Professional Documents
Culture Documents
August 2014 Xaverian Mission Newsletter
August 2014 Xaverian Mission Newsletter
August 2014 Xaverian Mission Newsletter
Xaverian Mission
Volume 62 - No. 3 |August 2014
Newsletter
So Can We!
A really convincing
example of beautiful,
amazing acts of ordinary humanity .
X averian Missionaries
Provincial Headquarters
12 Helene Court
Wayne, NJ 07470-2813
Tel.: (973) 942-2975
Fax: (973) 942-5012
Email:
missionmedia@xaviermissionaries.org
franklin@xaviermissionaries.org
holliston@xaviermissionaries.org
Publisher
Fr. Carl Chudy
Communications Board
Fr. Carl Chudy SX
Fr. Tony Lalli SX
Fr. Rocco Puopolo SX
Fr. Aniello Salicone SX
Editor
Mary Aktay
Printing
AlphaGraphics, Totowa, NJ
Email & Web:
missionmedia@xaviermissionaries.org
Website: www.xaviermissionaries.org
St. Guido site: www.guidoconforti.com
Mission blog: www.global-catholic.org
www.facebook.com/catholicmissionaries
www.twitter.com/worldcatholic
Contact:
Fr. Frank Grappoli, SX
12 Helene Court
Wayne, NJ 07470
Tel: 973-942-2975
Or visit: www.xaviermissionaries.org for online donations
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On a Bus in Thailand...
A Catholic missionary sister shares her daily
encounter with Jesus with a Buddhist bus driver.
hat will he have understood about my God? Im still asking myself this about a conversation I had with a Thailand
transit worker four months ago. At that time I often took
the bus in the city of Chiang Mai, Thailand, and I sat in
the front to converse with the driver, as they know a lot about the city.
That day he was particularly talkative. Knowing that I was a missionary,
he asked me thousands of questions. I gave in to his curiosity and
Ministering to children with disabilities in Thailand
answered, trying to be brief but precise, given that the topics of dedication, eternal life and God, varied greatly between Buddhism and
Christianity. I had to be careful not to give vague answers or create misconceptions.
In Buddhism, to be a monk or a nun does not necessarily refer to a choice for
the rest of ones life. In the majority of cases they remain monks for a limited
time, varying from a few days to several years. For this reason the driver
asked me how long I had been religious and how much longer I intended to
remain so. I responded that in our religion it is a definitive choice. Our relationship with God was most important of all and to be united with God more
intimately in this way of life was welcomed by some as a gift from God.
The next question did not come like a torrent as the previous ones had. There
was a pause. I thought perhaps the driver was beginning to tire. This however
was not the case; he was preparing to ask me a very special question, one
able to turn my heart and mind upside down and drive me to an examination of my life. Even today his
question resounds in my ears and in my heart: Do you
touch God every day?
I was saying to myself as well as to him, that yes, it is true, I can touch God every day. God wants people to love one
another freely, just like Jesus. I had arrived at my destination. Other people had to be taken elsewhere. Good-bