See: https://environment.ec.europa.eu/topics/nature-and-biodiversity/eu-cop15-global-biodiversity-conference_en


Outcomes:
 The Kunming-Montreal biodiversity agreement includes key global targets to:

  • Restore 30% of degraded ecosystems globally (on land and sea) by 2030. Currently only 17 percent and 10 percent of the world’s terrestrial and marine areas respectively are under protection.
  • Conserve and manage 30% of terrestrial and marine areas by 2030
  • Stop the extinction of known species, and reduce tenfold the extinction risk and rate of all species by 2050.
  • Reduce risk from pesticides by at least 50% by 2030.
  • Reduce pollution risks and negative impacts of pollution from all sources by 2030 to levels that are not harmful to biodiversity and ecosystems.
  • Sustainably manage areas under agriculture, aquaculture, fisheries, and forestry and substantially increase agroecology and other biodiversity-friendly practices.
  • Tackle climate change through nature-based solutions.
  • Secure the safe, legal and sustainable use and trade of wild species by 2030.
  • Increase benefit sharing from the use of genetic resources to support biodiversity conservation and its sustainable use.
  • The deal will also significantly increase finance for biodiversity from all sources (domestic, international – both public and private) mobilising at least $200 billion (USD) per year by 2030. It also addresses subsidies harmful to biodiversity.
  • The Framework requires governments to ensure that large and transnational companies disclose their risks, dependencies and impacts on biodiversity.

The Framework agreed at the end of COP15 is an ambitious final agreement. It triples the commitments to conservation made at COP10 in Japan in 2010 and is the largest commitment to ocean and land conservation in history.  It has also clearly identified many other needed and action-oriented targets that the parties have agreed to deliver by 2030 or 2050.

But: The Framework is not legally binding and there has been criticism of its failure to establish quantifiable targets, timelines for monitoring actions and for its “weak” and future-oriented language. In short COP15, while making significant progress in terms of gaining political backing, identifying both a pathway to progress and the financial resources needed to support it, is still a voluntary agreement. It is short on concrete steps that nail down exactly the when, how and who of implementing its recommendations. 

Next steps: Before COP16 in 2024, all countries party to the agreement are required to prepare updated National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans and National Biodiversity Finance Strategies. In parallel to policy action, countries and multilateral financial institutions are also expected to work to mobilise financing.

There is a long way to go, and the history of the meetings of the COP to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity is marked with failures of implementation. At the end of COP15 Virginijus Sinkevičius, the EU Commissioner for the Environment, Oceans and Fisheries said:  
Today’s deal is an all-round win and I am proud we made it. The real work starts now to turn the words on paper into real action around the world.” 

The effectiveness of future meetings of the Biodiversity COP in leading to real actions required to protect biodiversity remains to be seen. Therefore, future COP meetings will need to assess if the cumulative impact of national actions is sufficient to reach the global goals and targets for 2030 and 2050. In addition, no time should be lost in establishing and agreeing firm time-linked steps and mechanisms that will guide the implementation of the Framework agreed in 2022.

Caring for Our Common Home – Laudato Si’ Week 2023

To mark the eighth anniversary of the publication of the encyclical “Laudato Si’ – On Care for Our Common Home” this week (on 24 May), we look briefly at the current state of the world’s efforts to deal with the Climate Change and Biodiversity crises facing our world. In particular, we look back at the two Conference of Parties Meetings that took place in 2022 – COP27 on Climate Change and COP15 on Biodiversity and ask what happened and what needs to happen in order to make real progress in protecting our Common Home.

This article focusing on the Convention on Climate Change, is the first of two articles that will be published this week, the next will look at the Biodiversity Convention. 

Background: Many observers, climate activists and even governments’ experience the meetings of the Conference of Parties (COP) has been one of frustration and delays. Unfortunately, time and again these meetings see powerful nations jealously protect their interests at the expense of poorer countries and the wellbeing of the planet. It had seemed that the Paris Agreement signed at COP21 in 2015 was a breakthrough moment of common purpose to reduce carbon emissions. However, since then, it has been business as usual: necessary actions have been kicked down the road or not implemented at all. (e.g. the Climate Adaptation Fund)

COP27–What Happened: Given the global situation in 2022, marked by extreme and damaging weather events and the outbreak of war in Ukraine, it was hoped, after many years of procrastination, that COP27 would at last make effective decisions to deal with climate change. This did not happen; instead negotiations were gridlocked, the meeting was extended for two days and there were last minute changes and objections that watered down the final agreed text to emerge from the meeting.

COP27 failed in a number of ways:

  • It missed the opportunity to establish more ambitious carbon emission reduction targets, making staying within the 1.5 °C threshold all but impossible.
  • Attempts to agree a “phasing down” of oil production were scuppered by objections from Saudi Arabia, Russia, Nigeria and developing countries who wished to benefit from their as yet untapped resources. As a result, there is no commitment to phasing out or even phasing down fossil fuels.
  • Finally, a surprise reference to “low-emission technologies” in relation to natural gas caused fears that this could be used as a loophole to justify further gas extraction by portraying it as a “greener” fuel than coal.

A Positive Note: At COP27, governments did successfully reach an agreement on a Loss and Damage Fund – undoubtedly the most positive result of COP27. This new fund will, when operational, provide vulnerable countries with compensation for the destructive impacts of climate change. It will compensate poor countries that suffer from extreme weather events such as droughts, floods and heat waves that have been made worse by the carbon emissions of rich countries. This is, without doubt, a positive result – but the Fund does not exist yet. Who will contribute, how much and when has not been decided. Decisions regarding how, and under what criteria, funds will be disbursed have yet to be made. Hopefully these issues will be addressed at this year’s COP28 in Dubai, but this is by no means assured! The developed world still has not kept its 2009 pledge to establish a Fund that would provide 100 billion euros a year to help poor nations to develop green energy and adapt to warming.

Outcomes of COP27:  Speaking after the meeting, Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission, said that the final agreement had “not delivered on a commitment by the world’s major emitters to phase down fossil fuels, nor new commitments on climate mitigation.” Likewise, her colleague, Frans Timmermans said that the final deal “allows countries to hide from their responsibilities.”

Overall, COP27 was, in spite of the agreement to establish a Loss and Damage Fund, a disappointment. The decisive changes that many hoped for did not emerge.

What next?  To keep the goals of the Paris Agreement within reach, the leaders at COP28 will need to:

  • Increase their ambition and submit improved emissions pledges in order keep within the limit of 1.5˚C degrees global warming. If this proves impossible, then we must at the very least stick as closely as possible to that target!
  • Focus on phasing out fossil fuels and the rapid ramping up of renewables.
  • Make progress and deliver on a number of existing climate finance commitments, i.e. working out the concrete details of the Loss and Damage Fund and meeting other existing finance commitments including the $100 billion in financing to developing economies pledged to start in 2020. 

The second article in this series will be published shortly. 

 

 

Homily for the Solemnity of the Ascension Year A

Readings: Acts 1:1-11; Ephesians 1:17-23; Matthew 28:16-20

Theme: “Go therefore, make disciples of all nations” (Mt 28:18)

During a sabbatical programme at the Ecce Homo Institute in Jerusalem in the Spring of 2008, I had the opportunity to visit The Chapel of the Ascension on the Mount of Olives. Located on a site traditionally believed to be the place where Jesus ascended into heaven after his Resurrection, it contains a slab of stone believed to feature one of his footprints! This image might give us the wrong impression that, in ascending to the Father, Jesus did a kind of vertical take-off into some remote region of the cosmos beyond the clouds, a place we think of as heaven.

When Luke tells us in our first reading today that Jesus ‘was lifted up, while they [the disciples] looked on, and a cloud took him from their sight’ (Acts 1:9), he is speaking metaphorically to convey the mystery of Jesus’ return to the Father. What we are celebrating today is not some mind-boggling physical feat never done before. It is, rather, in the words of Scripture Scholar, Tom Wright, ‘the fact that Jesus has gone ahead of us into God’s space, God’s new world,  and is already ruling this present world as its Lord, and also interceding for us at the Fathers’ right hand’. In our second reading, Paul explains the meaning of he Ascension when he tells us that God ‘has put all things under his [Jesus’] feet and made him, as the ruler of everything, the head of the Church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills the whole creation’(Eph 1:22-23).

The significance of the Ascension for the disciples of Jesus is brought out in our Gospel reading from Matthew. On a mountain in Galilee, where Jesus had begun his ministry, he now addresses his disciples for the last time and launches a new phase of his Kingdom mission. He begins by stating that ‘all authority in heaven and on earth’ (Mt 28:18) has been given to him. Then, on the basis of this authority, he commissions his disciples to ‘make disciples of all nations’ (Mt 28:19), and assures them that he will be with them always, ‘until the end of time’ (Mt 28:20).

During his earthly ministry, Jesus was reputed to have taught with authority, unlike the scribes and Pharisees. His words resonated with divine power and his actions manifested this power: healing the sick, casting out demons, calming storms, forgiving sinners and raising the dead to life. The authority of Jesus was not about imposing his will on others, but about overcoming the forces of sin and evil in the world, ushering in God’s reign, and communicating the ‘the fullness of life’ (Jn 10:10).  Now, as Risen and Ascended Lord, his authority is supreme and all-embracing. In the words of one of the earliest Christian hymns, quoted by Paul, he is the One ‘before whom every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that he is Lord” (Phil 2:9-11).

As Lord of the universe, the Risen Jesus commissions his disciples to be his instruments in extending his life-giving ministry to the peoples of all nations. During his earthly life, Jesus’ ministry was limited primarily to the Jewish people. Now its boundaries are expanded to include all humanity. His commission to his disciples has universal scope. Jesus does not command his disciples to proclaim the Gospel to all peoples, although this is implied.  What he commands them to do is to ‘make disciples of all nations’.  Making disciples, of course, includes preaching and teaching [instructing], and confirming people in their identity as God’s children, ‘by baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit’ (Mt 28:19). But it involves much more than this.

A disciple is a learner—a student—a person committed to learning what the master has to teach. A modern parallel would be an apprentice—or a student musician asking a master musician to be his/her teacher. The disciple is expected not only to learn what the master teaches, but also to put it into practice. Making disciples is about bringing others to embrace a new way of living, to become devoted followers of Jesus, and to imitate his way of life. This is a slow process that cannot be rushed, a process that requires patience and personal involvement [accompaniment] on the part of the teacher. 

The commission of the Risen Lord to his still fearful and confused disciples must have seemed overwhelming, impossible even. But Jesus assured them that they will not be alone. To enable his disciples to carry out his commission, he assures them of his continuing presence with them. Jesus remains Emmanuel – God with us – as much after his ascension as before. Yes, his physical presence among them ceases. This was limited to the period of his earthly life. Now, as Risen Lord, he is present to them through his Spirit, a presence without limitation.

Significantly, Jesus did not say, “I will be with you” but rather “I am with you”, promising an always-current presence. And so, the disciples of Jesus will not be overwhelmed, but rather emboldened and empowered to carry out the commission they have received. And we, too, his disciples today, struggling to continue his  mission in these uncertain and difficult will not be overwhelmed, for he who has sent us remains with us “until the end of time”.

 Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily  for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

HOPE FOR THE EARTH. HOPE FOR HUMANITY

 

 

 

 

Laudato Si’ Week 2023 will take place from May 21 to 28.  It marks the eighth anniversary of the publication of the encyclical. The theme for this year’s celebrations is Hope for the Earth. Hope for humanity”. 

Photo: Zelie McGrath

The SMA and OLA Justice and Communications Offices have jointly organised a series of publications and events to mark the occasion. 

These include:

  • Written and video informational material that will be published via the SMA and OLA websites and social media platforms throughout the week.
  • A Prayer Service organised in collaboration with Wilton Justice Group will take place in the in the Community Garden at SMA House Wilton on Wednesday 24th of May at 7pm.  All are welcome.  
  • On the 25th an online discussion about the the Vatican’s documentary film THE LETTER – A Message for our Earth will take place RESISTER HERE. Participants in this event are, by way of preparation, asked to view the film in advance –  to view now on YouTube click on this link:  The Letter Documentary Film
  • For those, living in the Cork area, who would prefer to view the film in a group setting, there will be a screening of “THE LETTER – A Message for our Earthin Wilton Parish Centre on Wednesday 31st of May at 7pm. This film is a 2022 documentary telling the story of the Laudato Si’ encyclical by Pope Francis. The film was produced by Oscar-winning Off The Fence Productions and directed by Nicolas Brown, in partnership with the Laudato Si’ Movement. It tells the story of four people affected first-hand by the climate crisis who travel to Rome to meet Pope Francis.  This screening of this film, is organised by Wilton Justice Group and the SMA Justice Office. Admission is free.  

Laudato Si’s Week was initiated as a way of marking the first anniversary of the Encyclical. It has since become an annual celebration for all Catholics to unite and rejoice in the progress we’ve made in bringing Laudato Si’ to life and an opportunity to commit ourselves to further prayer and action for our common home.

We hope that during Laudato Si’ week you will return to this website and to our Facebook page to view other material that will be published to mark this occasion. 

Everyone’s talents and involvement are needed to redress the damage caused by human abuse of God’s creation. All of us can cooperate as instruments of God for the care of creation, each according to his or her own culture, experience, involvements and talents.”  LS14

“What kind of world do we want to leave to those who come after us, to children who are now growing up? … Leaving an inhabitable planet to future generations is, first and foremost, up to us.”  LS160

To read an SMA Justice Briefing about Laudato Si and the impact it is having Click here 

 

AFRICA/GHANA – Interreligious dialogue, education, evangelization in the Kingdom of Ashanti

Below is an article published in the Agenzia Fides Newsletter of 11.05.23 concerning the work of the SMA in the Kingdom of Ashanti in Ghana. 

Accra (Agenzia Fides) – Evangelization, formation, health care and interreligious dialogue are at the heart of the activities of the priests of the Society for African Missions in the ancient kingdom of Ashanti.  As missionaries they have worked tirelessly to improve people’s lives and spread the message of Christianity to this ancient people.

Speaking to Fides, Father K. René D. Yao, SMA reports that: “The Kingdom of Ashanti, with its capital in Kumasi, is one of the most powerful and influential pre-colonial states in West Africa”. Since its foundation in 1856, the SMA has established missions in different parts of Africa, including the Kingdom of Ashanti in Ghana.

“The contribution of the SMA among this ancient population can be seen in their work of evangelization and education. SMA fathers have worked in the region to improve people’s living conditions and spread the message of Christianity. They set up schools and health services”.

Among the most salient results Father Yao points to is the establishment of the St. Hubert seminary in Kumasi, founded in 1948 to train African candidates for the priesthood. “Many priests emerged from this seminary who are now active in different parts of Africa.

Ashanti_chief,_Kumasi,_Ghana

Aissatou GAYE, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

The efforts of the Society of African Missions to promote interreligious dialogue and cooperation in the region are also notable. “They developed important relationships with leaders of other religions and worked together on various projects to promote peace and development”.  “As for me – concludes Fr. Yao – I am currently serving in Accra in a project for the deaf, St. Martin Deaf Ministry, but I hope to extend my mission to other regions of Ghana, including the Ashanti Kingdom”.

The Ashanti Kingdom was founded in the late 17th century and encompassed much of present-day Ghana and other parts of neighbouring countries. Kumasi was its political and cultural centre and played a key role in the region’s history. The city was known for its impressive architecture, including the famous ‘Golden Stool’, a symbol of the kingdom’s unity and power. The Ashanti not only had a rich cultural heritage and a long history of trade and diplomacy, but also a well-developed system of government with a complex hierarchy of chiefs, councils and advisers. They were also known for their military prowess and their armies were feared by neighbouring states. The brave fighters fought many successful wars of expansion and fended off numerous attempts at European colonization. Historically, the Ashanti were also skilled in metalworking, weaving and other crafts, and traded with other states in West Africa and beyond. (RY/AP) (Agenzia Fides, 11/5/2023)

6th Sunday of Easter – Year A

Readings:  Acts 8:5-8,14-17; 1Peter 3:15-18; Jn 14: 15-21

Theme:  ‘I will not leave you orphans; I will come back to you’ (Jn 14:18)

 Nobody’s Child’ was a popular song in the 1960’s. Sung by Hank Williams, and other singers, it tells the story of an orphan boy whom no one wants to adopt because he is blind. The refrain goes like this:

I’m nobody’s child, I’m nobody’s child
I’m like a flower just growing wild
No mommy’s kisses and no daddy’s smile
Nobody wants me I’m nobody’s child

For all their mawkishness, these words capture the feelings of loneliness and abandonment all of us may have experienced at some time of our lives. These were also the feelings of Jesus’ disciples when he told them that the time had come for him to return to his Father. In today’s Gospel reading from John, we see that Jesus responds to his disciples with words or comfort and assurance. A few years ago, in the light of Jesus’ consoling words, I attempted to rewrite Hank Snow’s lyric as follows:

Somebody loves you, you’re somebody’s child.
You are a flower, born of God’s smile,
I’ll never desert you, I’ll return in a while,
I’ll always be with you, for you are God’s child.

Jesus promises his disciples that he will not abandon them: ‘I will not leave you orphans; I will come back to you’ (Jn 14:18). He is returning to the Father but only to be with them in a new way, through the gift of the Spirit: ‘I shall ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate (Counsellor) to be with you for ever, that Spirit of truth whom the world can never receive’ (Jn 14:16-17). In identifying the Spirit of God as the ‘Spirit of truth’, Jesus is highlighting an essential role of God’s Spirit in the lives of his disciples and in our lives too, namely, to be courageous truth-tellers, witnesses to the truth of Jesus Christ and his gospel of love.  This role of the Spirit is underlined again in chapter 15 of John’s Gospel: ‘When the Advocate comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, he will be my witness. And you too will be witnesses,  because you have been with me from the outset’ (Jn 15:26-27).

As disciples of Jesus we, too, are called and empowered by God’s Spirit, the Spirit of the Father and the Spirit of Jesus, to be witnesses to the truth – the truth that sets us free (cf. Jn 8:32), the truth that enables us to live as God’s children. This is surely a calling particularly relevant in our time.  We live in a world that has scant regard for truth. With the advent of digital technology, and its impact in the field of communication, the lines between fact and fiction, truth and fantasy, are becoming increasingly blurred in every sphere of life. In the field of politics, political leaders subject us to what one commentator has termed ‘a bunch of self-serving lies’. More and more, we inhabit ‘virtual worlds’ constructed by our imaginations, worlds in which we become the sole arbiters of what is true, just, wise and loving. As Pope Francis reminds us in his Encyclical Letter, Fratelli Tutti,Today everything can be created, disguised and altered’ (FT 47) – surely a frightening scenario! Being witnesses to the truth of Christ in such a world is certainly challenging.

The vocation to be truth tellers has nothing in common with arrogant claims to be in possession of the full truth about God and his plans for us. Indeed, we are no more possessors of the truth, than we are possessors of God’s Spirit. It is the Spirit of truth who possesses us, and must be truth-seekers if we are ever to be truth-tellers.  In the words of Bishop Claverie of Oban, Algeria, murdered by Muslim extremists in 1996: ‘No one possesses the truth, everyone is searching for it….One does not possess the truth, and I need the truth of other seekers. This is my experience with the thousands of Algerians, who existence I share and whose questions are my questions.’

We received the Holy Spirit when we were baptised and confirmed, but we may not have had a profound experience of the power of the Spirit in our lives.  In this Easter season, as we continue to celebate the Resurrection of Jesus, we pray that the Spirit may be more fully present within us, so that we become truth-seeking witnesses of Christ. Through the Holy Spirit at work in us, may we become more effective instruments in the transformation of our world into ‘a new earth and a new heaven’, where all people feel at home and no one is an orphan.

 I end with an Easter poem by Malcolm Guite, entitled I will be with you

Your final words fulfill your ancient name,
A promise hidden in Emmanuel,
promise that can never fade or fail:
I will be with you till the end of time;
I will be with you when you scale the height
And with you when you fall to earth again,
With you when you flourish in the light,
And with you through the shadow and the pain.
Our God with us, you leave and yet remain
Risen and hidden with us everywhere;
Hidden and flowing in the wine we share,
Broken and hidden in the growing grain.
Be with us till we know we are forgiven
Be with us here till we’re with you in heaven.

 Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily  for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

MAY 2023| For a non-violent culture

The Pope asks ecclesial movements and groups to rediscover their evangelizing mission

  • This new video message is directed to ecclesial movements and groups: “they are a gift, they are a treasure in the Church!” 
  • Praising their “capacity to dialogue at the service of the Church’s evangelizing mission,” Pope Francis asks them to “always be on the move, responding to the impulse of the Holy Spirit to the challenges, to the changes in today’s world.”
  • In this prayer intention, the Pope invites ecclesial groups to “place their own charisms at the service of the world’s needs,” avoiding any “temptation to close in on themselves.”

TEXT OF POPE FRANCIS MESSAGE
Ecclesial movements are a gift, they are a treasure in the Church! That’s what you are!
These movements renew the Church with their capacity for dialogue at the service of her evangelizing mission.
Each day, they rediscover in their charism new ways of showing the attractiveness and the newness of the Gospel.
How do they do this? Speaking different languages, they seem different, but it is their creativity that creates these differences. But always understanding themselves and making themselves understood.
And working at the service of the Bishops and parishes to avoid any temptation to close in on themselves, which can be the danger, right?
Always be on the move, responding to the impulse of the Holy Spirit to the challenges, to the changes in today’s world.
Remain in harmony with the Church, since harmony is a gift of the Holy Spirit.
Let us pray that ecclesial movements and groups may daily rediscover their mission, an evangelizing mission, and that they place their own charisms at the service of the world’s needs. Service…

Novena of Prayer and Pilgrimage to Our Lady of Knock Fri 19th – Sat 27th May

This year we celebrate the 43rd National SMA Pilgrimage and Novena of Prayer to Our Lady of Knock.   We are especially happy this year as we are once again able to freely travel from every part of Ireland and gather on Saturday 27th May at the Shrine in Knock to praise God and honour Mary His Mother. A special intention for our pilgrimage this year is to praise God for all our SMA friends and benefactors who managed to continue their support for us during these recent difficult times. We pray God’s blessings on them and on all of us on this special occasion.

We all need God’s blessings. The past couple of years with wars and pandemics (and the many other problems that can so easily rob us of our peace and joy) have not been easy – and the problems continue for many.

NOVENA DETAILS

Mass at 10.00am every morning in St. Joseph’s SMA Church, Blackrock Road, Cork City. 
If you are unable to attend the daily Mass please join us via the Blackrock Parish WEBCAM 
 The Closing Mass on Saturday 27th May can be viewed at 3pm from Knock Basilica via  www.knockshrine.ie 

While not ignoring these difficulties, we are encouraged during our Novena and Pilgrimage to take time-out and focus on the one sure place where we will find peace and comfort and joy – in the presence of God. Those who seek His presence receive His blessings – receive His peace and joy even in the midst of  the many difficulties they are facing. “Come to me, all who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28). This is God’s promise and our God does not lie. Mary’s role is to lead people to Jesus her Son (Do whatever he tells you.” John 2:5) and Knock is one of the special places where she does this.  May this be the experience of each of us this year as we make our May Novena and gather in pilgrimage.

As members of the SMA family we will also be remembering our missionaries and our support for their work of spreading the Gospel of Jesus in Africa and beyond in obedience to His command: Go therefore and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19). We pray that the Lord will strengthen them in their mission and that He will also strengthen us to continue supporting them by our prayers and offerings.

For local details regarding transport to Knock contact the SMA house nearest to you – see below.

5th Sunday of Easter – Year A

Readings: Acts 6:1-7; 1 Peter 2:4-9; John 14:1-12

Theme: Following and witnessing to the Way of Jesus

The context of today’s gospel reading is Jesus’ lengthy conversation with his disciples at the Last Supper. While fully aware of his enemies’ determination to destroy him, Jesus’ concern is not for himself but for them. Sensing their sadness and apprehension, he prepares them for his imminent departure with words of comfort and encouragement. He urges them to trust in God and also in him, assuring them that ‘there are many rooms in my Father’s house’; that he is going ‘to prepare a place’ for them, and that he will return to take them with him (cf. Jn 1-3).

We tend to interpret these words of Jesus, frequently read during funeral liturgies, to mean that he is going to prepare a place for his disciples in heaven. However, Jesus is preparing his disciples to continue his mission.  His concern in not with life after death, but with life here and now on earth. He is opening up a new way of relating to his disciples so that they will continue to abide in him, and be his witnesses to the ends of the earth.  He is calling on them to have faith in him as  ‘the Way, the Truth, and the Life’ (Jn 14:6).    

These words of Jesus clearly captured the imagination of the earliest followers of Jesus who referred to themselves as ‘followers or the way’ or ‘people of the way’. It was not until they established a presence in Antioch, around the middle of the first century AD, that they became known as Christians (cf. Acts 11:26). Following the Way of Jesus involved more than obeying a set of instructions from their Master. It meant a deeply personal relationship with Jesus who identifies himself as the Way to the Father because of his oneness with the Father: ‘No one can come to the Father, except through me. If you know me, you know my Father too’ (Jn 14:4).  

Initially, the disciples fail to understand the words of Jesus. Hence, Philip’s question: ‘Lord, show us the Father and then we shall be satisfied‘ (Jn 14:8). Jesus’ response conveys his disappointment while re-affirming his claim to be one with the Father: ‘Have I been with you all this time, Philip,  and you still do not know me. To have seen me is to have seen the Father… Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me’ (Jn 14:9,10) Even though Philip. and indeed all the apostles, had been Jesus’ constant companions throughout his public ministry, and had witnessed all that he said and did,  they were unable to recognise who he really was until their eyes were opened, when the Risen Christ himself appeared to them and gifted them with his Spirit. Only then did they come to realise the truth of Jesus’ words and, as Peter affirms in our second reading, to acknowledge him as ‘the living stone, rejected by people but chosen by God and precious to him’ (1 Peter 2:4).

We may wonder what prevented the Apostles from ‘seeing‘ and recognizing Jesus as the one in whom the Father was present. Perhaps it was a false or inadequate image of God, a distorted, nationalistic, reading of the messianic promises, a lack of attention to what Jesus was saying and doing. Or, maybe, they simply took it for-granted that they knew him.  The question for us, of course, is do we ‘see’ Jesus as he really is?  Do we enter into the presence of the Father when we meet Jesus in the Scriptures, in the Eucharist, in our daily prayer?

Today’s gospel warns us against complacency.  Simply because we were baptised members of the Church and practising Catholics does not necessarily mean that we know the God revealed in Jesus. Indeed our very familiarity with Jesus may make us blind to the ‘heart-breaking strangeness’ (Patrick Kavanagh) of his person and message. No less than Philip and the apostles, we, too, need to have our eyes and ears opened to the the spirit-shocking’ power of his life and message.   We need to shake off the chains of familiarity and allow the readings of this beautiful Season of Eastertide,  ‘to charm back‘ in us ‘the luxury of a child’s soul‘, to use again the words of Patrick Kavanagh,  and bring us to see true face of the Father revealed in Jesus.

And so we pray:

Heavenly Father, open our eyes to see your face in the life, death and resurrection of your Son, Jesus. Teach us to place him at the centre of our lives and thus become his instruments in leading people ‘out of the darkness into his wonderful light’ (1 Peter  2:9).

                                                                                                  Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily  for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

SMA International News – May 2023

Welcome to this month’s SMA International News.  In this bulletin we have reports from:

Ivory Coast: a report from the 2023 MISAL – the international meeting of Missionary Societies of Apostolic Life, of which the SMA is a member.
Sierra Leone: We hear of SMA work building schools for the community.
France: We hear from Lyons about a new structure put in place to reflect on the  different themes affecting current missionary realities.
 
 
 

Thank you for a job well done

Frs Denis and Mathias with the Altar Servers outside the Cinema

In Parishes all around the world Easter, and the weeks leading up to it were busy preparing and organizing for Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday. These preparations involved many people and groups, each required to play their part and to make an effort.

One such parish was St Theresa’s Parish Chainda, Waterfalls, Zambia, where SMA Frs. Denis Telewa and Fr Matthias Chungu minister to their parishioners. 

After the hard work of preparing for and participating in the the Easter Ceremonies it was  decided to take the altar servers, 60 in number, both boys and girls, out for a treat to watch a movie of their choice in a local cinema.

This outing was a way of saying thank you to them for the work they did during Holy Week and for the part they play in the life of the Parish.  In this, Fr Denis tells us, “they follow the example of our parish patron – Saint Theresa.”  Her ‘Little Way’ does not ask for great actions, but doing even small things with great love.  This is what the altar servers had done, very well, during Easter and so deserved this thank you. 

It was a great day out and much appreciated.  For some it was a new experience as they had never been to the cinema or into the shopping mall they were taken to.  The Photos here give a flavour of the day and of the joy and excitement the it brought. 

Our thanks to Fr Denis Telewa SMA for the photographs and for this glimpse into the life of St Theresa’s Parish.

 

4th Sunday of Easter – Year A

Readings: Acts 2:14, 36-41; 1 Peter 2:20-25; John 10:1-10

Theme:   ‘I have come that you may have life  and have it abundantly’ (Jn 10:10)

Today is World Day of Prayer for Vocations, a day when we are invited to reflect on the meaning of God’s call to leadership and to pray for vocations. To help us reflect on the meaning of vocation – a call to serve others -the Church, in today’s Gospel, presents us with the figure of Jesus, the Good Shepherd, who not only looks after the sheep in his care, but is ready to risk his life for them.

At the time in which Jesus lived, there were two kinds of shepherds in Israel. There was the hired hand for whom minding the sheep was just a job. He would move from one flock to another depending on the conditions of service, but would never dream of risking his life for them. If he saw wolves or thieves approaching, he would flee for dear life and leave the flock to the mercy of the marauders. Then there was the shepherd-owner of the flock who stayed with the same flock all his life. He knew every sheep in his flock individually and had a name for each one. The shepherd-owner was devoted to his sheep. He knew the one that was likely to lag behind the others on a long trek, and he would lift it up and carry it in his arms. He knew the ones that were likely to stray from the flock and kept his eye out for them when passing through dangerous terrain. When attacked by wolves or thieves, he would fight to protect his sheep and even lay down his life for them: ‘The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep’ (Jn 10:11)

The expression ‘laying down one’s life’ comes from the practice in Israel of keeping the sheep in an enclosed space called a ‘field pen’. In his book about the Holy Land, John Kellman tells us that a field pen consisted of a circular stone wall about four feet high with a narrow opening in it. The pen didn’t have a gate. The shepherd himself was the gate. Hence the significance of Jesus’ words in today’s gospel reading: ‘I am the gate of the sheepfold’ (Jn 10: 7). At night the shepherd would lie down across the opening so that the sheep would not wander out, or wolves enter in. Any intruder would literally have to cross over his body. This background gives us an insight into what Jesus had in mind when he stated, ‘I am the Good Shepherd’ (Jn 10:11).  His concern and care for us is like that of the shepherd-owner for his sheep. Like the shepherd, he knows and understands us better than we know ourselves. Jesus cares for his flock, leads them, calls them by name. And all of this is a manifestation of the reason he has come among us: ‘so that they may have life and have it abundantly’ (Jn 10:10).

What the Lord said to his chosen people through the prophet, Isaiah, Jesus says to each of us personally:  ‘Do not be afraid… I have called you by name… You are precious to me… Do not be afraid, I am with you’ (Is 43:,1,4-5).  And he has laid down his life for love for us. In the words of John’s gospel, repeated in the Fourth Eucharistic prayer, ‘Having loved those who were his own in the world, he loved them to the end’ (Jn 13:1). In a culture in which leaders ‘made their authority felt’ and insisted on others serving them obsequiously, Jesus modeled a leadership of loving service without conditions or limits. To illustrate what it meant to be a good shepherd and give one’s life in the service of others, he even washed his disciples’ feet – the action of a slave! 

Today’s gospel challenges all those involved in leadership and pastoral ministry in the Church to emulate the generosity and selflessness of Jesus, the Good Shepherd.  In a homily he gave to priests in 2016, Pope Francis reminded them that they are ‘must be joyful, stubborn shepherds who take risks and seek out even those who are most distant from God, in imitation of the Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ. He went on to say: ‘you must have hearts sufficiently free to set aside your own concerns. You must not live by calculating your gains or counting the hours you have worked. The priest is not an accountant of the Spirit, but a Good Samaritan who seeks out those in need.”  Shepherd leaders are those who, in the words of Michael Fitzgerald MAfr and Rene Dionne Mafr. ‘reach out to strengthen the fearful, protect the weak, lift up the fallen, embrace the dying, share burdens and wipe away tears, open doors closed by despair, discover the best in others and set it free’. When people begin to see that their leaders are not just doing a job but relating to people personally and truly caring for them, then, perhaps they see the true meaning of Christian vocation and be more willing to opt for this ministry of service.

Let us pray for all involved in pastoral ministry that they may display in their work the qualities of the good shepherd, not those of the hired hand.

Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily  for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

3rd Sunday of Easter – Year A

Readings: Acts 2: 14, 22-33;  1 Peter 1:17-21; Luke 24:13-35

Luke’s famous account of the risen Jesus’ meeting with two of his disciples on the road to Emmaus is one of the most captivating stories ever written. It is beautifully crafted tale, recounted with great dramatic flair, humour, and gentle irony, and climaxing in a shared meal and an astonishing discovery.  Little wonder that, in 2010, it was made into a movie, The Road to Emmaus, starring Bruce Marchiano in the role of Jesus. But it is more than a great story. It is a profound illustration of what the Christian life is all about: the movement from darkness to light, from despair to hope, and from desolation to consolation.

The setting of the story is important. It is the evening of Easter day and two disciples – Cleopas and a companion – are leaving Jerusalem and heading home to the village of Emmaus, about seven miles away.  We do not know for certain where this village is, and it doesn’t really matter. What matters is that the two disciples, like all of us, are on a journey. Despondent and disillusioned, they are discussing the events that have happened recently in Jerusalem.  Suddenly, out of the blue, they are joined by a mysterious stranger who asks them what they are discussing. With delightful irony they reply: ‘You must be the only person staying in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have been happening there these last few days’ (Lk 24:18).  Nonplussed, the stranger, wanting to draw them out, asks, ‘What things?, and they tell him about the condemnation and horrific death of Jesus of Nazareth, ‘a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people’ (Lk 24:19-20).

The stranger does not interrupt the two disciples as they tell him their story.  Like Tommy Tiernan’ interviews with his Saturday night guests on RTE I, he allows them to express themselves freely until they voice the real reason for their sadness and disillusionment. ‘We had hoped’, they tell him, ‘that he [Jesus] was the one to redeem Israel’ (Lk 24:21). For them, redemption meant liberation from the tyranny of Roman domination and the freedom to forge their own destiny and live securely in their own land as God’s covenanted people. The crucifixion of their Master, Jesus, meant the complete shattering of this hope. They had thought that, in following Jesus, they had been on the road that led to freedom, but it turned out to be another cul-de-sac. Hence, their sorrow and acute disappointment.

Only when they have opened their hearts to him does the stranger speak again.  Starting with what they already know, he tells the story of Israel in a new way ‘beginning with Moses and the prophets’ (Lk 24:27), showing them that what happened to Jesus, including his sufferings and death, far from being a tragedy was part of God’s plan all along. The death of Jesus was the achievement of his mission, not the end of it.  As the significance of the stranger’s words begin to dawn on them, the two disciples reach their home and insist on the stranger staying with them.

As they sit down to the evening meal with their visitor, he now assumes the role of host. Luke tells us that ‘he took the bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them’ (Lk 24:30). In that very act, they recognised him as Jesus, now risen from the dead, though he immediately vanished from their sight. With that recognition, all that happened on the road, and everything the ‘stranger’ had said to them, suddenly made sense: ‘Did not our hearts burn within us as he talked to us on the road and explained the Scriptures to us?’ (Lk 24:32). Emboldened by their experience, and eager to tell their fellow disciples about it, they hurry back to Jerusalem, only to discover their that they, too, have good news for them: ‘that the Lord is risen indeed and has appeared to Simon’ (Lk 24: 34).

At the beginning of this homily, I stated that this wonderful story illustrates what the Christian life is all about. All the key elements are there: faith as a journey from darkness to light, from sorrow to joy; the value of having someone to accompany us and listen to our stories without interrupting us; the importance of hospitality and openness to the stranger; the recognition of the risen Jesus in the breaking of bread – another name for the Eucharist in the early Church; and the sharing of that experience with others. In every Eucharist, we are invited to open our hearts to the Lord, to tell him our stories, to listen to his enlightening Word and experience his living presence; and, then, with transformed hearts and minds, to share that experience with others.   

I will end with a prayerful reflection from the pen of Flor McCarthy SDB, entitled, Jesus – life’s companion:

All through life’s day, you walk with us Lord. 
But often we don’t recognise you,
for we are blinded by work and worry,
doubt confusion and fear,
and so you remain a stranger to us.
Before the day’s end we will ask you many questions,
experience many sorrows and disappointments.
Then, suddenly, whether we are young, middle-aged, or old,
we will find the night is approaching. 
In that moment we pray,
that, like the disciples on the road to Emmaus,
our eyes will be opened, and that we will recognise you.
And you will not vanish from our sight,
but stay with us to guide us to the Father’s house.

Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily  for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

Fr John Dunleavy SMA – Funeral homily

Fr John Dunleavy, SMA - 1936 - 2023

Fr John Dunleavy, SMA, died on Friday, 14 April 2023 in the St Theresa’s Nursing Unit, African Missions, Blackrock Road, Cork. He was 86 years of age.
His Funeral Mass took place in the Church of Our Lady of Knock, Lackagh, Turloughmore, Co Galway, at 12 noon on Monday, 17 April 2023, followed by burial with his parents in Lackagh Old cemetery.
The SMA Provincial Leader, Fr Malachy Flanagan SMA was the Principal celebrant assisted by Fr Anthony Kelly SMA [Provincial Councillor] and Fr Bernie Shaughnessy, Coolarne, Turloughmore. A number of Fr John’s confreres and diocesan clergy [from Galway and Tuam] also concelebrated the Mass.
Fr John O’Gorman, Parish Priest of Lackagh, received Fr John’s remains into the Church on Sunday evening and was the MC for the Funeral Mass. Mary O’Brien was the Soloist and Paula Forde played the organ.
Canon Stephen Farragher, Parish Priest of Ballyhaunis, [representing the Archbishop of Tuam, Most Rev Francis Duffy] recited the Prayers of Final Commendation. Fr Shaughnessy blessed the coffin with Holy Water and Canon Ian O’Neill, Parish Priest of Claregalway [where Fr John lived in the SMA House for 12 years] incensed the coffin before its removal to the cemetery.

The following is an edited version of Fr Kelly’s homily at the Funeral Mass.

By way of introduction I am a Kiltormer man and have good memories of visiting Turloughmore from the hurling encounters we had with you even though I would often go home with a few bruises. John Dunleavy was a very proud Turloughmore man and like most Turlough men he knew how to hurl. One of his classmates described him as a very skilful hurler and might have been attracted to join SMA because of another famous Galway hurler Fr Paddy Gantly, SMA. I’m told that both of them got along well.

John Dunleavy, a missionary Priest with the Society of African Missions, passed away last Friday rather suddenly. As I heard the news while driving towards Newry I felt it was a happy release for John as he was finding life difficult over the past few months … not least for having to come to Cork. But today we celebrate his life and he is now gone to enjoy his eternal reward joining his parents, three sisters and four brothers to enjoy Eternal Happiness with the Risen Lord.

I thought what a wonderful time to die when we are still celebrating the Resurrection, a week after Good Friday when the Lord himself gave up his own life on the Cross for our salvation

As we see from today’s Gospel it tells us the Lord himself, gave up his life for our salvation. It tells us “Father into your hands I commend my spirit, having said this he breathed his last”  

I only got to know John in recent years in his retirement and I got to know him a little bit better since he came to Cork where he struggled with health issues, especially his breathing. He would be out of breath after walking only a very short distance and that was very frustrating for the big strong man that he was in the past. But, he would ask in the same breath, ‘would you have a cigarette?’ When John took his final breath last Friday I was reminded of today’s Gospel, with our Lord himself breathing his Last breath out of Love for us, for you and me, and for Fr John Dunleavy. John is now in the loving Arms of our Saviour Jesus Christ, along with his parents and his siblings and so many of his fellow missionaries and former parishioner’s.

That sentence in the Gospel today – of the Lord giving up his spirit for our sakes – as he went through his Passion and on to His Resurrection was a reminder of how passionate too was John Dunleavy.

He was passionate about his priesthood and yesterday evening at his removal to this Church we could see in the beautiful liturgy the Chalice, the Stole and the Book of the Gospels placed on his coffin – these encapsulate the things he was most passionate about, and we see evidence of that from the many wonderful tributes and messages of condolences from his former parishioners. John celebrated sixty years of Missionary priesthood with the SMA last December. He began that missionary journey in Nigeria where he was appointed to the MidWest Region, arriving there in October 1963 where he served with my uncle, in the Diocese of Benin City. John was posted to Asaba, a large sprawling parish – about half the size of this county of Galway. There he did the usual missionary work: travelling around to the many towns and villages offering the sacraments, visiting the sick and preparing candidates for the sacraments.  After three years he came home on leave and on his return the Biafran war had broken out. This was a very difficult time for John and for all missionaries in Nigeria at the time. Many were scarred and affected by that war and some had to leave. John returned to Ireland in 1968. He later spent nearly 20 great years in Massachusetts, USA [Springfield diocese and the Archdiocese of Boston] where he enjoyed his priestly ministry, making lifelong friends. Among the people he was very well liked and appreciated. Many messages of condolence are a testimony to that.

When he returned Ireland in 1989, he continued his ministry in Killaloe, Elphin and Galway dioceses before settling into Tuam Archdiocese for sixteen years, spending most of them in Ballyconneely where he was very well liked for his witty sermons and for his compassion and care of the people. Some of my friends who attended his Masses while on holidays in Connemara would have described him as very witty and down to earth.

We all know he was passionate about hurling and would not give an inch to the Cork SMA’s whenever they argued about hurling. In one of the condolence messages a former opponent remembers John from a Colleges Final going back to 1956 and described him as a worthy opponent, a sweet hurler, and a lovely lad.  The message continued to say small wonder he went on to become an outstanding priest on the Missions and doing untold good wherever he ministered.

When I’d visit him in Cork we often spoke of hurling. I asked him, “John were you much good?” He looked at me and said ‘Well I’d fill a space in the backs but not too many would get past me because I would stand my ground’. I think that same attitude would have summed up John’s life. He always stood his ground. A very recent example of it was when he was going into hospital in Galway he asked for a cigarette. “I want a fag and I’m not getting into that ambulance until I have a smoke.” So his nephew Patrick had to run and fetch his cigarettes and he smoked away there on the ramp of the ambulance while everyone waited in the cold. So definitely as he said himself he would hold his ground. Yes, he was an accomplished hurler. When he was in the Seminary like most Turlough men he would be inclined to pull fairly hard which led to his Superior telling him to take it easy as most fellows in the Seminary were not from such hurling strongholds as Turloughmore.

Today’s readings give us all encouragement.

The first reading from St Paul to the Corinthians encapsulates the type of priest John was. He had no airs and graces but lived a simple life and was down to earth in his preaching. Through his Faith, he looked forward to this day as described in the last line of the first Reading, “eye has not seen, ear has not heard nor has it so much dawned on anyone what God has prepared for those who love God.’ We know from his life as a priest and as a missionary that John was passionate too about his Love for God.

The Second reading from St Paul to Timothy could be applied equally to Fr John: he fought the good fight, he has finished the race and he kept the Faith. And we know too that John will inherit the crown of Righteousness which the Just Judge has reserved for him.

As I referred earlier to the Gospel we all look forward to our own Resurrection when one day we will be reunited with John. Into your hands, O Lord, we commend the spirit of John Dunleavy. May he now rest in Peace with the Risen Lord.

Since I began this homily with a reference to Turloughmore and hurling I would like to end with a Hurlers prayer.

Grant me O Lord a Hurler’s Skill,
    with Strength of arm and speed of limb,
Unerring eye for the flying ball,
    and courage to match what-eer befall,
May my stroke be steady,
    and my aim be true,
My actions manly and my misses few,
    No matter what way the game may go,
May I rest in friendship with every foe,
    when the final whistle for me has blown,
And I stand at last before God’s judgement throne,
    may the great referee, when he calls my name,
Say, you hurled like a man,
    you played the game.

Late Fr John Dunleavy SMA

Fr John Dunleavy, SMA - 1936 - 2023

Fr John Dunleavy, SMA, died peacefully on Friday, 14 April 2023, in the African Missions, Blackrock Road, Cork. Fr John was 86 years old and had ministered as a priest in Nigeria, United States and Ireland. Since retiring in 2011, he lived in the SMA House in Claregalway, Co Galway. He transferred to the African Missions, Blackrock Road, Cork earlier this year for medical care.

His parents, Tommy and Mary Jane [née Egan] predeceased him as well as his sisters Philomena O’Brien and Margaret Morris and his four brothers: Martin, Packie, Tom and Christy. The Light of Heaven to them all.

Funeral Arrangements
Fr John’s remains will be reposing at Our Lady’s Chapel, Lackagh, Turloughmore, Co Galway on this Sunday [16 April] from 5.30pm with removal at 7.30pm to the Church of Our Lady of Knock, Lackagh.

His Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 12 noon on Monday, 17 April, followed by burial in Lackagh Old Cemetery.

Due to the continuing presence of Covid-19, those attending the funeral are respectfully requested to adhere to all social distancing and sanitising guidelines, wear a face covering and avoid shaking hands.

The Funeral Mass will be livestreamed on www.lackaghchurchliveyoutube and also broadcast locally on parish radio, 106.9 FM.

Fr John is deeply regretted by his sister-in-law Bernadette Dunleavy, nieces and nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews, cousins and extended family, friends and neighbours, the people of Benin City Archdiocese [Nigeria], Springfield Diocese and Boston Archdiocese [USA], Killaloe Diocese, Elphin Diocese and Tuam Archdiocese and his confreres in the Society of African Missions.

May he rest in peace.

April 2023| For a non-violent culture

No to violence, no to war, no to arms: Pope Francis calls for a culture of peace

  • Sixty years after St. John XXIII published the encyclical Pacem in Terris, Francis renews his message and denounces that “war is madness, it is beyond reason.”
  • The Pope Video for April is an appeal to build a culture of peace, which should resort “less and less to the use of arms,” because “a lasting peace can exist only without weapons.”
  • Francis asks to “make non-violence a guide for our actions, both in daily life and in international relations.”

Text pf Pope’s Message
Living, speaking, and acting without violence is not surrendering, losing or giving up anything, but aspiring to everything. As Saint John XXIII said 60 years ago in his Encyclical Pacem in Terris, war is madness. It’s beyond reason. Any war, any armed confrontation, always ends in defeat for all.

Let us develop a culture of peace. Let us remember that, even in cases of self-defense, peace is the ultimate goal, and that a lasting peace can exist only without weapons.
Let us make non-violence a guide for our actions, both in daily life and in international relations. And let us pray for a more widespread culture of non-violence, that will progress when countries and citizens alike resort less and less to the use of arms.

Pope Francis – April 2023

2nd Sunday of Easter – Year A

Readings: Acts 2:42-47; 1 Peter 1: 3-9;  John 20:19 – 31

 Today’s gospel reading from John reports three distinct but related events:
a) on the evening of first day of the week (Sunday) the appearance of the Risen Jesus to his disciples locked behind closed doors ‘for fear of the Jews’;
b) Jesus’ commissioning of his disciples to continue his mission of forgiveness and peace; and
c), eight days later, Jesus’ second appearance to his disciples, this time in the company of Thomas, who acknowledges that Jesus is truly risen when he touches  the wounds in his risen body. The reading climaxes in Thomas’ great acclamation of faith: ‘My Lord and my God’ (Jn 20:28).

The natural thing to do, when we feel anxious or threatened. is to withdraw to a safe place, lock the doors, and wait for the danger to pass. This is precisely what the disciples of Jesus do following the capture, torture and horrific death of their master. Despite the witness of Mary Magdalene, they remain paralysed by their fear, sense of failure, and perhaps also by guilt at having deserted their master at the end. It is in such a confused state that the Risen Jesus comes to them, not with words of blame or recrimination, but with his peace. His first words are ‘Peace be with you’ (Jn 20:19).  The importance of this greeting is highlighted by being repeated three times in today’s gospel passage.

We usually think of peace as the absence of conflict and turmoil, the ending of all those things that make us anxious and fearful – and there are indeed many reasons for us to be anxious and fearful in our world today.  However, the peace Jesus offers is something more profound than the absence of conflict or the resolution of difficulties. Earlier in John’s Gospel, Jesus says to his disciples: My peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.  I do not give to you as the world gives.  Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid (Jn 14:27). The peace Jesus gives is not the kind of peace the world around us can provide, not something that we can create from our own resources. It is a peace that can only be received as a gift ‘from above’ – a gift that enables us to live freely and even joyfully in the midst of strife, stress and conflict.

Having freed his disciples from the prison of their own making by his gift of peace, the Risen Jesus immediately commissions them to continue his mission of peace and forgiveness. For this, he empowers them with the gift of the Spirit. ‘As the Father sent me,  so am I sending you. After saying this he breathed on them and said: Receive the Holy Spirit. For those whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven; for those whose sins you retain, they are retained’ (Jn 20:21-23). As the Risen Jesus came to his disciples, so he comes to us today in the midst of our fears, doubts, pain and confusion. He comes offering us his peace and breathing into our anxious hearts the empowering breath of the Spirit, embolding us to continue his healing mission of peace and forgiveness.  

John tells us that the apostle, Thomas, was not with the group of disciples when Jesus first appeared, though he doesn’t tell us why.  Perhaps distancing himself from his erstwhile companions was his way of coping with his grief and disillusionment at what had happened to his master. However, the following Sunday, Thomas is with them when Jesus appears again to his disciples, openly bearing in his Risen body the scars of his traumatic recent history. It is surely significant that Jesus does not hide his wounds but invites the ‘doubting’ Thomas to touch them and  ‘doubt no longer but believe’ (Jn 20:27). The wounds in Jesus’ risen body are not old wounds, but wounds so raw that Thomas can place his finger inside them, as so vividly portrayed in the famous painting of this scene by Caravaggio. And it is this intensely physical contact with the wounds of Jesus’ risen body that draws from Thomas the greatest act of faith in the entire Bible: ‘My Lord and my God’ (Jn 20: 28).

Besides demonstrating that the Risen Jesus is the same crucified Jesus of Nazareth whom Thomas and the disciples had known and loved, these wounds of the Risen Christ also remind us of the terrible wounds that mar our world today, including the Church, the sacramental body of the Lord – wounds we are challenged to embrace with faith, rather than withdraw from in fear. Like Thomas, we, too, are invited to bury our doubts, fears and confusion in the open wounds of the Risen Jesus. As the prophet Isaiah reminds us: ‘By his wounds we are healed’ (Is 54:5).  I end with some lines from the poem, Jesus of the Scars by Edward Shillito, a poet who lived through the horrors of World War I:

If we have never sought, we seek Thee now;
Thine eyes burn through the dark, our only stars;
We must have sight of thorn-pricks on Thy brow,
We must have Thee, O Jesus of the Scars.

The heavens frighten us; they are too calm;
In all the universe we have no place.
Our wounds are hurting us; where is the balm?
Lord Jesus, by Thy Scars, we claim Thy grace’ 

On this Divine Mercy Sunday, and in these difficult and confusing times, we pray that we will find our solace, hope, and courage in the wounded, risen Christ.

Fr Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily  for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

Jesus is Risen!


The famous Christian author (Narnia etc.), C. S. Lewis, said that Jesus could only be one of three things: 1) a habitual liar (meaning that he said many things that were simply not true), 2) a demented lunatic (meaning that if he believed the things he said about himself then he was totally mad), or 3) that he really is the Son of God!

Most people would accept that Jesus wasn’t a habitual liar or a demented lunatic. No doubt some people during Jesus’ life on earth may have thought these things (Jn.10:20), but many more people were so convinced that he really was who he said he was that they followed him even though there was a heavy price to pay. These were not foolish or superstitious people. They were not stupid. They saw him heal the sick and raise the dead. Because of him they experienced a new joy and peace in their lives that they did not have before. Many left everything to follow him even though it meant being persecuted, ridiculed, imprisoned and even killed. They would not have done this to follow a madman or a liar. There was something uniquely special and different about Jesus that made them convinced that he truly is who he claimed to be – the Son of God.

What was that something that was so uniquely special and different? What was it that convinced his followers that he really was the Son of God? It was the Resurrection! Nobody else had ever risen from the dead. His followers believed Jesus rose from the dead because they actually met him! It was this personal encounter with the risen Jesus that gave them the strength, the courage, the conviction and the determination to spread his message throughout the world, even if it meant their own death. Their encounter with the risen Jesus was real and it transformed them into fearless witnesses of the Good News.

Countless others down through the centuries until today have likewise experienced this personal, real and life-changing encounter with the risen Jesus. Unlike those early Christians they never met Jesus while he was on earth, but their encounter with the risen Jesus was every bit as real – transforming them into modern-day witnesses of the Good News.

May your encounter with the risen Jesus be likewise real.
Have a blessed Easter!

Pat Kelly SMA

 

 

Holy Saturday – the Easter Candle

The Easter Candle which is lit during the Easter Vigil brings out the message of Easter better than many words. In the candle, which symbolizes Christ, the celebrant cuts a cross with a stylus representing Christ’s crucifixion on Good Friday and five grains of incense to signify his five wounds. Then he lights the candle to symbolize that Christ has risen, saying, May the light of Christ rising in glory dispel the darkness of our hearts and minds” In the candle too is written the year we are in 2023, saying to us that Christ did not just rise over 2,000 years ago in Jerusalem but that he is rising now here where we are in 2023.

At present we live in a time of anxiety and uncertainty with the war in Ukraine, with Covid 19 not gone away, and each of us with our own personal problems and challenges. As we go through life none of us can escape Good Friday moments but after Good Friday there is always Easter Sunday as shown in the  poem, “ Everything Is Going to Be All Right” by Irish poet Derek Mahon which has an Easter message of hope. While the poet admits that hardship and mortality are a part of life, everything is going to be all right.  Lying in the bed in West Cork in the  morning with the sun shining in through his dormer window, when Covid was at its worst  he wrote:

Image by TC Perch from Pixabay; free to use
The empty Tomb

“How should I not be glad to contemplate
the clouds clearing beyond the dormer window
and a high tide reflected on the ceiling?
There will be dying, there will be dying,
but there is no need to go into that.
The poems flow from the hand unbidden
and the hidden source is the watchful heart.
The sun rises in spite of everything
and the far cities are beautiful and bright.
I lie here in a riot of sunlight
watching the day break and the clouds flying.
Everything is going to be all right.”

The message of Easter is that everything is going to be all right. Christ has risen and is with us taking us through the struggles of life and even in death leading us to resurrection.  We will hear this message in the Easter hymn, the Exsultet during the Easter Vigil.

“Rejoice Christ has conquered     
Darkness vanishes forever
This is the night
When Christ broke the prison bars of death
and rose victorious from the underworld.”

However, for Easter to have meaning for you, you must be able to get in touch with resurrection experiences in your own life, maybe you contacted Covid and recovered from it. Maybe someone close to you died  and, looking back on it you were given the strength to cope or your heart being lifted by the blooming of the daffodils after the deadness of winter or a child being born or a broken relationship repaired or a good meal with friends.

The resurrection is all around us if we have eyes to see it. “We are an Easter people and Alleluia is our song.” Christ our hope has risen” and we are called to live out of that reality that gives us joy and hope.

Tim Cullinane SMA

 

Ecce Homo – ‘Behold the Human Being’

In his description of the trial of Jesus in the Fourth Gospel, St John narrates how Pilate had Jesus brutally flogged:

And the soldiers wove a crown of thorns and put it on his head, and they dressed him up in a purple robe. They kept coming up to him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” and striking him on the face. Pilate went out again and said to them, “Look, I am bringing him out to you to let you know that I find no case against him.” So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them, “Here is the man!” (John 19:2-5).

From a human standpoint, the really powerful figure in this scene is Pilate – he has the power of life and death. However, from the perspective of St John, who knows that Jesus is the Incarnate Son of God (see John 1), the roles are actually reversed – Pilate is the really helpless individual; since he cannot see the truth literally staring him in the face, he remains trapped by the chains of sin and violence that implicate us all and that cannot easily be washed away (see Matthew 27:24). Even though humiliated and tortured, therefore, Jesus wields true power, for he is the Saviour of the world who freely gives of himself to break the stranglehold of death and make a new way of life possible.

For Christian faith, the death of Jesus on Calvary brings about a fundamental reversal in every aspect of life by revealing God’s unconditional love for us even amid the horrific violence on display. Thus the moment when evil appears to triumph is precisely the moment when the depths of God’s love become clear and the worst in us is overcome. The cross itself signals that reversal, as that instrument of torture and death is transformed into a sign and instrument of God’s forgiveness and love for everyone. As a consequence, no longer should the logic of ‘eye for eye and tooth for tooth’ hold sway in human relationships.

Sunset behind the Crucifixion statue in the SMA Cemetery, Wilton, Cork – photo Paul O’Flynn

Henceforth, the only sacrifice pleasing to God is the sacrifice of praise that confesses the name of Jesus and imitates his self-giving love (see Hebrews 13:15).

What is clear to St John at the crucifixion is made still clearer by the resurrection, when the ongoing presence of the risen Christ is revealed. He is present in the Church, which is his body, and in the lives of believers who constitute that body (see 1 Cor 12:12-30). He is present, too, in the lives of the poor, the broken, the marginalised, the crucified of every time and place, for as the last judgment scene of Matthew’s Gospel makes very clear, he identifies with them in a very special way (see Matthew 25:31-46). In this light, it is clear to Christian faith that the story of Jesus Christ continues today, so that Pilate’s immortal phrase – ecce homo – can be understood as a pointer to his identification with every human being and to his solidarity with all the outcasts and rejects of society.

The Gospels thus challenge each of us to be truly Christ-like, truly Christian, in every aspect of our lives. There is no shortage of opportunities for such witness amid the acute difficulties faced by so many as a result of poverty, violence and war, and climate change, all of which are huge contributors to the homelessness which pervades our world and brings so many migrants and refugees to our shores.

How we respond to all such crises defines our lives, for in every instance, we are faced with a fundamental choice: do we opt for Pilate’s way or the way of Christ?

Joe Egan SMA

Mass of the Lord’s Supper – Holy Thursday 2023

gbarnga last supper

Below is an edited version of a Reflection written by Fr Jim Kirstein first published in 2018. 
Evening Mass of the Lord’s Supper

In a television interview a famous Muslim scholar said that the greatest sin of all is forgefulness. According to him if we forget Allah (or for us, God) we forget who we are, what we are about and where we are going. We are like people wandering about without any goal in life, being blown this way and that by whatever prevailing wind blows – pleasure, drugs, money, etc.

Tonight’s feast, the celebration of the institution of the Lord’s Supper is all about remembering. Remembering who God is, who we are, what we are called to be and above all a call to gratitude or thanksgiving which is the Greek word for Eucharist. In the first reading, the Jews are warned not to forget one of the greatest events in their history – the Passover Meal. This meal still is for Jewish communities around the world a commemoration of the Jews as God’s people, namely their liberation from slavery in Egypt. For us as Christians it is a re-enactment of our Passover from slavery, the slavery from sin to the freedom of the children of God.

On the night before he died Jesus celebrated the Last Supper, which became our Eucharist. The account is taken from John’s gospel. John himself does not have a Last Supper scene in his gospel, rather he assumes the Christians know about it and so he interprets the meaning of the Last Supper for us. The love of Jesus for us in giving his life and in instituting the Eucharist is bound up with the idea of service – the washing of the feet. This was the work of a slave at the time of Jesus, but Jesus the Lord and Master tells us that leadership among his followers is a leadership of loving service. To be a leader, to have authority in God’s church is to serve others in love. Serving not in any kind of condescending way but a service among equals.

When Jesus went down on his knees to wash the disciples’ feet Peter was appalled. And he cried out ‘you shall never wash my feet’. Here Peter reveals the mentality of those, and surely we can count ourselves among them at times, that the master never serves but is served and obeyed. But Peter has to learn that in God’s kingdom it is the leader who is the one who serves. It is a message for bishops, priests, religious, parents, teachers, employees, managers, chief executives, in fact for all of us. And yet most ordinary people I know do this, parents in taking care of their children or aging parents, mothers preparing meals, fathers trying to earn enough to take care of their families etc.

If God got down on his knees before you or me here tonight would we have the fundamental poverty needed to accept this graciously? So the incredible love and humility of Jesus in getting down on his knees at the last Supper was just another expression of what he did on the Cross the next day. Each action was a total offer of love, self-sacrifice and service for us.

So the Eucharist must be also at the same time the celebration of a loving, caring, serving community. If there is no community there is no Eucharist. If there is no unity, mutual respect and love for all present, then is not the Eucharist a mockery? Our Eucharist only becomes real after we leave the church. If the celebration of the Eucharist stops at the church door it is a sign and celebration of nothing. It is a failure by those who claim to recognise Jesus in the consecrated bread and wine to fail to see and serve him in those around us. The Eucharist if it is to be real is essentially the sign of a living, loving caring community of brothers and sisters which celebrates and strengthens and what it is through the Eucharist. Jesus told us to do this in memory of him. Let us continue to do it not just inside the church but equally so when we go outside.

‘Lord Jesus help us to practice by service and love what we claim to celebrate at the Eucharist. Amen’

Fr. Jim Kirstein, SMA

Fr Fintan Daly, SMA – Obituary

Fr Fintan Daly, SMA – Obituary

When the Venerable Bishop Melchior de Marion Brésillac founded his Society of African Missions [SMA] on the 8th of December 1856, he had as one of his founding resolutions “to use every available means, all my strength, all my mind, towards the training of a native clergy.” He wrote, “it is pure dream, more brilliant than solid to think of converting any people without a native clergy,” He believed, taught and emphasized that candidates from the country must be selected, trained and ordained. This did not go down well with the other bishops in India, from France and England.     

With the death of Fr Fintan Daly, SMA, on Ash Wednesday last [22 February 2023] in the SMA House, Blackrock Road, Cork, our Society has lost one of the last links with St Theresa’s Minor Seminary, Oke-Are, in Ibadan, Nigeria, where he spent more than 24 years, teaching English Language and Literature and then as Rector. The SMA presence in Ibadan goes back to 1884 when Fathers Jean-Baptiste Chausse and Theodore Holley arrived. Their attempt to start a Catholic Mission failed due to the opposition of the Oba of Oyo, Adeyemi I, and it was to take ten more years before a permanent site was found – on Oke-Are hill – overlooking the growing city of Ibadan. In 1900, the first chapel was built [it is still in use] with the support of SMA supporters in Switzerland. They also began, in 1903, what was to become the Minor Seminary that still exists today, training young men who want to be priests – in Nigeria and as missionaries in foreign lands.

Fintan Daly was born on 16 February 1938, one of eleven children born to Gilbert and Mary [née Murphy] in Poppyhill, Killoran, near Balliansloe, Co Galway. After completing his schooling in Killalaghton National School, Fintan attended St Brendan’s Secondary School, Loughrea where he completed his Leaving Certificate in 1957. Answering a call to missionary priesthood, Fintan was part of the group who went to the SMA Novitiate at Cloughballymore, Kilcolgan, Co Galway. He became an SMA temporary member on 25 June 1958 and was sent to study in University College, Cork, living at the SMA House in Wilton. After attaining his BA [Philosophy and History], Fintan transferred to the SMA Major seminary at Dromantine for his Theology studies. He became a permanent member of the Society on 16 June 1964 and was ordained a priest six months later, on 16 December of that same year.

After Ordination, Fr Fintan completed his studies and set sail for Nigeria on the 6th of October 1965. After spending some months learning the local Yoruba language, he was appointed as Curate in Holy Cross Catholic Church, Ikire. His time there was short as he was soon posted to St Theresa’s Minor Seminary. As a result of his 24 years in Oke-Are, Fr Fintan is possibly one of the most well-known SMA priests in western Nigeria. Three of his students are now bishops in Nigeria [Archbishop Alfred Martins (Lagos), Bishop Felix Ajakaiye (Ekiti) and Bishop Peter Odetoyinbo (Abeokuta)]. A fourth, the late Most Rev Lewis Zeigler, was Archbishop of Monrovia in Liberia.

After his death a message came from a former student from his Minor Seminary days who had to leave the seminary as his father had died and he needed to get a job to support his mother and younger siblings. He wrote that “Fr Daly consoled me like a son with Christ-like love.” The letter he received from Fr Fintan he still has and he reads it to remind himself to share the love of Christ with others just as Fr. Daly has shown me. He also loved basketball. He coached us to the national youth final against an international school in Ibadan. Yes, I have tried to pass on that passion for humanity so that Christ can be lifted up. My fellow seminarians class who did not continue to the priesthood asked me to pass on their sentiments as well. We’ve changed our logo to be his picture. He led and taught by example.”

In 1990, Fr Fintan handed over his responsibility of Rector to Fr [later Monsignor] Jerome Oduntan and took on the pastoral care of the Our Lady of Fatima parish, Eleta. That parish is home to a large hospital under the care of the Medical Missionaries of Mary. Fr Fintan spent many hours every week attending to the sick and dying there.

He saw the Legion of Mary as an essential part in the development of the Church. In the two parishes he worked in – Eleta and St Leo’s SMA Parish, Orita-Challenge – he had several Praesidia who were the vanguard in opening up new outstations. Many of these outstations are now independent parishes in their own right. During his twelve years in Eleta, he founded St Anne’s [Ogbere],

In a 2015 interview he gave to Independent [a Catholic weekly paper in Ibadan], Fr Fintan told the story of an occasion he celebrated Mass in the local prison, where the most hardened of criminals were incarcerated. As he prepared for Mass, he saw a prisoner approaching with something on his head. He came up and spread out a carpet in front of the ‘altar’ [a simple table]. Fr Fintan said to him, “I don’t need a carpet.”. “I am not doing it for you, I’m doing it for Christ,” the man replied. This taught Fintan that when people do something for a priest, they are doing it not just for a person but are doing it for the one they recognize as a representative of Christ.

In 2002, he was elected the Deputy Regional Superior of the SMA in western Nigeria. He moved to the SMA Regional House at Orita-Challenge. Attached to the house was St Leo’s Catholic Church and Fr Fintan served as its Parish Priest from 2002, succeeding Fr Michael Cahill SMA. During his 19 years in St Leo’s, Fr Fintan built on the work of Fr Cahill, developing three existing outstations to the extent that they are now independent parishes: St Anthony’s [founded as outstations in 1990, Asipa], Christ the Good Shepherd [1994, Felele], and St Charles Lwanga [1995, near Ring Road].

He opened several new outstations, including St Benedict [Aba-Oke, Odo-Ona], St Faustina [Kasumu], St Stephen [Lanisa] and Sacred Heart which is part of St Anthony’s parish. Fr Fintan welcomed to the parish the Religious Sisters of Charity who opened a Convent and Novitiate to train young Sisters. The Oblates of St Joseph [a congregation of priests] also have a seminary house in the parish.

Possibly his greatest achievement was the beautiful St Leo’s Church in Challenge [pictured], replacing an old church hall that had served as Parish Church for many years. Work began in 2004 and it was officially opened and dedicated on 15 November, 2008. Built on the side of a hill he used the terrain well and the lower part of the Church has an Oratory for Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, meeting rooms, parish offices and a Sunday Clinic where Fintan provided – through the volunteer doctors and nurses – basic health care every Sunday. A lot of this work was funded through Fr Fintan’s family and neighbours at home as well as funds from the Irish Province of the SMA and other groups such as Apostolic Workers in Ireland, St Peter Claver Sisters, An Garda Siochána, Electric Aid [ESB] etc.

Despite the many outstations he founded, Fr Fintan was very much aware that building churches was not his primary purpose. For him, his most important work was to build up Christian communities and this he did through his commitment to helping the sick, the poor, encouraging young people and his commitment to trying to improving the local environment. Every morning when he came from his room to go over to the Church for 6am Mass, he would find a dozen or more people waiting to see him, in need of some material help. He never disappointed them, even if it was obvious that some were taking advantage of his kindness. All that mattered for him was that they were in need and he would try to help them to the best of his ability. And every evening he took time to pray for them and the many other intentions he had.

Due to his close association with so many of the local priests and with Archbishop Felix Alaba Job of Ibadan, he served as Vicar General to the Archbishop for ten years. As a sign of his appreciation for his service to the Archdiocese, the Holy Father conferred the Papal Award, Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice [For the Church and the Pope] on him in 2015.

He was also the Society Superior for the SMA members in Ibadan and later was elected as Deputy Regional Superior of his SMA confreres in the west of Nigeria – both positions signalling the type of person he was: reliable, solid and, most of all, truly a man of deep spirituality. If you were looking for Fr Fintan after supper you were sure to find him in the Oratory, reciting his Rosary and other Prayers. His whole missionary life was built on that firm foundation: a deep personal relationship with God. For that reason he was able, when asked how he was a few days before he died, to answer: “I’m just waiting.” And his Lord did not disappoint him, calling him home on Ash Wednesday, the first day of the Lenten period when we prepare for the suffering, death and Resurrection of Christ – that promise of eternal life for those good and faithful servants. Fr Fintan Daly surely is one of those servants.

Fr Fintan returned to Ireland in 2021 for medical care. When he received news of his terminal illness, he accepted the inevitability of his death and prepared himself for that moment when the Lord called him to his eternal rest.

In that same 2015 interview, Fr Fintan made the following reply when asked about his future: “The future is not ours to see… But we leave the future in the hands of God. Jesus told us not to worry about tomorrow…” Rest in peace Fr Fintan.

The Archbishops, priests, religious and the faithful of the Archdiocese of Ibadan, Nigeria, particularly former students, along with his family and confreres in the Society of African Missions, have many fond memories of a remarkable missionary. Fr Fintan died peacefully in the St Theresa’s Nursing Unit, SMA House, Blackrock Road, Cork at 9.15 on Ash Wednesday, 22 February 2023, with his sister Frances, other family members and SMA confreres at his bedside.

May God comfort his family, neighbours, students, parishioners and SMA confreres and all who mourn his death.

Fr Fintan is survived by his sisters Cepta, Ita (Goggins), Maeve (Fitzgerald), Philomena (Hernandez), Chrissie, Frances (Carty), Carmel, his brother Sonny, sister-in-law Mary Daly, brother-in-law Jimmy Carty and his Aunt Una Murphy as well as other relatives and a large family circle.

His Funeral Mass was celebrated in St Joseph’s SMA Church, Wilton, Cork on Tuesday, the 28th of February, followed by his burial in the SMA community cemetery.

 

EASTER SUNDAY – Year A

 Readings: Acts 10:34, 37-43;  Col 3:1-4; John 20:1-9

 Theme:  ‘The way is open, death has been deposed…And you are free at last on Easter Day’ (Malcolm Guite)

 In the early 19th century, gas lamps were  installed in the dark foggy streets of London and other cities, mainly as a safety measure. Someone had to light these gas lamps at night and extinguish them before morning. Thus the job of the Lamplighter was born. The story is told about one of these lamplighters who was interviewed by a newspaper reporter about his job. The reporter asked him if he ever grew weary of his work on the cold, lonely winter nights. ‘Never’’ replied the Lamplighter ‘for there is always a light ahead of me to lead me on. But, added the reporter, ‘what about when you have put out the last light?’  ‘Then’, replied the lamplighter,  ‘comes the dawn’. Today, Easter Sunday, we celebrate the coming of a dawn that has transformed our world forever. In the words of St Clement of Alexandria, the resurrection of Christ has turned all our sunsets into dawns’.

Today’s gospel passage from St John recounts the dramatic story of Mary of Magdala’s discovery of the empty tomb. This is the same Mary mentioned as one of those standing at the foot of the cross as Jesus lay dying (cf. Jn 19:25). Very early on the first day of the week (Sunday), she goes alone to the tomb of Jesus. Surprised to find that the large stone sealing the entrance to the tomb removed and presuming that the body of Jesus has also been removed, she rushes off to inform Peter and John (‘the other disciple’).  They, in turn, run to the tomb as fast as they can. John, younger and fitter, reaches the tomb first, where he waits for Peter who enters the tomb ahead of him. Both of them see the burial cloths of Jesus on the ground, indicating that the body had not been stolen, and come to believe in his resurrection. The account ends with the statement: ‘Until that moment they had failed to understand the teaching of scripture, that he must rise from the dead’ (Jn 20:9).

In our first reading Peter declares that Jesus’ Resurrection from the dead was the direct action of God: ‘God raised him to life and allowed him to be seen’ (Acts 10:38). The Resurrection of Jesus is God the Father’s response to the Cross, the affirmation of everything that Jesus preached and did, everything for which he lived and died. It is the definitive answer of the Father to a world that sought to silence Jesus forever; the final word between God and humanity in the great dialogue of salvation – the Father’s great ‘Amen’ to his beloved Son, and, through him, to humanity and all creation.

On this Easter Sunday morning, let us rejoice and be glad because Christ our Lord is Risen. Death, and all that is negative within ourselves and in our world, has no longer any power over him. And, with him, we too are victorious, for now nothing can come between us and the love of God made manifest in Christ (cf Rom 8:39). With the resurrection of Jesus, earth has been for evermore joined to heaven, and the ‘new creation’ has begun. This means, not just that there is life after death, but that, here and now, the old creation, where the power of death held sway, has been dethroned, and a new power loosed upon the world – the power to remake what is broken, to heal what has been diseased, and to restore what has been lost.

Our second reading from St Paul’s Letter to the Colossians draws out the implications of Christ’s resurrection for us, his disciples. In baptism we died with Christ and came to share in his new, risen life. So, ‘we must look for the things that are in heaven, where Christ is, sitting at God’s right hand (Col 3:2). In saying this, Paul is not suggesting that we become so heavenly-minded as to be of no earthly use. To the contrary, it means, living, here and now, in the light of the new creation. It means, as St Paul reminds us, casting off the outworn garments of our former selves, and clothing ourselves in the heavenly garments of compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, patience and love (cf. Col 3:12-15). It means turning away from the language of hate and resentment and speaking a new language – the heavenly language of forgiveness. It means courageously resisting the forces of darkness that use bombs and bullets as instruments of power, and letting the peace of Christ rule in our hearts (cf. Col 3:15). It means striving to manifest, in every relationship, in every word and deed, the name – the power – of Christ Jesus, our Lord (cf. Col 3:17)

I will end with a few verses from A Villanelle for Easter Day by the contemporary Anglican poet, Malcolm Guite

As though some heavy stone were rolled away,
You find an open door where all was closed,
Wide as an empty tomb on Easter Day….

 Perhaps there’s light enough to find your way,
For now the tangled wood feels less enclosed,
As though some heavy stone were rolled away.

You lift your feet out of the miry clay
And seek the light in which you once reposed,
Wide as an empty tomb on Easter Day.

 And then Love calls your name, you hear Him say:
The way is open, death has been deposed,
As though some heavy stone were rolled away,
And you are free at last on Easter Day
.

I wish you all a blessed, peaceful and joy-filled Easter!

Michael McCabe

To listen to an alternative  Easter Sunday Homily from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

SMA International News – April 2023

Welcome to the April edition of the SMA International News. In this Bulletin we have reports from:

  • Liberia: Where we join an annual pilgrimage in Sasstown/Betu which commemorates the foundation of the church in this country. Fr Factna O’Driscoll SMA brings us the story of this event which also included a visit to the graves of three Irish missionaries.
  •  Tanzania: We see the early stages, of a community laying foundations for a new church in Bugisi, which is in the Diocese of Shnyanga.
  •  Zambia: a landmark achievement has been reached by the SMA Media Centre in Ndola which has been run by Fr Tom Casey SMA for the last 23 years.

This months bulletin ends with information from the SMA Generalate in Rome about a visit of Fr. Francois de Paul and Fr Christophe Pachut to Zambia.  

Click on the red Play Button below to view.

A Lenten Journey of Faith

Our thanks to Fr Patrickson Francis, an Indian SMA, who sent us this story and photographs from Sierra Leone. 

The SMA Buedu Mission Lenten Pilgrimage was held on Saturday 25th March 2023, on the Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord.

The Pilgrimage was organised collectively with the neighboring parish, St. Joseph Catholic Church – Koindu. Both Parishes started from there respective main center Churches with the coordination of their Priest-in-charge. That is to say, on the part of Buedu Mission, the journey was started from the main certain Church St. John the Baptist Catholic Church with the opening prayer and introduction from the Priest-in-Charge Rev. Fr. Patrikson Francis SMA, who invited the people to offer as a prayer this pilgrimage and the sacrifices involved in union with Christ’s suffering. The journey started with the parishioners of Buedu who where joined by the outstations of the Mission comprising of both children, youth and old belonging to various Church organizations such as Holy Childhood, CYO  (Catholic Youth Organization), CMA (Catholic Men’s Association), and the CWA (Catholic Women’s Association). They prayed the Stations of the Cross along the Journey. 

The journey was amazing, the people were concentrated in prayerful mood and the organization of the whole Pilgrimage was awesome. Seeing that the journey was long, the CMA was in charge of providing water at various stations while CWA was in charge of the food to be taken after the end of the programme and the CYO was in charge of the singing during the Stations of Cross. 

The final place of the pilgrimage was collectively prepared with the neighboring Diocesan Parish at Koindu which is close to the place. Upon arrival, the Sacrament of Confession was available before Mass. Thereafter, they both joined together in the Eucharistic Celebration. The Priest-in-Charge was accompanied by his assistant and an SMA Student on a training placement in Koindu.

The Pilgrimage from Buedu, to the final place took 14km with 250 participants. Truly a a journey of faith and self-sacrifice in preparation for the joy of Easter. 

 

Palm Sunday – Year A

Readings:  Isaiah 50:4-7; Philippians 2:6-11; Matthew 26:14-27:6

Theme: ‘There was a shout about my ears and palms before my feet’ (G.K. Chesterton).

 Today, Palm [Passion] Sunday, marks the beginning of Holy Week, the final phase of our Lenten preparation for the great feast of Easter. This is the only Sunday on which two Gospels are proclaimed. The first, during the procession with palms, is taken from Matthew’s gospel and recounts Jesus’  entry into Jerusalem, riding on a donkey to launch the final stage of his mission. He is greeted joyfully by the crowds, who, spreading their garments and palm branches on the road before him, acclaim him with the words: ‘Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest (Mt 21:10).   These are the same crowds who will, a few days later, shout out in unison, ‘Let him be crucified!’ (Mt 27:22).  

During the Liturgy of the Word, the events of Jesus’ passion are proclaimed in full, this year from the gospel of Matthew.  These same events will be proclaimed again on Good Friday from John’s gospel.  We may wonder why the Church gives such a central place in its liturgy to recalling, in all their gory details, the humiliation and crucifixion of the one who was Love Incarnate, the one who came on earth only to bring healing, forgiveness and peace?   Surely not because this was the price demanded by the Father for our sins.  Only a sadist would demand such a price, and God, far from being a sadist, is Love itself. Nor did Jesus go out of his way to bring about his violent end. He did not seek the Cross. However,  he did embrace it freely as he discerned that the inevitable outcome of his mission of love would involve being handed over to his enemies and put to death.

Jesus’ suffering and death shows us with startling clarity what happens to self-forgetful love in a world ruled by the demons of hatred and violence. Jesus might have avoided the Cross, but only by turning aside from his mission of proclaiming and inaugurating the God’s reign of justice, peace and love. And this he could not and would not do. To reveal the full extent of God’s love for us, he had to endure suffering and death. The events we recall today represent the final phase and climax of Jesus’ life-giving mission of love and they reveal, as the fourth Eucharistic prayer reminds us, ‘how perfect his love was’.

Mel Gibson, in his famous 2004 movie, The Passion of the Christ, highlights the passion – the horrific suffering – endured by Jesus during the final twelve hours of his life. Yet, despite it lenghty and detailed portrayal of the violence inflicted on Jesus, Gibson’s movie is not a true representation of his passion. Jesus’ suffering and death on the Cross cannot be understood apart from the context of his passionate life, lived in obedience to the will of his Father, and poured out in loving service of others, especially the poor and marginalised: proclaiming a message of hope to those longing for liberation, healing of the sick, forgiving sinners, and casting out demons. 

We recall the death of Jesus not as an arbitrary act of gratuitous violence but rather as the supreme manifestation of a life of love – the love of one who, as our second reading today reminds us, ‘did not cling to his equality with God but emptied himself to assume the condition of a slave’ (Phil. 2: 6 -7). In the first phase of his mission, Jesus was actively implementing his mission of proclaiming and witnessing to the reign of God. Now, in this final phase of his life, he is the one being acted upon. We see him being betrayed, arrested, imprisoned, interrogated by Caiphas, Herod and Pilate, scourged, crowned with thorns, mocked, forced to carry a cross, stripped of his garments,  and finally nailed and hung on the cross until he expired.  But this is not the end but rather the climax of his mission of loving service.

The Cross, as the noted Dominican theologian, Herbert McCabe, reminds us, reveals ‘the weakness of God…, not the weakness of ineffectiveness but the weakness of love, which is our best picture of the power of God. From creation itself right through to redemption the power of God is exercised not in manipulating and interfering with things but in letting them be, because the power of God is the power of love’. It is, however, only through the lens of the resurrection that we come to see the weakness of divine love in our world, not as a tragic defeat, but as a glorious victory.  To quote again from that wonderful hymn in our second reading: ‘But God raised him high and gave him the name which is above all other names, so that all beings in the heavens, on earth and in the underworld… should acclaim Jesus as Lord, to the glory of God the Father’ (Phil. 2: 9 -11)

As we prayerfully recall the memory of Jesus’ passion and death, we profess our gratitude for the love that allowed Jesus to be ‘led like an innocent lamb to the slaughter’. We express our solidarity with all the victims of violence in our world today: the people of Ukraine, Syria, Afghanistan, Yemen, South Sudan, Nigeria, and many other countries. And we pray that, like Jesus, we may be active witnesses to his transforming love in our violent world.

Michael McCabe SMA.

To listen to an alternative Homily  for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

5th Sunday of Lent – Year A

 Readings: Ezekiel 37:12-14; Romans 8:8-11; John 11:1-45

 Theme: I am the resurrection and the life’ (Jn 11:25)

Today’s gospel reading from John recounts the familiar story of Jesus’ raising of Lazarus from death. This story includes the shortest sentence in the Bible: ‘Jesus wept’ (Jn 11: 25). These two words capture one of the most moving scenes in the life of Jesus, a scene in which he expresses the depth of his grief on the death of his friend, Lazarus. While John’s gospel is noted for its emphasis on the divinity of Jesus, it also highlights his humanity, his complete identification with us in all things, except sin. Jesus experienced the unspeakable grief that accompanies the death of a loved one, and so he wept – along with all those heartbroken at the death of Lazarus.

When a close relative or friend dies, something within us is broken beyond repair. Words fail us, and we are reduced to tears.  Tears are the only language that can give expression to our grief, our acute sense of loss. Grief is the reverse side of the face of love, and our gospel reading today draws our attention to Jesus’ love for Lazarus. The message of Lazarus’ sisters to Jesus states ‘He whom you love is ill (Jn 11:3), and when the crowd see Jesus weeping, they remark, ‘See how he [Jesus] loved him [Lazarus]’ (Jn 11: 36). Love inevitably exposes the human heart to pain and sorrow. Jesus is the perfect example of a human heart constantly open to others in love and he fully embraced the intense pain and suffering that is part and parcel of all genuinely loving relationships.

The occasion of the death of Lazarus serves not only to draw our attention to the humanity of Jesus. It serves especially to manifest his divinity, to reveal him as the life-giving Word of God.  Early on in his story, John tells us that, through the death of Lazarus, the Son of God will be glorified (cf. Jn 11:4). The raising of Lazarus from death is an illustration of the great truth about Jesus, proclaimed at the beginning of John’s Gospel: ‘All that came to be had life in him and that life was the light of people, a light that shines in the dark, a light that darkness could not overpower’ (Jn 1:4-5). It is also a climactic moment in the unfolding of Jesus’ life-giving mission, as affirmed in John 10:10:  ‘I have come that they may have life and have it to the full’.

John narrates the story of the raising of Lazarus with great dramatic flair. It opens with Jesus being informed that his friend, Lazarus, is seriously ill. To our surprise, Jesus waits two more days before journeying to Bethany, where Lazarus and his sisters live. Bethany is close to Jerusalem, and Jesus and his disciples are quite aware of the danger that awaits him there. The Jewish leaders are plotting to capture and kill him. Thomas alludes to this danger when he says to his fellow disciples, ‘Let us also go, that we may die with him’ (Jn 11:16).

When Jesus arrives in Bethany, Martha and Mary rebuke him for not having come sooner. In welcoming Jesus, Martha says, ‘Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died’ (Jn 11:21). Later, when Mary comes from her house to meet Jesus, she falls at his feet and greets him with similar words (cf. Jn 11: 32). Jesus does not take umbrage at their implied rebuke, but makes the astonishing declaration, ‘I am the resurrection and the life’ (Jn 11:25) and leads them to express their faith in him. Martha responds in words that echo Peter’s profession of faith in Jesus: ‘I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God’ (Jn 11:27).

The climax of the story comes when Jesus is brought to the ‘cave’ where the body of Lazarus is entombed. Overriding Martha’s protests about the smell of death from a body already four days in the tomb, Jesus asks that the stone enclosing the tomb be removed. Then, following a prayer of thanksgiving to his Father, he cries out in a loud voice: ‘Lazarus, come out’ (Jn11:43). And, in laconic words that seem to contrast with the astonishing miracle they depict, John tells us that ‘The dead man came out, his feet and hands bound with strips of linen, and his face wrapped in a cloth’ (Jn 11:44). The story ends with Jesus turning to the awe-struck Jews around him and commanding them: ‘Unbind him, let him go free’ (Jn 11:44). The community is called upon to play its part in freeing Lazarus to emerge into the light of his new life. 

When Vaclav Havel, the famous Czech dissident, and later first President of the Czech Republic, was released from jail after many years of imprisonment under a Communist regime, he stated that he ‘felt like Lazarus emerging from the tomb and awakening to new life’.  He exhorted his fellow citizens to keep the flame of hope burning in their hearts. ‘Life without hope is empty, boring and useless,’ he said. ‘It is like being in a tomb. I do not know how I could have survived if I did not have hope in my heart. I am thankful to heaven for this gift. Hope is as big as life itself’. Let us continue to keep alive the gift of hope in our own lives as we profess our faith in the resurrection of the body and the life of the world to come

Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily  for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

EARTH HOUR 2023

“The ecological crisis is also a summons to profound interior conversion…Living our vocation to be protectors of God’s handiwork is essential to a life of virtue; it is not an optional or a secondary aspect of our Christian experience.” (Laudato Si’ 217)

Saturday 25th of March at 8.30pm, millions of people across the globe will unite to show they care about the future of our planet, by switching off lights for one hour.  It is one of the world’s biggest Environmental actions for Nature, Creation and Climate across the world.

Earth Hour 2023 is a special global event. It is held annually to raise awareness about the importance of protecting our planet. The event is a timely reminder of the need to take action on climate change. This annual event encourages people, parishes, communities, and businesses to ‘turn off’ non-essential electric lights, for one hour, from 8.30 to 9.30 p.m as a symbol of commitment to the planet – and to help create a better world for the future.  

Earth hour is the moment when local and global communities unite by switching off lights to show they care about the future of our planet – our one shared home.

The point of Earth Hour is not just to save energy for one hour; it’s also a symbolic global event that shows we can all make a difference in the fight against climate change. If we all work together, even small changes can make a big difference!

Take time out to reflect on what nature means to you by joining Earth Hour 2023. 

Earth hour is a time to ‘switch off’ from distractions & to focus on our World – Please join in

 

 

 

 

Mission is an adventure worth living – Father Giovanni Benetti SMA

Below is an article published by Agenzia Fides about an Italian SMA living and working in the  Brésillac’ Centre – the SMA House of Formation in Calavi, Republic of Benin. 

“At the beginning of January 2022, I moved to Calavì, Benin, to the Brésillac’ Center where some of the seminarians of the Society for African Missions attend the International Year of Spirituality (Novitiate), while others undertake studies in philosophy and theology”. Thus, Father Giovanni Benetti begins to recount the experience that he is living among the young seminarians of the Calavì Center, on the outskirts of the large city of Cotonou, in the south of the country.

“I find myself in the midst of many young people who, together with the formation staff and the friends of the Center, nurture an atmosphere of fraternity and simplicity”, writes the missionary.

Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Tanzania, Togo, Ivory Coast, Angola, Liberia, Zambia, DR Congo, Benin, India, are the home countries of the thirty-seven seminarians currently living and studying in the ‘Brésillac’ Center. There are five SMA priests on the formation team, of whom one is from India, two from Nigeria, one from Poland and Fr Giovanni himself who comes from Italy.

SMA seminarians and staff after Sunday Mass – Fr Giovanni is on the right – click to enlarge photo

“I am involved” continued Father Benetti, “in the spiritual accompaniment of our seminarians, through the preparation of retreats, formation courses, and through participation in the meetings that organise and plan the formation programme.  

Depending on the time I have available, I also try to offer pastoral service, especially on Sundays, in some of the neighbouring parishes.  There is plenty of work to do here in Calavi and it demands a great sense of responsibility, since the vocations and the lives of the seminarians, future missionaries of the SMA are at stake. They expect an authentic Christian witness from me and from the other Fathers. This requires humility and calls on formators to share the problems and immerse themselves in the personal journey of these young people on their way towards the priesthood and missionary commitment without borders.

“Of course, here as everywhere, not everything is rosy. The water, for example, is not

SMA Students and Staff

drinkable, so it must be filtered or boiled. Unlike Nairobi, where I have been since 2021, Calavì’s tropical climate is harsh and Anopheles Mosquitoes are present and very active; you try to fight them with mosquito nets and repellents. However, even so – I clearly say this work and mission is an adventure worth living because it helps me to grasp what is really essential in life and to understand what is less important. I ask the Lord to help me be a reflection of his love, here in this place and wherever his Spirit takes me. My desire is, above all, to share with simplicity the precious gift that I have received from Him: the faith, which gives flavour, serenity and meaning to life”.

(Agenzia Fides, 17/3/2023)

St Patrick’s Day Message 2023 – President Michael D Higgins

Below are highlights from the message of President Higgins which contains a strong endorsement of inclusion and welcome at a time when xenophobia, racism and right-wing sentiment is emerging in Ireland  The full text of his message can be viewed here

Mar Uachtarán na hÉireann, may I send my warmest greetings and good wishes to our Irish family, and friends of Ireland, across the world, on this day of celebration of our national patron, Saint Patrick.

Whether we are Irish by birth or Irish by choice, we are all part of a rich and vibrant global community that is bound together by a shared love of life, a shared love of our national heritage, language and culture.  Today, as we gather to celebrate that spiritual culture and legacy that speaks so deeply to us of a common but complex past, we can draw a shared strength from recalling the inspirational teachings from the life of Saint Patrick, our national Patron Saint.

In these times of multiple interacting crises, human and natural, it is vital that we recognise the need for a solidarity that binds us together as humans, and acknowledge the responsibility we share for our vulnerable planet and for all those who dwell on it……

Over a year on from the invasion, the people of Ukraine, and all those ensnared in the more than 20 armed conflicts around the world, must remain foremost in our minds.  It is heartening to see the welcome that so many households and schools have extended here in Ireland and elsewhere, heartening to hear of all those who continue to provide sanctuary to the tens of thousands of displaced Ukrainian citizens who have fled conflict in their homeland…. Thank you.

…..Saint Patrick emerged from slavery, having been trafficked across the Irish Sea as a young man.  After six years he escaped, returning to his family and his studies in Britain.  Yet, in a remarkable display of resilience and generosity, he would later return to Ireland as a missionary….The story of his life as a migrant, we must never forget, is a reminder of the resilience and necessary courage of migrants, a reminder too of the contributions that they have made, and continue to make, to the countries they call home.…Today, as we recall the life of our patron saint, we can invoke his spirit in acknowledging our role as global citizens, opening our minds and hearts to our universal human family in all its complexity, circumstances and vulnerability…..

Basic human morality suggests that we must think in terms of the common good if we are to invoke or follow the path of Saint Patrick, recognizing that we bear a duty to stand in solidarity with all those across the globe who are vulnerable and in need, and do everything in our power to create an inclusive, just world where all humans, in all their diversity and circumstances, are treated with dignity, respect and justice.…we are required to respond to the ongoing, brutal reality of human trafficking and forced migration….  It is by doing that we can most fully embrace Patrick’s legacy and our own place and exercise our responsibilities in today’s world.

There are so many areas where we cannot continue to fail on such basic issues as global hunger and poverty.  …. During my recent visit to Senegal at which I addressed the Africa Food Summit, I emphasised that there is an urgent need to tackle not only poverty and hunger in Africa but to offer proper security on the basic necessities of life, delivering universal basic services such as education and healthcare, thus helping to create a lasting, sustainable future built on security in its most inclusive sense.

We have a moral and ethical responsibility to support our global family in dire need, to help with sustainable solutions to ending all famines, to provide a decisive response to climate change……It is such a tragic injustice that those nations suffering the greatest human and economic impact of climate change are those who were least responsible for the emissions that threaten their very existence.

The demand for collective action addressing our shared Earth’s climate emergency has never been greater. …On this day, let us pledge to work together, cooperating, so that we may confront the contemporary challenges facing our world, espousing some of the most essential values, such as kindness and compassion, embodied as they are in the story of Saint Patrick….

I wish you all a most enjoyable and peaceful Saint Patrick’s Day. Beannachtaí na Féile Pádraig oraibh uilig.

Michael D Higgins, President of Ireland

 

4th Sunday of Lent – Year A

Readings: 1 Samuel 16:1,6-7,10-13; Ephesians 5:8-14; John 9:1-41

 Theme: ‘Be like children of Light’ (Eph 5:8)

Last Sunday we had wonderful story from the Gospel of John, featuring a Samaritan woman who meets Jesus at Jacob’s well and ends up becoming a missionary to her town’s people. Today we have another equally fascinating story, also from John’s gospel. This time the story features a man, a blind beggar, who is cured by Jesus and becomes his disciple, courageously standing up to the Pharisees who refuse to believe in him. 

During World War II the American journalist and champion of racial equality, John Howard Griffin, was blinded in an air-plane explosion, and for twelve years couldn’t see. Then one day, as he was walking down a street near his parents’ home in Texas, he began to see ‘red sand’ in front of his eyes. Almost immediately, his sight was restored. The eye specialist explained to him the reason for the extraordinary recovery of his sigh. A blockage of blood on the optic nerve, caused by the explosion, had opened, giving him back his sight. Later, in an interview with a newspaper reporter, Griffin said: ‘You don’t know what it means for a father to see his children for the first time. They were much more beautiful than I ever suspected’. Griffin’s dramatic experience may give us some inkling of the joy felt by the hero of today’s gospel when he was able to see for the first time.

The physical cure of the blind man, wonderful as it is, is not the main focus of our gospel reading. It is just a prelude to the more awesome miracle of spiritual sight, of the blind man’s awakening to faith in Jesus. This miracle of faith happens gradually, mirroring the physical cure, which was also gradual. Initially, when some people question him about his cure, he simply recounts what happened to him, stating that ‘the man called Jesus’ (Jn 9:15) was responsible for his cure. Later in the story, under interrogation by the Pharisees, our hero courageously stands up to them and declares that Jesus ‘is a prophet’ (cf. Jn 9: 17).  Finally, when he meets Jesus again, John tells us that he professes his belief in him as ‘the Son of Man’ (Jn 9:35) and worships him.

It is no coincidence that the cure of the blind man and his profession of faith in Jesus coincided with one of the major Jewish feasts, the Feast of Tabernacles. During the time of Christ, this feast had come to be known as simply ‘The Feast’ . It lasted seven days and, on every night during this feast, four great lights were lit in the Temple of Jerusalem, illuminating the entire temple precinct. This ceremony was intended to remind the people of the pillar of fire, symbolising the presence of God, that had led them during their journey in the wilderness of Sinai. This ceremony was also a reminder that God had promised to send another greater light to renew Israel’s glory, release the people from bondage, and restore their joy. It is in this context that Jesus’ cures the man born blind and declares himself to be ‘’the light of the world’ (cf. Jn 9: 10).  By this statement, Jesus is implying that he is not just a prophet, but also the light of God – the same light that led them through the wilderness of Sinai. He is the very real presence of God among them. 

The blind man’s faith journey and acceptance of the light of Christ clearly echoes the spiritual awakening of the Samaritan woman whom we met in last Sunday’s gospel.  It also stands in stark contrast to the spiritual blindness of the Pharisees who obstinately refuse to accept the man’s testimony to Jesus, dismissing him as a sinner and driving him away (cf. Jn 9:34). Their arrogance and conviction that, with Moses as their guide, they are already living in the light, leads them to reject the very light to which Moses had born witness (cf. Jn 5:47).  Jesus underlines the sad irony of an unschooled blind man awakening to the light of Christ while the Pharisees, schooled in the Mosaic Law, remain enclosed in darkness. He states: ‘It is for judgement that I have come into this world, so that those without sight may see and those with sight turn blind’ (Jn 9: 39).

As disciples of Jesus, we are invited, to learn from the example of the blind man in today’s gospel, and open our hearts fully to the light of Christ.  Then, as St Paul reminds us in our second reading, we must continue to live ‘like children of light… in complete goodness and right living and truth’ (Eph 5:8), rolling back the darkness of our world until it is filled with the presence of the God who is Light.

I will end with a reflection on the gift of light from the pen of Sean Goan:

It is a reasonable thing to be afraid of the dark:
the obstacles in our path might be anywhere, everywhere.
And yet with time we can probably manage it.
We get used to fumbling around and we persuade ourselves
that maybe this is how it was meant to be;
we can settle for the shadows.
Then the dawn comes and slowly we learn to see…
it is so much more beautiful than we could ever have imagined.
Light gives colour, shades, perspective, new horizons.
Everything is different and the gift that is offered
is to contemplate Life in all its wonder.
Do not be afraid, just come and see the God who is Light,
in whom there is no darkness at all.’   

Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily  for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

MARCH 2023| For victims of abuse – Video Message of Pope Francis

“Asking for forgiveness is not enough” Pope Francis demands answers, actions, and safe spaces for victims of abuse.

This month’s message is dedicated to all the people who have been victims of abuse, “especially to those committed by members of the Church,” that they may “find within the Church herself a concrete response to their pain and suffering.”

For Pope Francis, victims are the ones who should be “at the center of everything”; they are the ones who need “answers; concrete actions to repair the horrors they have suffered and to prevent them from happening again.” 

Text of Message
In response to cases of abuse, especially to those committed by members of the Church, it’s not enough to ask for forgiveness. Asking for forgiveness is necessary, but it is not enough. Asking for forgiveness is good for the victims, but they are the ones who have to be “at the center” of everything. Their pain and their psychological wounds can begin to heal if they find answers —if there are concrete actions to repair the horrors they have suffered and to prevent them from happening again.

The Church cannot try to hide the tragedy of abuse of any kind. Nor when the abuse takes place in families, in clubs, or in other types of institutions.  The Church must serve as a model to help solve the issue and bring it to light in society and in families. The Church must offer safe spaces for victims to be heard, supported psychologically, and protected.

Let us pray for those who have suffered because of the wrongs done to them from members of the Church; may they find within the Church herself a concrete response to their pain and suffering.

Pope Francis – March 2023

3rd Sunday of Lent – Year A

Readings:  Exodus 17:3-7; Romans 5:1-2,5-8; John 4:5-42

ThemeAn Unforgettable Meeting at the Well

As a young lad, growing up on a small farm in the country before the advent of water on tap, one of my favourite chores was going to the well for water. My dad had dug and lined a well in the field below our house. Once a day, along with one of my brothers, or with my sister, I went to the well to ferry fresh water to the house. I enjoyed the challenge of lowering the bucket on a rope and pulling it up to the surface without spilling the water. Often, at the well, we would meet and chat with some of our neighbours who also came there to draw water. Today’s gospel reading from St John recounts the familiar story of Jesus’ meeting with a Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well in Sychar.

Some background will help us appreciate the significance of this intriguing story. Jesus and his disciples have left Jerusalem to return to the northern region of Galilee, where Jesus grew up and where he will carry out most of his ministry. Their journey takes them through Samaria whose inhabitants were a mixed-blood race due to centuries of intermarriage between Jews and Gentiles. Relationships between Jews and Samaritans were strained, to say the least – a bit like the relationship between Unionists and Catholics in Northern Ireland prior to the Good Friday Agreement. As we learn from John’s account, Jews and Samaritans did not worship God in the same place or associate with one another in any way.

The story begins with Jesus, a tired and thirsty traveller, resting himself by the well of Jacob during the hottest part of the day (‘the sixth hour’) while his disciples go off to the town to buy food. A Samaritan woman comes to the well to draw water and Jesus asks her for a drink. In response the woman expresses astonishment at his request: ‘What? You are a Jew and you ask me, a Samaritan, for a drink?’ (Jn 4:7).  In asking her for a drink, Jesus is breaching the social and religious boundaries of his day on a number of counts. First, he is interacting alone with a woman. Secondly, she is a Samaritan woman, with whom he should not be conversing. Thirdly, according to Jewish law, accepting a drink from such a woman would entail ritual contamination for a law-abiding Jew. On their return from town, Jesus’ disciples are clearly shocked to find their master conversing with her (cf. Jn 4:27).

The woman’s surprised reaction gives Jesus the opportunity to shift the focus of the conversation from his thirst to her need and to move it to a deeper level.  He tells her that if she knew who he is –  which she clearly doesn’t –  she would be the one asking him for ‘living water’ (cf. Jn 4: 10). She responds by asking how he can give her this water without a bucket. She even challenges him, saying:   ‘Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us this well?’ (Jn 4:11).  Patiently, Jesus points out that he is offering her something infinitely greater than physical water: ‘anyone who drinks the water that I shall give will never be thirsty again’ but will have ‘eternal life’  (Jn 4:14). Jesus is, of course, referring not to a physical thirst, but to a spiritual thirst, a thirst of the heart that people have experienced since the dawn of time.  This is a thirst that only a life-giving relationship with God can satisfy. In the memorable words of St Augustine, ‘Our hearts are made for God, and they will not rest, until they rest in God’. It is and answer to this thirst Jesus is offering the Samaritan woman, though she does not yet realise it.

Eventually, as the conversation continues – ranging from the woman’s messy marriage situation to the different traditions of worship of Jews and Samaritans – the woman comes to recognise Jesus as a prophet. The conversation culminates with Jesus revealing himself to her as the Messiah. Finally, she has found the answer to a longing she didn’t realise she had until she met him. Leaving behind the water-jar, she rushes off joyfully to tell her town’s people about the man who has revealed her life to her. Abandoning her water jar is undoubtedly symbolic of the fact that she had indeed found in Jesus the source of ‘living water’.  And with this discovery, a missionary is born.  She cannot keep her experience to herself. She feels compelled to share it with others. As a result of her testimony, many Samaritans come to believe in Jesus. Many more come to believe in him when he stays in their town for two days, and they meet him themselves.  Their direct experience of Jesus leads them to acknowledge him as ‘truly the Saviour of the World’ (Jn 4:42).

In an inspiring little book on John’s Gospel, entitled The Sign, scripture scholar, Sean Goan, highlights how this captivating story of Jesus’ meeting with the Samaritan woman can enrich our own faith-journey.  He invites us to identify ourselves with the Smaritan woman and recognise ourselves in her,

‘because she names our thirst,
she embodies all the paths we go down looking for God,
she is humble enough to trust that God might be looking for her;
she is courageous enough to leave the jar behind.
Through her we understand that in God there are no outsiders;
we become grateful for the journey we have been on,
wherever it has taken us.
And that is a wonderful thing!’

                                                                                                 Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily  for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

SMA International News – March 2023

Welcome to the SMA International News for the month of March. This month we have news reports from, Italy, Cote d’Ivoire and Benin Republic. 
From Italy we hear about how the SMA there work with the Laity.  Then, in the Ivory Coast we go to the Centre Donata, a project supported through the SMA, which provides treatment for Buruli ulceration. Our third report from Benin Republic tells us about the Parish of St Peter, where the SMA has worked in since 1948.    
 
The bulletin ends with greetings to SMAs who have celebrated the 60th Anniversary of their Ordination. 
 

 

 

Fr Fintan Daly SMA – Funeral Homily

Fr Fintan Daly died peacefully on Ash Wednesday, 22 February 2023, in the African Missions, Blackrock Road, Cork. His Funeral Mass was celebrated on Tuesday, 28 February, at St Joseph’s SMA Church, Wilton, Cork in the presence of his extended family, SMA confreres, OLA Sisters, Medical Missionary of Mary Sisters and Religious Sisters of Charity [some of whom worked with Fr Fintan in Ibadan], neighbours and friends.

Fr Malachy Flanagan, SMA Irish Provincial Leader, was the Principal Celebrant. The Principal Concelebrants were Fr Christopher Emokhare SMA, a seconded member of the Irish Province and is FVC Director in Munster. Fr Christopher was raised in Ibadan and knew Fr Fintan well. The second Concelebrant was Fr Tim Cullinane SMA, a classmate of Fr Fintan who lived with him for many years in Ibadan. The following is an edited version of Fr Tim’s homily at the Mass.

Fr Fintan and myself began our journey to SMA priesthood in Cloughballymore, Co Galway on the same day in September 1957. We were part of a class of 30. In the class was a student from Dublin, Edward Hermans, who prided himself on being an artist of some

Fr Tim Cullinane SMA preaching during the funeral Mass

repute. When our Superior, Fr Patrick Gantly, who had a great admiration for our founder Melchior de Marion Brésillac heard this, he commissioned Edward to paint a full-size portrait of our Founder. Edward did well with the lower part of the Founder’s body, his cassock, his ring and bishop’s cross and even his beard but when it came to his face and eyes Edward he ran into difficulty. Even after many attempts he couldn’t seem to get his face and eyes right. Eventually, Fr Gantly called a halt on the project. Then one day, a few months later, to our surprise Fr Gantly brought the unfinished portrait with the blank face to the classroom and told us that since our Founder was long dead, as SMA missionaries each one of us was called to be his face wherever we found ourselves in the missions and that we were called to live out his vision for mission which he had set out for himself and for those who would follow him in four short statements:

To be a missionary from the bottom of my heart;
To neglect nothing that might advance the work of God;
To seize every opportunity to preach the gospel;
To use all my strength, all the means at my disposal to contribute to the formation of a local clergy.

Fintan Daly, in whose honour we gather today was a person who lived out this vision to the full. He really was a missionary from the depths of his heart. He gave it his all, 56 years of unbroken service to the growth of the church in Ibadan, Nigeria. He lived only for the work of mission. Mission for him was never a 50% or 70%, but a 100% commitment.

His missionary life falls easily into three parts. His first appointment was as a teacher in St Theresa’s Minor Seminary in Ibadan, where he spent 24 years, eleven of them in charge. One of the four priorities of our Founder was, as you have heard, “To use all my strength, and all the means at my disposal to contribute to the formation of a local clergy.” The Minor Seminary in Ibadan was set up specifically for that purpose, to begin the process of forming local priests. When Fintan came to Ibadan there were only two local priests. All the rest were white foreigners including the Bishop [Richard Finn SMA from Co Mayo]. That was not an ideal situation. Today there are well over 100 local priests in Ibadan. One of Fintan’s great contributions was in helping to bring this about. In the seminary, he was highly respected by the students. One of his former students, Fr Julius Temuyi, wrote this on hearing of his death, “Fintan, I am crying not because you died, but rather because the world has just lost one of the most genuine, kind, spiritual, upright and sincere individuals that I have ever encountered”. In 1983 the SMA decided to implement an earlier decision to accept Africans as members of the Society. Fintan was very enthusiastic about the project giving it his full support and helping to get the project off the ground, getting finance for the project and recruiting candidates. Today there are over 60 Nigerian SMA priests, including our own Fr Christopher Emokhare, here on the altar for this Mass and he will tell you afterwards, if you get to meet him, how much Fintan influenced his life.

The second part of Fintan’s missionary life began when, after 24 years in the Minor Seminary, he moved into fulltime parish work where he had direct contact with ordinary people in a very poor area of Ibadan. Jesus said in the Gospel just read, “Go, therefore, make disciples of all the nations; baptise them in the name of the Father the Son and the Holy Spirit and teach them to observe all the commands I gave you.” Our Founder expressed this command of Jesus in this way, to seize every opportunity to preach the gospel and neglect nothing that might advance the work of God. For the rest of his time in Nigeria, nearly 34 years Fintan spent his time doing exactly this. I know Fintan would say it was all God’s work but the truth is Fintan was a vital instrument in God’s hands.

In his parish work Fintan is remembered for three things in particular. Firstly, as a builder of Churches. For someone without previous building experience, Fintan built, with the help of a team of local builders and financial support from inside and outside Nigeria, he oversaw the construction of a great number of churches, at least five of them capable of seating 500 to 1,000 people dedicated to different saints such as St Leo’s, Good Shepherd, St Charles Lwanga, St Anthony’s, St Benedict’s, as well as Sacred Heart and Our Lady of Fatima. There were many smaller churches attached to the different parishes he worked in. He felt that left to their own resources it would take the people ever and a day to complete a church but if a proper church was built that people could be proud of, they would come to it in large numbers. If they hadn’t a proper church people would just drift away to one of the born-again Pentecostal churches What Fintan did turned out to be true, and some of these churches are now flourishing parishes with their own Nigerian clergy.  

Even more important than building churches was Fintan’s care for the poor and most abandoned. Every morning people, most of them genuine, used to line up in large numbers outside the House where we lived looking for money for many things, to buy food, medicine, pay hospital bills or school fees for their children. Fintan never disappointed them. He wore a white soutane with large pockets from which he dispensed his help. I used to call the soutane, the bank of Fintan. I will just mention one poor family he helped over a long period of time with school fees helping them right up to university level. One of the them became an engineer, a second an accountant and another Principal of a large school. This would have been impossible without Fintan’s support [and those who gave him the money to share].

At Christmastime, Fintan had a particular practice. Every day, around 4pm he would load up his pick-up truck with all kinds of provisions and soft drinks and head off to the houses of people who he knew to be poor to give them something to bring joy to their Christmas.

Last Sunday’ Gospel said that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God. Apart from building churches and concern for the poor, Fintan seized every opportunity to preach the gospel. With the help of catechists [women and men], he was constantly giving classes on the Catholic faith in preparation for Baptism, First Holy Communion, Confirmation, and Marriage not only in the main parish church but in outstations as well. He also put a lot of work into empowering groups like the Legion of Mary and St Vincent de Paul. He was highly respected by the Archbishop and the Diocesan clergy not just for what he did but even more so for the person he was. Archbishop Felix Alaba Job appointed him Vicar General or second in command of the Archdiocese for many years and bestowed on him the Papal Honour, Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice, for his work in the Archdiocese.

As a person Fintan was one of those godly men, mentioned in the first reading, whose good deeds will not be forgotten by people he helped and, in the churches, he helped to build where congregations will proclaim his and God’s praise. Fintan was first of all a man of deep-rooted faith, a faith that he got from his mother and father and neighbours in Co Galway, a gift that he then passed on to the people of Nigeria. It was focused on the essentials: the Mass, the Blessed Sacrament and the Rosary. As you will have got from what I have said already he was very hard working, kind, generous with a very simple life style, preferring not to spend much on himself when there were so many people around in real need. He was a man in a hurry with a holy impatience because there was much work to be done to spread the message of Jesus Christ. As a result, on the phone he had no time to waste making small talk.  He reminded me of a Kerry politician Michael Healy Rea who when, on a different mission calling on houses to get votes, when offered tea in a house he would say, “No time for tay there is work to be done.”  That was Fintan too, but on a different and more important mission. However, I do know from personal experience, if you were in trouble, he had endless time to give you the help you needed. He was also a person of deep humanity with a great sense of humour. He loved telling the story about a man called Francis who was always hanging around the church and gradually self-appointed himself as Fintan’s driver. He wasn’t a bad driver and Fintan, often used him to take people to hospital bring supplies for buildings and many other things, giving him money on an ad hoc basis probably more than if he was fully employed but he and Fintan could sometimes have difficulties in their interaction. When Fintan needed him most he might not come at all and if Fintan asked to drive someone he did not like he would refuse. He was always complaining about what he called Fintan’s wreck of a car saying he should buy a new one. One day Fintan got so fed up with him that he said, “Francis, I am sacking you” only for Francis to reply, “You can’t sack me because you never employed me.”

Though Fintan made Nigeria his second home he never lost contact with his first home, his family and the people he knew from his youth, ringing home regularly to get news of how they were doing and the latest GAA results. They on their part him held him in very high regard and gave him great support including financial help for the poor and the building of churches.

Now we come to the third part of Fintan’s life. This was marked by the cross of illness, an illness which eventually led to his departure from his beloved mission in Ibadan and his arrival in a wheelchair to Blackrock Road on July 2021. This was a sad occasion for him and for us. I once heard him preach at a funeral of a Sister of Charity who for the final ten years of her life suffered from Motor Neuron disease. During the homily he said, her vocation for the past ten years of her life was to be sick. The same could be said of Fintan, for the last years of his life, his vocation was to be sick. This is not what we would have wished for him but God’s ways are not our ways and we have to submit to God’s Will in the belief that God loves each one of us and knows what is best for us at every stage of our lives.  Those who visited Fintan during his illness were touched by his courage, his deep faith, his acceptance of his condition, never complaining, and very appreciative of anything that was shown to him, even such a simple thing as bringing him the Connacht Tribune when he was able to read it. He was especially blessed by the care given by the staff of St Theresa’s Nursing Unit at the SMA House in Blackrock Road and was deeply appreciative of it. As he was called home to God at 9.15pm on Ash Wednesday, 22 February, he could truthfully say in the words of St Paul “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. From now on there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness which the Lord will give me.”

I will conclude with the words spoken by the then Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger towards the end of his homily at the Funeral Mass for [Saint] Pope John Paul II, replacing the words John Paul with Fintan “We can be sure that our beloved Fintan is standing today at the window of the Father’s house, that he sees us and blesses us. Yes, bless us, Fintan. We entrust your dear soul to the Mother of God, your Mother, who guided you each day and who will guide you now to the eternal glory of her Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.

2nd Sunday of Lent – Year A

Theme:  The Transfiguration: A Shining Moment at the Heart of Creation

The second Sunday of Lent presents us with the story of the Transfiguration of Jesus. This year the account is taken from the Gospel of Matthew. Jesus leads three of his beloved disciples up a high mountain and there offers them a glimpse of his glory. If we are feeling faint-hearted and unresponsive to this season of grace – ‘carrying the weight of the world on our shoulders’ – this is a moment intended to lift our spirits. It is a shining moment at the heart of creation, made glorious by the presence of Jesus at its centre.

The Transfiguration takes place at a critical moment in Jesus’ life and ministry. He has left behind the beautiful green valleys and gentle rolling hills of Galilee and taken the road to Jerusalem where violent death awaits him. He realises that in Jerusalem he will meet the same fate as the prophets met before him. He had already warned his disciples ‘that he was destined to go to Jerusalem and suffer grievously at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, to be put to death and to be raised up on the third day’ (Mt 16: 21). When Peter began to remonstrate with him, refusing to accept his prophetic words, he rebuked him in unusually harsh terms:  ‘Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle in my path, because they way you think is not God’s way but man’s’ (Mt 16:23). Jesus’ suffering and death are part and parcel of his salvific mission.

As was Jesus’ custom when facing into danger, he withdraws to a mountain to pray and reflect, taking with him Peter, James and John. In their presence he is transfigured – ‘his face shone like the sun and his face became as white as the light’ (Mt17: 2). And he appears in conversation with Moses and Elijah.  Then, as on the occasion of his baptism, a voice from ‘a bright cloud’, the voice of his Father, affirms his divine identity and messianic vocation: ‘This is my Son, the Beloved; he enjoys my favour. Listen to him’ (Mt 17:7). This affirmation and confirmation of the Father’s love must surely have strengthened him in the face of the dark and threatening future that lay ahead.

The transfiguration experience was important not just for Jesus but even more so for his beloved disciples. Their eyes are opened to catch a glimpse of Jesus in his glory and their ears are opened to hear the divine confirmation of Jesus’ identity as ‘beloved Son’ to whom they are commanded to listen. Captivated by the experience, Peter wishes to remain on the mountain in the exalted company of Elijah, Moses and Jesus. However, this is not to be. The luminous moment passes and the three disciples find themselves alone with Jesus who warns them not to tell anyone about what they had seen ‘until the Son of Man has risen from the dead’ (Mt 17:9).

The fact that the story of the transfiguration of Jesus is recounted in all three synoptic gospels – Matthew, Mark and Luke – shows its importance and significance for the early Christian community. In the words of the popular New Testament scholar, Thomas Wright: ‘It demonstrates, for those with eyes to see, and ears to hear, that Jesus is the place where God’s world and ours meet…. As with everything else in the gospel narrative, the moment is extraordinary but soon over. It forms part of a new set of signposts, Jesus-shaped signposts, indicating what is to come: a whole new creation, starting with Jesus himself as the seed that is sown in the earth and then rises to become the beginning of that new world’ (from his book, Simply Jesus, p. 144).

Today’s gospel may prompt us to recall transfiguration moments in our own lives – moments of light, joy and peace; moments in which we caught a glimpse of a transcendent beauty beyond the horizon of the habitual; moments that, in the words of the poet, Seamus Heaney, ‘catch the heart off guard and blow it open’. Such moments may not transform us, for they are always fleeting,  But they do heighten our awareness of a sustaining presence that helps us cope with times of fear and uncertainty, and carry us forward in hope of ‘a new world in the morning’ (Roger Whittaker). Lent is a time to remember such moments and draw strength from them. It is a time to trust in the Lord, like Abraham in our first reading, even when the odds seem stacked against us. It is a time to trust in the grace already granted to us in Christ Jesus, as St Paul reminds us in our second reading, as we continue our journey towards Easter. I will end with an inspiring evocation of the Transfiguration by the contemporary Anglican poet, Malcolm Guite.

For that one moment, ‘in and out of time’,
On that one mountain where all moments meet,
The daily veil that covers the sublime
In darkling glass fell dazzled at his feet.
There were no angels full of eyes and wings,
Just living glory full of truth and grace.
The Love that dances at the heart of things
Shone out upon us from a human face,
And to that light the light in us leaped up,

We felt it quicken somewhere deep within,
A sudden blaze of long-extinguished hope

Trembled and tingled through the tender skin.
Nor can this this blackened sky, this darkened scar
Eclipse that glimpse of how things really are

                                                                                                      Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily  for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

 

Homily of Pope Francis at the Ash Wednesday Mass

“Behold, now is the favourable time; behold, now is the day of salvation!” (2 Cor 6:2). With these words, the Apostle Paul helps us enter into the spirit of the Lenten season. Lent is indeed the “favourable time” to return to what is essential, to divest ourselves of all that weighs us down, to be reconciled with God, and to rekindle the fire of the Holy Spirit hidden beneath the ashes of our frail humanity. It is the season of grace when we put into practice what the Lord asks of us at the beginning of today’s first reading: “Return to me with all your heart” (Jl 2:12).

The rite of the imposition of ashes serves as the beginning of this return journey. It exhorts us to do two things: to return to the truth about ourselves and to return to God and to our brothers and sisters.

First, to return to the truth about ourselves. The ashes remind us who we are and whence we come. They bring us back to the essential truth of our lives: the Lord alone is God and we are the work of his hands. We have life, whereas God is life. He is the Creator, while we are the fragile clay fashioned by his hands. We come from the earth and we need heaven; we need him. With God, we will rise from our ashes, but without him, we are dust. As we humbly bow our heads to receive the ashes, we are reminded of this truth: we are the Lord’s; we belong to him. For God “formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life” (Gen 2:7); we exist because he breathed into us the breath of life. As a tender and merciful Father, God too experiences Lent, since he is concerned for us; he waits for us; he awaits our return. And he constantly urges us not to despair, even when we lie fallen in the dust of our weakness and sin, for “he knows how we were made; he remembers that we are dust” (Ps 103:14). Let us listen to those words again: He remembers that we are dust. God knows this; yet we often forget it, and think that we are self-sufficient, strong and invincible without him.

Lent, then, is the time to remind ourselves. Yet there is a second step: the ashes invite us also to return to God and to our brothers and sisters. Once we return to the truth about ourselves and remind ourselves that we are not self- sufficient, we realize that we exist only through relationships: our primordial relationship with the Lord and our vital relationships with others. The ashes we receive this evening tell us that every presumption of self-sufficiency is false and that self-idolatry is destructive, imprisoning us in isolation and loneliness. Life is instead a relationship: we receive it from God and from our parents, and we can always revive and renew it thanks to the Lord and to those he puts at our side. Lent, then, is a season of grace when we can rebuild our relationship with God and with others, opening our hearts in the silence of prayer and emerging from the fortress of our self-sufficiency. Lent is the favourable time when we can break the chains of our individualism and rediscover, through encounter and listening, our companions along the journey of each day. And to learn once more to love them as brothers and sisters.

How can we do this? To make this journey, to return to the truth about ourselves and to return to God and to others, we are urged to take three great paths: almsgiving, prayer and fasting. Yet, as we heard in the Gospel, Jesus warns us that, rather than mere external rites, these must be actions expressing the renewal of our hearts. Almsgiving is not a hasty gesture performed to ease our conscience; rather, it is a way of touching the sufferings of the poor with our own hands and heart. Prayer is not a ritual, but a truthful and loving dialogue with the Father. Fasting is not a quaint devotion, but a powerful gesture to remind ourselves what truly matters and what is merely ephemeral. Jesus gives “advice that still retains its salutary value for us: external gestures must always be matched by a sincere heart and consistent behaviour. Indeed, what use is it to tear our garments if our hearts remain distant from the Lord, that is, from goodness and justice?” (BENEDICT XVI, Homily for Ash Wednesday, 1 March 2006). 

All too often, our gestures and rites have no impact on our lives; they remain superficial. Perhaps we perform them only to gain the admiration or esteem of others. Let us remember this: in our personal life, as in the life of the Church, outward displays, human judgments and the world’s approval count for nothing; the only thing that truly matters is the truth and love that God himself sees. If we stand humbly before his gaze, then almsgiving, prayer and fasting will not simply remain outward displays, but will express what we truly are: children of God, brothers and sisters of one another. Almsgiving, charity, will be a sign of our compassion toward those in need, and help us to return to others. Prayer will give voice to our profound desire to encounter the Father, and will bring us back to him. Fasting will be the spiritual training ground where we joyfully renounce the superfluous things that weigh us down, grow in interior freedom and return to the truth about ourselves.

Dear brothers and sisters, let us bow our heads, receive the ashes, and lighten our hearts. Let us set out on the path of charity. We have been given forty days, a “favourable time” to remind ourselves that the world is bigger than our narrow personal needs, and to rediscover the joy, not of accumulating material goods, but of caring for those who are poor and afflicted. Let us set out, then, on the path of prayer and use these forty days to restore God’s primacy in our lives and to dialogue with him from the heart, and not only in spare moments. Let us set out on the path of fasting and use these forty days to take stock of ourselves, to free ourselves from the dictatorship of full schedules, crowded agendas and superficial needs, and choose the things that truly matter.

Let us not neglect the grace of this holy season, but fix our gaze on the cross and set out, responding generously to the powerful promptings of Lent. At the end of the journey, we will encounter with greater joy the Lord of life, who alone can raise us up from our ashes.

First Sunday of Lent, 2022 – Year A

It is an interesting feature of the Gospels that in the fourth and final one –John – there is no account, never mind a mention of the temptations of Jesus. This seems surprising – to say the least – given that it was written in part to counteract the heresy of Docetism – that Jesus only seemed but was not in substance human. Perhaps the evangelist thought that the others, especially Luke and Matthew, had dealt with it adequately. Whatever the motivation of the author this seeming lacuna in the last Gospel only serves to show that the Gospels were not written for apologetic purposes but to proclaim to the various churches the presence of God in the person of Jesus the Christ and their continuing power through the Holy Spirit. The three temptations of Jesus are not simply a morality tale, telling the struggle between good and evil but transcend this, revealing the metaphysical duel between God and the devil.

Luke situates the temptations immediately before the beginning of Jesus’ ministry and his announcement in the synagogue at Nazareth where he proclaims that ‘the Spirit of the Lord is upon him’: Matthew prefers to place them after the baptism of Jesus by John where he hears the words from heaven that he is the ‘Beloved Son’ in whom God ‘is well pleased’. This benefit of this benediction is brought out in the end of today’s Gospel when ‘angels appeared and looked after him’.

The three temptations told in today’s Gospel entice Jesus to become an exhibitionist, build an earthly empire, be an egoist. The exhibitionist aims for the spectacular event to show off and be seen as victorious and not a victim. Not satisfied with surprise and scorning simplicity for the spectacular, the exhibitionist may employ means that are  shocking and even violent. The empire builder seeks superior status by showing a superfluity of power and privilege, pleasure and possessions or some sum of these. Prepared to sacrifice everything in the blind pursuit of these, the sacrifice of others for this end is simply seen as part of the price to be paid for personal gain and grandiosity. Unlike the exhibitionist and empire builder, the egoist has no need for applause or accumulation, acting out of arrogance and the ambition to be absolutely self-determining.

This trifecta contain another temptation in the Christian life, the tendency to the reductionism of morality alone. Moralism has been the bane of teaching and preaching for too long; thankfully a renewed moral since the Second Vatican Council  theology has tried to lift the burden of legalism from people.

The significance of Jesus’ scorning the devil’s not too subtle suggestions  and sending him packing is salvific when set against the spectrum of sin shown in the other readings. They bring out the biblical account of sin, beginning with the original sin of Adam and Eve that descends into the projection of responsibility onto others, sadly a feature of so many institutions and relations. The guilt evinced in the Miserere (Psalm 50) expresses the personal awareness of guilt and asking God for purification. Paul presents the New Adam, the obedience of whom works out the salvation of the world. Jesus is certainly held up as a moral exemplar to be imitated but, Paul goes much further, proclaiming that it is this ‘one man Jesus Christ [who] will cause everyone to reign in life who receives the free gift that he does not deserve, of being made righteous’. For Paul himself learned that it is not by keeping the rules we are made righteous but by faith in the offer and outreach of Jesus  that opens up the saving the mercy of God.

Temptation is the way of the Evil One, God’s way is transformation. This is the choice Lent lays before us, to follow or forget Christ’s fundamental option in obedience to the Father’s will.

‘At its core, holiness is experiencing, in union with Christ, the mysteries of his life’ (Par. 20)

In a memorable phrase the Second Vatican Council described a Christian ‘as one who has been made a partner in the paschal mystery’. The call to holiness is to make this partnership as personally complete as possible through that conversion which Pope Francis says ‘consists in uniting ourselves to the Lord’s death and resurrection in a unique way, constantly dying and rising with him’. Spelling out what ‘in a unique way’ means Francis mentions that sharing in the paschal mystery can involve showing a particular part or period of the earthly life of Jesus which is the prelude to his passion and resurrection. The temptations that Jesus endured, expressed in today’s Gospel, offer an invaluable entrée for contemplating, both personally and communally, how to respond to the invitation to imitate Jesus.

Fr Kevin O’Gorman SMA

Late Fr Fintan Daly, SMA

The Archbishops, priests, religious and the faithful of the Archdiocese of Ibadan, Nigeria, along with his family and confreres in the Society of African Missions, are mourning the death of Fr Fintan Daly SMA. Fr Fintan died peacefully in the St Theresa’s Nursing Unit, SMA House, Blackrock Road, Cork at 9.15 on Ash Wednesday, 22 February 2023, with his sister Frances, other family members and SMA confreres at his bedside.

Fr Fintan was ordained in 1964 and spent 56 years as a missionary in Ibadan, Nigeria. After a short period as Curate in Holy Cross Catholic Church, Ikire, Fr Fintan was appointed to the teaching staff of St Theresa’s Minor Seminary at Oke-Are, Ibadan. He was to spend the next 25 years there, eleven of them as Rector. As a result, Fr Fintan is possibly one of the most well-known SMA priests in western Nigeria.

He then transferred to fulltime parish ministry in Our Lady of Fatima parish, Eleta.

In 2002, he was elected the Deputy Regional Superior of the SMA in western Nigeria. He moved to the SMA Regional House at Orita-Challenge. Attached to the house was St Leo’s Catholic Church and Fr Fintan served as its Parish Priest from 2002 until his return to Ireland in 2021 for medical care.

May God comfort his family, parishioners and SMA confreres who mourn his death.

In a newspaper some years ago, Fr Fintan made the following reply when asked about his future: “The future is not ours to see… But we leave the future in the hands of God. Jesus told us not to worry about tomorrow…” Rest in peace Fr Fintan.

A more complete Obituary will be available in due course.

Funeral arrangements

Fr Fintan will repose in the African Missions, Blackrock Road, Cork from 5pm to 7pm on Monday, 27 February.
His remains will be taken at 11am on Tuesday, 28 February to St Joseph’s SMA Church, Wilton, for Funeral Mass at 12 noon, followed by burial in the community cemetery.
The Mass can be viewed on the Parish webcam 
Full details on RIP.IE

The War – One year on.

Fr Grzegorz Kucharski SMA addresses Parishioners of Wilton Parish

A few weeks ago Fr Grzegorz Kucharski, the Superior of the Polish SMA Province, came to Ireland to say thank you to the Irish SMA and Parishioners in SMA Parishes for help given to support Ukrainian war refugees.  In response to an appeal he made last year, SMA Parishes, Communities and Staff collected funds which were sent to Poland and used to provide accommodation and sustenance to over 100 Ukrainian women and children in two SMA Houses (in Piwniczna Zdroj, southern Poland and Borzecin Duzy, Warsaw).   A short video of Fr Grzegorz address to the congregation of Wilton Parish can be accessed here.  

A year later the SMA in Poland continue to provide a safe place for refugees. The war in Ukraine is, according to many commentators, likely to go on for a long time – so the need to continue our openness to supporting those who suffer remains, as does the need for our steadfastness in rejecting and withstanding the injustice of this war.  

Ukrainians resident in the SMA House in Warsaw

In the first weeks of the war we looked on in disbelief at the destruction and violence we thought had been consigned in Europe to the time of World War II.  In the first four weeks alone 3.5 million people, mostly women and children, fled leaving husbands, fathers and brothers behind.  Since then these numbers have more than doubled and the war continues with no end in sight.  In news bulletins, we continue to see harrowing scenes of separation and loss as countless families lost their homes, possessions and the lives of loved ones.   Names of places like Mariupol, Bucha and Bakhmut – places most of us never heard before – are now synonymous with violence, wanton destruction and war-crimes.

 

Bucha main street after the Russian invasion. Oleksandr Ratushniak, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

In Ireland, as in many countries in Europe, the Christian and humanitarian response and openness to receiving refugees continues, as it should, but there a are growing signs of a vocal minority who, in spite of the devastation, suffering and injustice evident on our TV screens, want refugees and migrants in general to be turned away, or who portray them as a threat. This is not true and we as Christians must be steadfast in withstanding and rejecting these bigoted and unjust views.

An article published on this website almost a year ago praised the generous response of Irish people to Ukrainian war refugees and it also raised the following question:  “As time goes by, as the number of refugees increase and as economic impacts bite the unjust effects of this war will be become even more evident and responding to them more difficult. How will we individuals and Christians respond?”  Here in Ireland, there are now around 50,000 Ukrainian refugees and there are now difficulties in finding accommodation for them. We are also feeling the knock-on economic effects of the war in the form of a severe increase in our cost of living. The article published last year also quoted St Paul: 

“Let us not grow tired of doing good, for in due time we shall reap our harvest, if we do not give up. So then, while we have the opportunity let us do good to all.”
Gal. 6:9-10.

In our current situation following this advice is the most generous and Christian thing we can do.  Let us sustain the positive and Christian response we have been making. This will mean remaining open and welcoming – let us not harden our hearts, let us reject the attempts of people and groups who want us to do so and especially – let us not grow tired of doing what is right and just.

 

Message of the Holy Father Francis for Lent 2023

 

Message of the Holy Father

Lenten Penance and the Synodal Journey

Dear brothers and sisters!

The Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke all recount the episode of the Transfiguration of Jesus. There we see the Lord’s response to the failure of his disciples to understand him. Shortly before, there had been a real clash between the Master and Simon Peter, who, after professing his faith in Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God, rejected his prediction of the passion and the cross. Jesus had firmly rebuked him: “Get behind me, Satan! You are a scandal to me, because you do not think according to God, but according to men!” (Mt 16:23). Following this, “six days later, Jesus took with him Peter, James and John his brother and led them away to a high mountain” (Mt 17:1).

The Gospel of the Transfiguration is proclaimed every year on the Second Sunday of Lent. During this liturgical season, the Lord takes us with him to a place apart. While our ordinary commitments compel us to remain in our usual places and our often repetitive and sometimes boring routines, during Lent we are invited to ascend “a high mountain” in the company of Jesus and to live a particular experience of spiritual discipline – ascesis – as God’s holy people.

Lenten penance is a commitment, sustained by grace, to overcoming our lack of faith and our resistance to following Jesus on the way of the cross. This is precisely what Peter and the other disciples needed to do. To deepen our knowledge of the Master, to fully understand and embrace the mystery of his salvation, accomplished in total self-giving inspired by love, we must allow ourselves to be taken aside by him and to detach ourselves from mediocrity and vanity. We need to set out on the journey, an uphill path that, like a mountain trek, requires effort, sacrifice and concentration. These requisites are also important for the synodal journey to which, as a Church, we are committed to making. We can benefit greatly from reflecting on the relationship between Lenten penance and the synodal experience.

In his “retreat” on Mount Tabor, Jesus takes with him three disciples, chosen to be witnesses of a unique event. He wants that experience of grace to be shared, not solitary, just as our whole life of faith is an experience that is shared. For it is in togetherness that we follow Jesus. Together too, as a pilgrim Church in time, we experience the liturgical year and Lent within it, walking alongside those whom the Lord has placed among us as fellow travellers. Like the ascent of Jesus and the disciples to Mount Tabor, we can say that our Lenten journey is “synodal”, since we make it together along the same path, as disciples of the one Master. For we know that Jesus is himself the Way, and therefore, both in the liturgical journey and in the journey of the Synod, the Church does nothing other than enter ever more deeply and fully into the mystery of Christ the Saviour.

And so we come to its culmination. The Gospel relates that Jesus “was transfigured before them; his face shone like the sun and his clothes became white as light” (Mt 17:2). This is the “summit”, the goal of the journey. At the end of their ascent, as they stand on the mountain heights with Jesus, the three disciples are given the grace of seeing him in his glory, resplendent in supernatural light. That light did not come from without, but radiated from the Lord himself. The divine beauty of this vision was incomparably greater than all the efforts the disciples had made in the ascent of Tabor. During any strenuous mountain trek, we must keep our eyes firmly fixed on the path; yet the panorama that opens up at the end amazes us and rewards us by its grandeur. So too, the synodal process may often seem arduous, and at times we may become discouraged. Yet what awaits us at the end is undoubtedly something wondrous and amazing, which will help us to understand better God’s will and our mission in the service of his kingdom.

The disciples’ experience on Mount Tabor was further enriched when, alongside the transfigured Jesus, Moses and Elijah appeared, signifying respectively the Law and the Prophets (cf. Mt 17:3). The newness of Christ is at the same time the fulfilment of the ancient covenant and promises; it is inseparable from God’s history with his people and discloses its deeper meaning. In a similar way, the synodal journey is rooted in the Church’s tradition and at the same time open to newness. Tradition is a source of inspiration for seeking new paths and for avoiding the opposed temptations of immobility and improvised experimentation.

The Lenten journey of penance and the journey of the Synod alike have as their goal a transfiguration, both personal and ecclesial. A transformation that, in both cases, has its model in the Transfiguration of Jesus and is achieved by the grace of his paschal mystery. So that this transfiguration may become a reality in us this year, I would like to propose two “paths” to follow in order to ascend the mountain together with Jesus and, with him, to attain the goal.

The first path has to do with the command that God the Father addresses to the disciples on Mount Tabor as they contemplate Jesus transfigured. The voice from the cloud says: “Listen to him” (Mt 17:5). The first proposal, then, is very clear: we need to listen to Jesus. Lent is a time of grace to the extent that we listen to him as he speaks to us. And how does he speak to us? First, in the word of God, which the Church offers us in the liturgy. May that word not fall on deaf ears; if we cannot always attend Mass, let us study its daily biblical readings, even with the help of the internet. In addition to the Scriptures, the Lord speaks to us through our brothers and sisters, especially in the faces and the stories of those who are in need. Let me say something else, which is quite important for the synodal process: listening to Christ often takes place in listening to our brothers and sisters in the Church. Such mutual listening in some phases is the primary goal, but it remains always indispensable in the method and style of a synodal Church.

On hearing the Father’s voice, the disciples “fell prostrate and were very much afraid. But Jesus came and touched them, saying, ‘Rise, and do not be afraid.’ And when the disciples raised their eyes, they saw no one else but Jesus alone” (Mt 17:6-8). Here is the second proposal for this Lent: do not take refuge in a religiosity made up of extraordinary events and dramatic experiences, out of fear of facing reality and its daily struggles, its hardships and contradictions. The light that Jesus shows the disciples is an anticipation of Easter glory, and that must be the goal of our own journey, as we follow “him alone”. Lent leads to Easter: the “retreat” is not an end in itself, but a means of preparing us to experience the Lord’s passion and cross with faith, hope and love, and thus to arrive at the resurrection. Also on the synodal journey, when God gives us the grace of certain powerful experiences of communion, we should not imagine that we have arrived – for there too, the Lord repeats to us: “Rise, and do not be afraid”. Let us go down, then, to the plain, and may the grace we have experienced strengthen us to be “artisans of synodality” in the ordinary life of our communities.

Dear brothers and sisters, may the Holy Spirit inspire and sustain us this Lent in our ascent with Jesus, so that we may experience his divine splendour and thus, confirmed in faith, persevere in our journey together with him, glory of his people and light of the nations.

Rome, Saint John Lateran, 25 January, Feast of the Conversion of Saint Paul

FRANCIS

1st Sunday of Lent – Year A

Readings: Genesis 2:7-9,3:1-7; Romans 5:12-19; Matthew 4:1-11

The mission of Jesus was to establish on earth God’s reign of justice, peace and love.  Before he begins his mission, he withdraws into the Judean desert or wilderness, to fast and pray for forty days. Today’s gospel reading from Matthew tells us that it was the Spirit, the same Spirit who came upon him at his baptism, who led him ‘out into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil’ (Mt 4:1). Jesus’ sojourn in the wilderness was a testing and defining experience for him. It led him to greater clarity about the mission entrusted to him by his Father,  and strengthened him to carry it out.

I had no idea what the wilderness was like until the Spring of 2008, when I participated in the Ecce Homo Renewal Programme in Jerusalem. One of the most memorable moments of the programme for me was the night we spent sleeping  in the wilderness. In fact, I hardly slept at all. I spent the night listening to the whistling wind and watching the myriads of stars shining more brightly than I had ever seen them before. It was an unforgettable experience that made me want to de-clutter my mind and heart, let go of things I thought I needed, and create more space in my life for the things that really mattered.

Matthew recounts three kinds of temptation to which the devil subjected Jesus: to turn stones into bread in order to feed himself; to throw himself from the highest tower of the Temple to prove the Father’s love for him; and to worship Satan in return from immense power and wealth. These temptations are presented by Satan as a test of Jesus’ identity  as  Son of God. At his baptism in the river Jordan the Father affirmed Jesus’ identity, saying ‘This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased’ (Mt 3:17).  Satan tries to deflect Jesus from his mission by suggesting that he use his divine power as the Son of God to serve himself rather than others. He even quotes scripture to support his insidious suggestions.  In each instance, Jesus rebufs Satan, also quoting scripture. He will not be turned aside from his mission of loving service of others –  a service of redemptive suffering that will lead him to the ultimate sacrifice of his life on Calvary.  Finally, Matthew tells us, ‘the devil left him, and angels came and ministered to him’ (Mt 4:11).

We have just begun the season of Lent, forty days of preparation leading to the great feast of Easter. As we enter this special season, the Church invites us to accompany Jesus in the wilderness – at least symbolically – so as to deepen our relationship with him.   This is a time for us to to slow down and take a good long look at where we are in our lives, and to discover God’s presence anew. Traditionally, Lent is a time when we give up things to which we have become attached, like alcohol or our favourite deserts. This is certainly a part of our Lenten obvervance that remains valid, but it is not enough. We are also challenged to to strive for a more profound self-emptying. We must try to get in touch with our heart’s core for, as the Monaghan poet, Patrick Kavanagh, reminds us:

‘….God cannot catch us
Unless we stay in the unconscious room
Of our hearts. We must be nothing,
Nothing that God may make us something…
God must be allowed to surprise us.

The word ‘Lent’ comes from an old English word meaning ‘springtime’. So, it reminds us of the bursting forth of new life in nature during Spring. Lent not a dreary penitential season to be patiently endured. It is a joyful season, as today’s Lenten preface reminds us: ‘Each year you give us this joyful season when we prepare to celebrate the paschal mystery with mind and heart renewed’ The season of Lent offers us a blessed opportunity to do some spring cleaning in our lives and enjoy new life as a result. The idea that the more things we have in life, the happier we will be is a popular but pernicious myth.  Advertisements urge us to try everything, to leave no stone unturned.  ‘More is better’ is the underlying philosophy of our materialistic world.  But it is precisely this attitude which kills our capacity for enjoyment, our ability to appreciate the quality things in life, and we end up with hearts that are cold and indifferent. When we resist the temptation to possess things, we become open to the mystery all around us and come to see things as we never saw them before.

Lent, then, is a time – a grace-filled, precious time – for us to try and recover our  sense of wonder at the ordinary miracles of life that surround us – basic elemental things, like the warmth of the Sun as it kisses a new day into being, or the changing colours of the seasons, the bursting forth of new life in spring – and, especially in these days, the feast of golden daffodils splashing colour wherever we look. Let us, then, turn to the simple things, the things we take for-granted, the things that, as the poet E.E. Cummings says, I cannot touch because they are too near.’  Like nature, our weary, wounded hearts, to quote Patrick Kavanagh once again, ‘need to be honoured with a new dress woven/From green and blue things and arguments that cannot be proven’ (from his poem, Canal Bank Walk).

To listen to an alternative Homily  for this Sunday, from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

FILM ABOUT WILTON PARISH

St Joseph's SMA Church, Wilton
Fr. Josef Zimmerman SMA

In 1982 St Josephs, Wilton officially became a Parish of the Diocese of Cork and Ross, beginning a new phase in the long involvement and presence of the Society of African Missions (SMA) in the area.  This commenced in 1888 when Fr Joseph Zimmerman, a Swiss SMA bought a dilapidated Georgian house and fourteen acres of land from Mr. James O’Connor.  Renovation of the old Coach House, which served as a chapel, began immediately.  Then a dormitory and study rooms were quickly constructed in 1889. Next, in 1890 students previously resident in Blackrock Rd transferred to the new St Joseph’s College, Wilton. Construction of the Church began in 1894 and it opened three years later. Since then the SMA has served the Church and people of the locality.  In addition to the Church, the SMA House has down through he years been a secondary school, a Novitiate, where students spent their first year of studies to become missionary priests and more recently a retirement home for elderly SMA’s.   

Parishioners enjoy morning in the Parish Centre.

The film, written and produced by Mr Paul O’Flynn shows the commitment of the SMA to the Parish and to the locality down the years, not only in providing spiritual service and support to the community but by also becoming a focus for social, educational and community activities.  The video shows how, in changing times, Wilton Parish has re-invented itself and adapted to emerging needs by responding in new ways and by involving volunteers and local people in the life of the Parish. This is especially true of the approach taken during the Covid-19 Pandemic when new and innovative ways were found to reach-out to and engage with people in lockdown through online services and programmes.   

Tom McEnery who has seen many changes in the 50 years he he has worked in Wilton

Now that we are in a post lockdown time activities in the Parish have resumed and there is a wide variety of groups, organisations and nationalities using the facilities provided through the Parish – it is once again a vibrant hub for faith, recreation and social activity.

Our thanks to all who helped in the making of this film, Staff, Volunteers, SMA Fathers, the Pupils and Teachers of Gaelscoil Uí Riada and members of the Choirs and International Groups who added so much to the Family Days and Christmas Concerts shown in the film. 

Finally, a special word of gratitude to Paul O’Flynn, for his creativity and for the many hours of planning, writing, filming and editing that has produced this film.  It lasts twenty-three minutes – we hope you enjoy it.

7th Sunday in Ordinary Time 2023 – Year A

Readings: Leviticus 19:1-2,17-18; 1 Corinthians 3:16-23; Matthew 5:38-48

‘You cannot be serious’ is the title of John McEnroe’s bestselling autobiography published in 2002. The name of the book comes from McEnroe’s famous reaction to a decision of the umpire, with which he disagreed, in his match against Tom Gullikson at the 1981 Wimbledon Championships. I suspect that our first reaction to the teaching of Jesus in today’s gospel passage would be exactly the same. ‘You have learnt how it was said: “Eye for eye and tooth”. But I say this to you: Offer the wicked person no resistance. On the contrary, if anyone hits you on the right cheek, turn the other also. If anyone wants to sue you and take your coat, give your cloak as well; if anyone forces you to go one mile, go also the second mile’ (Mt 5:38-41).

The words of Jesus cut across the grain of our natural reaction to those who treat us, or our loved ones, unjustly: We wonder how any self-respecting person could follow such advice. Are we not to stand up to evildoers? Most of us would agree with the oft-quoted statement, wrongly attributed to Edmund Burke, that ‘the only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good people to do nothing’. Are we to ‘stand idly by’ in the face of unjust aggression? While Jesus may not be advocating complete passivity in the face of evil he is certainly calling for a level of restraint most of us find difficult, if not impossible.

To appreciate the teaching of Jesus, we need to know something about the situation in Israel at the time Jesus lived. Israel was under Roman occupation, like parts of Ukraine today are under Russian occupation. Roman soldiers were everywhere and treated Jewish citizens harshly. If a Roman officer tapped a Jew on the shoulders with his sword, he had to do whatever the officer commanded him to do. We can recall the example of Simon of Cyrene, whom the Roman soldiers commandeered to carry the cross of Jesus. Understandably, the Jews hated the guts of the Romans and revolutionary groups like the Zealots sought to liberate Israel from Roman domination and regain independence.

Jesus, too, wanted a revolution – a revolution of unrestricted love, not of hatred and the desire for revenge. The law of limited retaliation – ‘eye for eye and tooth for tooth’ (Ex 21:24) – proposed in the Old Testament to curb the desire for revenge, could never break the cycle of violence that continues to hold our world in its grip. Jesus wanted a world transformed by the power of love; a world where the barriers of distrust are overcome and the legacies of hatred dissolved; a world where hurts are healed by compassion and misunderstandings dissipated by forgiveness. Therefore, Jesus calls on his disciples – and on us – not to retaliate at all but to absorb unjust aggression, without seeking to be avenged. He is asking even more of us. He is calling on us to imitate the love of our heavenly Father ‘who causes his sun to rise on bad people as well as good, and his rain to fall on honest and dishonest people alike (Mt 5:45). He is challenging us to extend the horizon of our love beyond the immediate circle of those we normally consider to be our neighbours, and include even those who may want to destroy us: ‘love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you’ (Mt 5: 44).

It is difficult at any time to embrace Jesus’ teaching on the love of enemies. It is especially difficult in our time when we see the unjust suffering of so many innocent people. I am sure many of you, like myself, find it hard not to react with anger when we hear reports of the atrocities inflicted on the people of Ukraine by President Putin and his Russian army. We easily identify with the Ukrainian President’s call for military support to defeat the Russians, even as we pray for peace. We are conflicted. We want peace but we also want to see evildoers defeated. It is difficult to deny the truth of Alexander Solzhenitsyn’s statement that ‘The line separating good and evil passes not through states, nor between classes, nor between political parties either – but right through every human heart – and through all human hearts.’

As difficult as the precepts of Jesus may sound, they embody the highest ideals of Christian life and virtue. They challenge us to respond to darkness with light, to respond to what is worst in others with what is best in us, and, in the words of St Paul, ‘to conquer evil with good’ (Rom 12:21).

During his recent visit to the Congo and South Sudan, Pope Francis listened to many heart-rending stories of people who had suffered atrocities during the ongoing conflicts in these countries. In one of the most moving scenes of his trip, a number of survivors stated that they had forgiven those who had inflicted shocking violence on them; and they knelt in front of the Pope as he blessed them. Pope Francis went on to call on ‘those who call themselves Christian’ to do everything in their power to ‘break the cycle of violence… Even if our hearts bleed for the wrongs we have suffered, let us refuse, once and for all, to repay evil with evil. So, we pray for the grace and courage to embrace the way of Jesus and imitate the unrestricted love of our heavenly Father. Amen   
Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily  for this Sunday,from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

 

PEACE ON EARTH – Pacem in Terris

Below is a piece from the JPIC Roma NewsBrief for January-February 2023.  It speaks of the enduring relevance of Pacem in Terris promulgated in 1963.  Our world cries out for Peace – the war, killing and destruction in Ukraine is about to enter its second year and all around our world the inherent dignity of human beings is denied by injustice that takes many forms and exists through the denial of many basic rights. 

Public domain image.  https://jenikirbyhistory.getarchive.net/amp/media/ioannes-xxiii-by-de-agostini-19581963-c789a0
Pope St. John XXIII

As we reflect on the 60th anniversary of Pacem in Terris, the message is still vitally needed today. Pope St. John XXIII affirmed that the modern Catholic tradition of social thought is illuminated “by one basic theme – an unshakable affirmation and defense of the dignity and rights of the human person”. In his encyclical on peace, he “recognized the necessity for each state to have a clear and precisely worded charter of fundamental human rights to be formulated and incorporated into the State’s general constitutions”.

Every human person is entitled to universal rights including “the right to live” and “the right to bodily integrity and to the means necessary for the proper development of life, particularly food, clothing, shelter, medical care, rest, and, finally, the necessary social services”.

These rights include all the civil, political, social and economic rights that are necessary for a dignified life. In the modern Catholic tradition of social thought, guidance comes from ”an unshakable affirmation and defense of the dignity and rights of the human person” showing us the importance of protecting the rights of all people, not just the fortunate.

The message of peace is important in this time of conflict with the conflict in Ukraine and the environmental exploitation in the Congo Rainforest including South Sudan and the DRC.
Pope Francis has called the encyclical a “permanent commitment to peace” that is still valid and essential. He has long been concerned with the root causes of violence, the “mechanisms of oppression”, and the “reckless exploitation of human beings and the resources of nature”. Pope Francis tells us that the absence of war and conflict is not enough, but we must be called to an “integral development of people and populations”. He also says that to make these lofty words into reality, we must “overcome egoisms, individualisms, group interests” as we “work for a more just and solidaristic society”.

We must do all in our power as we honor the call of Pacem in Terris and work towards a just and equitable world for everyone.

PEACE

Below is the text of a homily preached by Fr Kevin O’Gorman SMA on Sunday February 5th, during the Novena in honour of our Lady of Lourdes at Wilton Parish Church, Cork.
_______________ 

Alongside the cost of living crisis the question of peace concerns the very condition of our living, whether we live in fear or freedom, in conflict or concord. Opening the newspaper or turning on the television we are daily faced with the furious sights and sounds of warfare. The technology is truly frightening, the casualties tragic. The so-called just-war theory lays down the principle of non-combatant immunity which the indiscriminate involvement of modern instruments of warfare ignores, incurring huge costs in physical and psychological injuries for civilians. The centennial commemoration of the Civil War in this country holds up a history which left as a legacy the lesson that war is never civil. Thankfully we do have cause for celebration this year – the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Good Friday agreement.

I spent the 1990s as an SMA priest in South Africa. From Saint John Vianney seminary in Pretoria we looked across the valley to the Union Buildings where Nelson Mandela was installed as first President of the multiracial republic. After the awful years of apartheid peaceful co-existence in this beautiful, bounteous land peace became a possibility. Peaceful living together is only possible where justice is pursued and practiced – the more relations between people are based on justice the more permanent and profound the peace. Peace is not just the absence of conflict but the presence of justice which is conducive to a good life with others.

The readings for today’s mass reflect the theme of light, taken up by the prophet who portrays the person of integrity as one who is generous and charitable to others and who does not turn from his own kin. The life of the just person is likened to a ‘light shin[ing] like the dawn’, taken up in the response to the psalm – ‘the good person is a light in the darkness for the upright. In the Gospel Jesus tells his followers that they ‘are the light of the world’ and that they must shine in the sight of people, so that, ‘seeing [their] good works, they may give praise to’ God. This comes soon after Jesus counted among the Blessed – the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God (Matt 5:9). Peacemakers live in the light of truth, relating respectfully and justly with other people.

The Our Father ends with the petition ‘but deliver us from evil’. In the Rite of Communion this plea is immediately taken up – ‘Deliver us, Lord, we pray, from every evil’ and goes on to ask ‘graciously grant peace in our days’. Repeating the prayer for deliverance from evil acknowledges our vulnerability and the horrors of viciousness and violence which assail people all over the world ; ‘in our days’ is the awareness of the constant need for peace. The Gospels tell us that after His resurrection the Lord Jesus prefaced his appearances to the apostles with the greeting, ‘Peace be with you’. This is the peace that Christ procured for us through his passion, the pathway to and price paid for our safe passage through the evils of division, destructiveness and death. Peace is mentioned three times in this prayer, a reminder both of our pressing need for peace and the promise that God the Father will preserve us in the permanent peace of the Risen Lord Jesus through the presence of the Holy Spirit.

Moreover, as Pope Francis said in the Democratic Republic of the Congo last Wednesday, ‘we are called to be missionaries of peace, and this will bring us peace. It is a decision we have to make: to believe that ethnic, regional, social, religious and cultural differences are secondary and not obstacles; that others are our brothers and sisters, members of the same human community; and that the peace brought into the world by Jesus is meant for everyone. Yes, Christians, sent by Christ, are called by definition to be a conscience of peace in our world’.

Each year the church celebrates the World Day of Peace on January 1st with the feast of The Solemnity of Mary, The Holy Mother of God. One of the Entrance Antiphons for the Mass on that day is adapted from the great prophet of peace Isaiah: Today a light will shine upon us, for the Lord is born for us; and he will be called Wondrous God, Prince of peace.

Our Lady, Queen of Peace, pray for us.

St Josephine Bakhita – International Day of Prayer and Awareness Against Human Trafficking

In the Church calendar February 8th, is both the feast of St Bakhita and also International Day of Prayer and Awareness against Human Trafficking.

St Josephine Bakhita was herself a slave – a victim of human trafficking.  Born in Darfur, Sudan in 1869. Kidnapped at the age of seven, she was sold and resold five times in the markets of El Obeid and Khartoum. Over the following thirteen years, we are told that she experienced all the humiliations, sufferings and deprivations of slavery. 

She was bought by the Italian consul to Khartoum in 1883. Two years later, she was taken to Italy. In 1889, when she was twenty years old, a court declared her free.  She then decided to enter religious life with the Canossian Sisters in Venice.  She spent her life sharing her experience of slavery, comforting the poor and suffering.  She was known for her calmness, gentleness and good humour. Josephine Bakhita was canonised by Pope John Paul II on the 1st of October 2000 and she is now the patron Saint of all those who suffer from the violence of human trafficking.

Sadly, today many people still suffer the humiliations and deprivations of slavery.  There are more people enslaved through human trafficking than there were during the entire 400 years of the transatlantic slave trade.  Slavery is present in practically every country and it is increasing, not declining. Worldwide, it is estimated that over 49 million people are trafficking or enslaved.

Human trafficking or modern-day slavery – it is the exploitation of individuals through threat or use of force, coercion, abduction, fraud, and/or deception. It can take various forms such as sexual exploitation, forced marriage or labour exploitation.  It is happening in industries such as domestic service, agriculture, hospitality, mining, manufacturing, construction or fishing.  It has also been connected with organ trafficking, begging and the recruitment of child soldiers. All of these deprive human beings of their freedom and dignity. 

Pope Francis has said that. “Human Trafficking is an open wound on the body of society, a scourge upon the body of Christ.  It is a crime against humanity.” 

Each year on the 8th of February, the Church celebrates the life and example of St Bakhita. By also marking this day as International Day of Prayer and Awareness against Human Trafficking, it is a call for all Christians to pray for victims and also  learn more and of be more aware of the reality of the trafficking, which is present in almost every country in the world.  It is a call to reject this scourge and to act against it in every way we can and wherever we are.

St Bakhita is an example of endurance, determination and hope against adversity – an example of true freedom for those enslaved through trafficking or abusive relationships. She is a sign that trauma and the scars of abuse caused by enslavement or Human Trafficking can be healed and that the dignity of a fully human life can be regained.

Pope John Paul II referred to St Bakhita as “Our Universal Sister” – an example of faith and forgiveness to us all and a source of hope for those who are in any form of slavery or who need to find peace, forgiveness and reconciliation in their lives”. 

May her feast day be for us both, a time of prayer and a time to deepen our commitment to protect and promote the freedom and human dignity that loving our neighbour means.

Book Cover

ONLINE EVENTS ON THE 8TH OF FEBRUARY
Talitha Kum, an international network of Sisters against human trafficking and exploitation, invites you to join an Online Pilgrimage of Prayer and Awareness against Human Trafficking “Journeying in Dignity”, from 08:30 to 3:30pm. (see timetable below) You can follow the livestream on:  https://preghieracontrotratta.org/yt/en 

The SMA and OLA Justice Offices have organised an online, live conversation with Mr David Lohan, author of “At Freedom’s Crossroads – making sense of Modern Slavery”.  It will be broadcast live on the OLA Facebook page on Wednesday, 8th February at 7pm to mark the feast of St Josephine Bakhita and the International Day of Prayer and Awareness against Human Trafficking. There is no need to register, just go to the OLA Facebook page where the conversation will be live-streamed on video here: https://www.facebook.com/OLASisters/ 

Video of the above script.

JOURNEYING IN DIGNITY:  Please find a timeline of events below, as forwarded from Talitha Kum.  NOTE: CET – Central European time is on hour ahead of our winter time clock in Ireland.  Therefore, please adjust the timings in the image below accordingly – the event begins at 8.30am and ends at 3.30 pm. 

6th Sunday in Ordinary Time 2023 – Year A

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:JesusTeaching.jpg

12 February 2023

Sirach 15: 15 – 20
1 Cor: 2:6 – 10
Matthew 5.17 – 37

Today’s Gospel is one which can cause a lot of confusion for people – if they read it literally. But it is not meant to be read in this fashion. Jesus is certainly NOT telling us to tear out our eyes or to cut off our hands.

No, what Jesus is calling for is a radical way of life. Yes, he’s nearly asking the impossible! But there are some people (not too many) who make choices which cause the rest of us to look on in wonder, even amazement and sometimes admiration. The work of those involved in St Vincent de Paul [SVP], Simon, Peter McVerry Trust, the Capuchin Day Centre etc. come to my mind. And there are so many Irish missionaries and aid workers who leave aside the comforts of Irish life to walk with the poor, in Africa, South America, and Asia. They are in the frontline. Theirs is a radical choice to put others first.

You are also called to this radical way of life. And you can respond! Probably not all the time and always with a full heart, brimming over. But you can reach for it. How?

St Therese once said that all she wanted to do on earth was to do the ordinary things extraordinarily well. Can’t you start there? But in fact many of us are already doing that – the single parent doing their best to raise their children; the unemployed woman or man who gets involved in some voluntary work to help others in need; the mother who washes, cleans and cooks every day so that the family are looked after… the list is endless. You’re already doing it to some degree so you’re already responding to Jesus’ invitation to build God’s kingdom on earth.

No matter what I do (or fail to do) there are repercussions. What I must do each day is to make sure that anything I do or say does not have bad repercussions. Sometimes it’s as simple as keeping my mouth shut and not passing on that bit of gossip I heard down at the shops about a neighbour. What was it someone once said: ‘if you can’t say something good about someone, say nothing.’

But there is one particular admonition in the Gospel today which we might look at in a closer way, especially at this time in our history: “I say to you that the one who is angry with their brother or sister will be liable to judgment”. Anger is the source of so much evil in our world. If it is not dealt with properly it can lead on to hatred. How many times have we read in the papers of trial where the accused expresses remorse for their actions because it was done in the heat of anger.

Here in Ireland we are hearing that many people are angry with how things have turned out with the disappearance (or is it the death) of the Celtic Tiger? People losing their jobs, homes, unable to feed their families, pay bills, our young (and not so young) having to emigrate because there are no jobs. We cannot deny our anger.

There is a righteous anger (Jesus himself was sometimes angry about bad things he saw) but he was always in control of it. And he used that feeling, not to react and do bad, but to inspire him to try to make the situation better. And that, my sisters and brothers, might be a lesson to us in our present situation. We must not just remain angry but must look for ways to harness it for the better. It’s not for me to tell you how to do it. Each of us must decide what we think is best. But I have no doubt that if we harness our anger in a positive way – and not just remain in the ‘angry state’ – we will be better able to deal with our individual difficulties and also help to improve things for all of us. You could say that I’m suggesting a radical way to deal with anger!

I pray that you, I and everyone in our land will take up Jesus’ invitation to a radical way of life and so show forth to the world His power at work in us. Amen.

Lord Jesus, think on me, and purge away my sin
From earth-born passions set me free, and make me pure within.
May what is false within us before your Truth give way
T
hat we may live to praise you, today and to the end. 

(inspired by Synesius of Cyrene, c375-430)

Fr Martin Kavanagh, SMA

 

 

To listen to an alternative Homily from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

 

SMA International News – February 2023

Welcome to the February edition of the SMA International News. This month we have stories from, Togo, Ghana, Ireland and a report about the Feast of St Bakhita which takes place on the 8th of February. 

Fr Auguste-Joseph Moreau
Fr Auguste Joseph Moreau

First we hear about the deliberations of the SMA Financial Council at a meeting in Lomé, Togo. Next comes a video report about a conference held on January 18 and 19 at the University of Kumasi to mark the 140th anniversary of the arrival of Fr. Auguste Moreau SMA pioneer of evangelization in Ghana. 

Each year on the 8th of February, the Church celebrates the life of St Bakhita and also designates this day as International Day of Prayer and Awareness against Human Trafficking. We hear about the life and example of St Bakhita and about how this occasion is a call to reject the scourge of Human Trafficking and to act against it in any way we can and wherever we are.

The last report this month is from Ireland, where recently Diamond Jubilee celebrations took place to mark the missionary priesthood of four SMA’s ordained in December 1962.

As usual the bulletin ends with a round-up of general news regarding activities and events across SMA International.   

To view click on the paly icon in the image below. 

5th Sunday in Ordinary Time 2023 – Year A

Readings: Isaiah 58:7-10; 1 Corinthians 2:1-5; Matthew 5:13-16

Theme:  You are the Light of the World and the Salt of the Earth

In his 1969 hit song, ‘Try a Little Kindness’, Glen Campbell sings ‘Just shine your light for everyone to see’, echoing the words of Jesus to his disciples in today’s gospel: ‘Your light must shine in the sight of people’ (Mt 5:14). Light is one of the oldest and most important symbols found in all religions and cultures. It is the central symbol of Christianity. The God we worship is not just the source of light. He is light. In the words of St John’s first letter, ‘God is light; in him there is no darkness at all’ (1 Jn 1:5).  Jesus, the Son of God and ‘perfect copy of his nature’ (Heb 1:3) ‘is the true light who enlightens everyone in the world’ (Jn 1:9).

As disciples of Jesus, we are called to reflect the light of Christ in the world of our time: ‘You are the light of the world’ (Mt: 5:14). This is our fundamental vocation and constant challenge. Today’s readings clarify this vocation, answering the questions how and why we are to be ‘the light of the world’. In our first reading, the prophet Isaiah, tells us that it is by speaking and acting with justice and compassion that we bring light into the darkness of the world: ‘If you do away with the yoke, the clenched fist, the wicked word, if you give your bread to the hungry, and relief to the oppressed, your light will shine in the darkness’ (Is 58:10). The responsorial psalm confirms Isaiah’s plea which was never more relevant than in our time. By being generous, merciful and just, the good person ‘is a light in the darkness for the upright’ (Ps 111:4).

 The testimony of Aristides, a second century philosopher reveals how well the early Christian community reflected the light of Christ by the witness of their lives.  Writing to the Emperor Hadrian in defence of the Christians, he states that: ‘Christians love one another. They never fail to help widows; they save orphans from those who would hurt them. If one member of the community has something, he gives freely to those who have nothing. If they see a stranger, Christians take him home as through he were a real brother…. There is something divine in them.’ I sometimes wonder if others see something divine in Christian communities today. Do our lives shine as brightly in our world as the lives of the early Christians did in the world of their time?                    

Like the early Christians we must let the divine light that is in us shine brightly for all to see. But we are to do this not to blow our own trumpet or draw attention to ourselves, but rather to bring others to recognise and acknowledge the presence of God in us. We do it so that, as Jesus tells his disciples, others may see our good works and give glory to our Father in heaven (cf. Mt 5:16). In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus also warns his disciples to ‘be careful not to parade your good deeds before people to attract their notice; by doing that you will lose all reward from your Father in heaven’ (Mt 6:1). There is a big difference between parading our light and being a light. The difference is well illustrated in the life of a modern saint, Mother Teresa of Calcutta, who left her comfortable life in a European cloister to serve the poorest of the poor on the streets of Calcutta. She didn’t do this to give a good example to others. She did it out of love – a love so palpable that it moved the hearts of even hardened journalists.

In today’s gospel Jesus uses the image of salt, as well as light, to illustrate the role of his disciples in the world. Jesus wants his disciples to be the salt of the earth.  In the past salt was a highly valued and expensive commodity.  It was often a favourite item of taxation. Salt preserves, purifies and seasons food. Since the advent of refrigeration, it has lost some of its importance but is still an essential part of our diet. What Jesus is highlighting is the distinctive taste that salt adds to food. But salt only produces its effect when it is merged with the food. It is indistinguishable from the rest of the food, but its presence or absence is noticed immediately. In the same way, the disciples of Jesus can only be truly effective when they are fully part of society while, at the same time, adding an unmistakable flavour to that society.

The images of light and salt illustrate the positive role that we, as disciples of Jesus, are called to play in the world. We are intended to be God’s instruments in the renewal of the world, in bringing out its inherent goodness (its flavour) and drawing it towards its ultimate divine destiny. But we cannot play this role if we hide our lights under a bushel or lose our distinctive flavour (saltiness) as disciples of Jesus. We have to be in the world, but not of the world. In the words of the great French novelist, Albert Camus, ‘The world today needs Christians who remain Christians’.

Fr Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

FOR PARISHES – Video Message of Pope Francis for February 2023

We pray that parishes, placing communion at the centre, may increasingly become communities of faith, fraternity and welcome towards those most in need.

What does Pope Francis expect from parishes? Generous, open communities near to all

  • The new Video Message calls parishes to truly be communities: places of listening and welcome whose doors are always open.
  • Pope Francis’ message places the accent on parishes functioning as “schools of service and generosity” where people can “find the gift of the sacraments.”
  • At the same time, the Holy Father asks us to be “daring,” to be able to rethink “the style of our parochial communities.”

TEXT OF POPES MESSAGE
Sometimes I think that we should put a sign on the door of parishes that says, “Free admission.”
Parishes should be close-knit communities, without bureaucracy, people-centered —a place where the gift of the sacraments can be found.
They have to become once again schools of service and generosity, with their doors always open to those who are excluded. And to those included. To all.
Parishes are not a club for the few, which give a certain kind of social belonging.
Please, let us be daring.
Let us all rethink the style of our parochial communities.
Let us pray that parishes, placing communion –communion of people, ecclesial communion– at the center, may increasingly become communities of faith, of fraternity and of welcoming the most in need.

Pope Francis – February 2023

4th Sunday in Ordinary Time 2023 – Year A

29 January 2022

Zephaniah 2:3; 3:12-13                         1 Corinthians 1:26-31                         Matthew 5:1-12

The Beatitudes: Jesus’ Recipe for happiness

In last Sunday’s gospel we heard how Jesus launched his messianic mission with a simple, clear message and exhortation: ‘Repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. In today’s gospel Matthew introduces to the beatitudes of Jesus. In them we see the kind of repentance or change of heart Jesus is asking of us, if we wish to enjoy the blessings of God’s Kingdom and experience the kind of happiness God is offering us.

In the Beatitudes Jesus is not giving his disciples a new set of commandments like the ten commandments Moses received on Mount Sinai for the people of Israel. The Jews in Jesus’ time already had enough commandments and rules. Six hundred and thirteen of them are found in the Torah. So, more rules would be bad news, not good news. The beatitudes are good news. They are declarations of blessing. They are Jesus’ recipe for happiness. The word ‘blessed’ occurs nine times in today’s gospel reading. Declarations of blessing are found throughout the bible. The first psalm opens with the beatitude: ‘Blessed is the person who follows not the counsel of the wicked… but who delights in the law of the Lord’ (Ps 1:1-2). The first beatitude in Luke’s gospel declares Mary blessed because she believed ‘that the promise made her by the Lord would be fulfilled’ (Lk 1:45).

What is surprising about the beatitudes of Jesus’ are the categories of people he declares to be blessed. They are not the prosperous, powerful or famous, not those we would consider particularly blessed or happy. Indeed, his beatitudes turn upside down the values and attitudes that are dominant in our world. They propose an alternative way of life to that which most people freely choose. They articulate a vision of the good life seen from the perspective of a God who is Love. This was the vision of life Jesus himself embodied and lived. In the words of the American Evangelist, Carl F. Henry, ‘Jesus clothes the beatitudes with his own life’.

For the sake of the Kingdom that he proclaimed, Jesus renounced power and prestige and chose the way of powerlessness. He was truly ‘poor in spirit’ and identified himself with the lowly of this world, not with the high and mighty. He was merciful, meek and compassionate. He mourned with the sorrowing. He was a peace-maker who offered the violent no resistance. Yet, he was uncompromising in his commitment to all who were exploited and suffered injustice. He was persecuted for the cause of right and finally handed over to death. Everything he said and did flowed from, and gave concrete expression to, the power of the Father’s love at work in him.

The beatitudes only make sense in the context of the Kingdom of God. In this Kingdom it is not the rich, the successful, and the powerful who are blessed, but the meek and lowly. These are the people God chooses as his privileged instruments in the service of his Reign. In the striking words of St Paul in today’s second reading, ‘God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, things that are not, to reduce to nothing things that are, so that no one might boast in the presence of God (1 Cor 1:27-29). These are the people through whom God works to realise his dream of a world transformed by the power of Love: a world where the weak are protected and none go hungry; a world where the riches of creation are shared and everyone can enjoy them; a world where all peoples live in harmony and mutual respect; a world where peace is built on justice, and justice is guided by love.

PRAY FOR THE SUCCESS OF THE SYNOD

While the beatitudes are not a new set of rules for the disciples of Jesus, they  constitute a radical challenge and call to action. We cannot live them without undergoing a profound change of heart. They go way beyond the moral requirements of The Ten Commandments, which the rich young man in the Gospel of Luke was easily able to observe. They require that we imitate the example of the self-giving love of Jesus, resisting the idolatrous pull of wealth and power. They involve not merely a personal observance of ethical rules, but a rejection of the obscene inequalities that mar our world, and a tenacious struggle for a more just participation by all in the gifts of the earth. They involve an unswerving commitment to mirroring on earth the ‘Kingdom of Heaven’ and making the world a place of truth, love, compassion, justice, freedom and peace. I will end this homily with a simple and inspiring reflection on the beatitudes from the pen of Fr Flor McCarthy, SDB:

The beatitudes are the badges of a true disciple of Christ.
They are the marks of a child of God.
They make us rich in the sight of God.
They open our minds and hearts
to a new way of seeing and judging.
They give us a whole new set of bearings.
The things the beatitudes stand for
are very beautiful and very precious –
things such as peace, goodness, joy, love,
gentleness, compassion, mercy, integrity….
A person who lives according to the beatitudes
is already living in the kingdom of heaven.
Eternal life will merely be the full blossoming
of a plant that is green with life.

Fr Michael McCabe SMA

To listen to an alternative Homily from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

UN Committee for the Rights of the Child – Review of Ireland.

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On the 24th and 25th of January the UN’s Committee on the Rights of the Child will review Ireland during its meeting in Geneva. A joint submission made by the OLA Sisters, other congregations and the SMA will contribute to this review of Ireland which examines how well the Convention on the Rights of the Child is being implemented in Ireland and the steps taken by Government to ensure that every child’s rights are protected.

This joint submission which will form part of the input to the review is a collaborative effort between the Christian Brothers European Province Advocacy Office (http://www.edmundrice.eu/), the International Presentation Association (https://globalpres.org/), the Cork Migrant Centre (https://corkmigrantcentre.ie/), the Presentation Brothers Ireland (www.presentationbrothers.org), the Sisters of Our Lady of Apostles  (www.olaireland.ie)  and the Justice Office of the Society of African Missions (www.sma.ie).

The submission outlined concerns and recommendations across five areas of concern:

  • Human trafficking
  • Domestic violence
  • Children living in the Direct Provision system
  • Right to education
  • Racism in schools

The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child is a comprehensive, internationally binding agreement on the rights of children, which was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1989. Ireland signed the UN Convention on 30 September 1990, and ratified it on 28 September 1992. This means that the Irish State committed itself to promote, protect and fulfil the rights of children, as outlined in the UN Convention. The Convention defines a child as a person under the age of 18 years, and acknowledges the family as the fundamental unit of society. It stresses the role of parents as the primary care-givers with responsibility for the up-bringing of their children and obliges governments to support parents in fulfilling their essential role.

 The Review by the Committee on the Rights of the Child
The Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) is the body of 18 Independent experts that monitors implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. All countries who have signed the Convention are obliged to submit regular reports to the Committee on how the rights are being implemented. States must submit periodic reports every five years. The Committee examines each report and addresses its concerns and recommendations to the State in the form of “concluding observations”. Ireland is under review this year. As part of the review of Ireland, the Irish Ambassador to the UN in Geneva formally submitted the combined Fifth and Sixth State Report to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child in February 2022.

Steps in the Review
Civil society stakeholders submitted written reports to the Committee in 2020 on the situation of children’s rights in Ireland. These reports informed the List of Issues Prior to Reporting (LOIPRs) prepared by the Committee for Ireland.

  1. The Committee then sent the List of Issues Prior to Reporting (LOIPRs) to the Irish Government in November 2020. The LOIPRs are a list of questions addressed to the Irish Government under various headings affecting children.
  2. In February 2022, the Irish Government responded to the LOIPRs with the State report: the combined Fifth and Sixth State Report to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child.
  3. In August 2022, civil society groups responded to the State Report with their own submissions to the Committee, known as inputs to the State report. These submissions should include information on new developments; comments to the State report; pose questions for the dialogue, propose recommendations for the Concluding Observations; and address gaps in the LOIPR and the State Report.  The Joint Submission of religious congregations including the OLA and SMA was one such submission.
  4. The actual review of Ireland takes place on the 24th and 25th of February through a process of Constructive Dialogue between the Committee and representatives from the Irish Government after which the Committee will publish the Concluding Observations which will outline a list of recommendations to better realise the rights of the child in the coming five years.

 Our Joint Submission
You can download the Joint Submission made by the SMA, OLA and other groups here. Input to the State Report of Ireland – Joint Submission – OLA-PBVM-SMA-CFC-FPM-CMC-IPA – 15 August 2022

3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time 2023 – Year A

22 January 2023

Isaiah 8:23 – 9:3                        1 Corinthians 1:10-13,17                        Matthew 4; 12-23

Theme:  The people who lived in darkness have seen a great light

I have just finished reading Michelle Obama’s most recent book, The Light we Carry. It’s about sustaining hope in stressful and uncertain times and is a wonderful antidote to the pessimism and cynicism of our times. The theme of light looms large in the readings of today’s Mass. In our first reading, the great prophet Isaiah uses the image of light to announce a message of hope for an oppressed and downtrodden people: ‘The people that walked in darkness has seen a great light; on those who live in a land of deep shadow a light has shone’ (Is 9: 2). Our gospel reading from Matthew repeats the prophesy of Isaiah and identifies this ‘great light’ with Jesus of Nazareth. The responsorial psalm confidently proclaims our trust in the Lord, employing the image of light: ‘The Lord is my light and my help; whom shall I fear?

Matthew tells us that Jesus, following the arrest of his cousin, John the Baptist, withdraws to Galilee, and settles in Capernaum, a fishing village on the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee. And it is there that Jesus launches his messianic mission. Like John the Baptist, he begins, not with a lengthy manifesto but with a simple exhortation: ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near’ (Mt 4:13). Matthew’s reference to ‘heaven’ can be misleading. For many Christians heaven is a ‘place’ where we hope to go after death, if we live good lives here on earth. This is the image of heaven Maria Shriver presents in her book, What’s Heaven, written for children:It’s a beautiful place where you can sit on soft clouds and talk to other people who are there… When your life is finished here on earth, God send angels down to take you up to Heaven to be with him.’  A sweet image, certainly, but totally at odds with what Matthew means by ‘the Kingdom of Heaven’. 

Belinda Carlile’s 1987 hit song ‘Heaven is a place on earth’ is much closer to the biblical idea of heaven than Maria Shriver’s picture of elysian bliss. Matthew’s ‘kingdom of heaven’ is identical with the more familiar term, ‘kingdom of God’, which was the central theme of Jesus mission.  It refers, not to a place beyond the grave, but to God’s sovereign rule in our lives here and now. By his life and ministry, his words and actions, Jesus showed that this sovereign rule of God would mean nothing less than a complete transformation of our lives on earth. It would be ‘good news’, especially for the poor and exploited, the downtrodden and marginalised. It would mean the end of their misery and the creation of a society where justice, truth, peace and love would triumph over injustice, lies, hatred and violence. And it would be very good news, too, for the abused and exploited planet that is our common home.

Entering God’s kingdom and experiencing the power of God’s loving rule in our lives is not automatic. It requires a change of heart (metanoia) as Jesus’ exhortation makes clear. Jesus called his contemporaries to repent, and he asking for the same response from us today. However, we often fail to appreciate the full significance of this call. It implies much more that being sorry for the wrong actions we have done in the past. It means making a radical break with our past and taking our lives in a new direction. It means looking at life in a completely new way, putting on the mind and heart of Jesus, and allowing the Spirit of God to direct us. It is only when we begin to make this radical change that we are free to enter God’s Kingdom, and become sharers in the mission of Jesus.

After his proclamation of the Kingdom, Jesus calls four fishermen (Simon and his brother, Andrew, James, son of Zebedee, and his brother John) to follow him and to share in his mission – ‘I will make you fishers of people (Mt 4:19). For them, this call will mean a complete change in their way of life, a decisive break with their familiar past and a readiness to risk an uncertain future. Matthew tells us that ‘Immediately they left their nets and followed him‘ (Mt 4:20). They put their total trust in Jesus, leaving behind their only means of livelihood, not knowing where it would all lead. Eventually, they would become not just disciples of Jesus but his apostles, sent to bring his light to others.

We, too, are called to be, not just disciples, but also apostles of Jesus, his light-bearers to a broken world, still mired in deep shadows. And, as St Paul reminds us in today’s Second Reading, it is Christ’s light we carry, not our own.

I will end with a short story about the great English Art Critic and writer, John Ruskin. One day, he was sitting with a friend in the dusk of an evening and watching a lamplighter, with a torch in hand, lighting the street lights on a distant hill. Eventually the lamplighter’s form was no longer distinguishable in the distance. ‘There’, said Ruskin, to his friend, ‘that is what I mean by a real Christian. You can trace his course by the light he leaves behind’. Let us pray that our course will be marked by the light we leave behind.

Michael McCabe SMA, Cork

To listen to an alternative Homily from Fr Tom Casey of the SMA Media Centre, Ndola, Zambia please click on the play button below.

Nigerian politicians accused, following priest’s burning to death

Fr Isaac Achi RIP

In an interview with FIDES – the Vatican News Agency – Bishop Luka Sylvester Gopep, Auxiliary bishop of Minna diocese, Nigeria, spoke of the burning alive of the late Fr Isaac Achi in the parish house in Kaffin Koro. “They have come to kill. If their purpose was robbery or kidnapping, they would have acted differently”, he said. 

The assault took place at 3 in the morning on Sunday, January 15, when an armed group tried to enter the parish residence of Father Achi, at the Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, in Kaffin Koro, Niger State, in north central Nigeria.

“Apparently, the murderers tried to enter the house and, failing to do so, they set fire to the house, burning the priest alive. Even before setting fire to the house, the bandits fired indiscriminately. A sign of their willingness to kill”, Bishop Gopep said. According to him, “the assault was committed by a band of Fulani herdsmen. But we wonder who sent them to attack the parish house”.

In the shooting, another priest was wounded as he was fleeing the parish house. “Father Collins Omeh was shot in the shoulder. He is now in the hospital and the doctors have assured us that no vital organs or important bones have been damaged.”

“These groups of Fulani herdsmen are now mercenaries. Most are not of Nigerian origin but come from other countries”, says another Nigerian Church source. “They were invited by Nigerian politicians in 2015 to wreak havoc in that year’s election. They received the promise of being able to exploit pastures in all the states of the federation, a promise which was then not kept due to the opposition of the individual states. Since then they have formed into gangs dedicated to robberies and kidnappings. Or at the service of those who pay them to commit massacres and murders“, concludes our source, who requested anonymity for security reasons.

In another area of Nigeria, another priest was kidnapped on Saturday, January 14. Father Michael Olubunimi Olofinlade, parish priest of St George’s Church, Omu Ekiti, in the local government area of Oye in Ekiti State, in the southwest of the Federal Republic. “Father Olofinlade was on a pastoral mission outside the parish. His kidnapping occurred when he was returning to the parish around six in the evening”, says a statement from the diocese of Ekiti. The place where the priest was abducted is located between Itaji-Ekiti and Ijelu-Ekiti, in the local government area of Oye, about 4 km from the parish”. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides, 16/1/2023

With thanks to FIDES.

For Educators – Video Message of Pope Francis for January 2023

Educate with fraternity: the extra ingredient that Francis is asking of educators in his first Pope Video for 2023

  • In the first Pope Video for 2023, Francis emphasizes the importance of educators, as he has done repeatedly during his pontificate.
  • The Holy Father asks that they add new content to their teaching: fraternity, a key ingredient in the search for a world that is closer to those who are most vulnerable.
  • Francis wants educators to be credible witnesses, who see fraternity as the best path for helping those most in need.

Text of Pope’s Message:
I would like to propose that educators add new content to their teaching: fraternity.
Education is an act of love that illuminates the path for us to recover a sense of fraternity, so we will not ignore those who are most vulnerable.
Educators are witnesses who not only impart their mental knowledge, but also their convictions, their commitment to life.
They know how to handle the three languages well: that of the head, that of the heart, and that of the hands, all in harmony. And hence the joy in communicating.
And they will be heeded much more attentively and will become community builders.
Why? Because they’re sowing this testimony.
Let us pray that educators may be credible witnesses, teaching fraternity rather than confrontation and helping especially the youngest and most vulnerable above all.

Pope Francis – January 2023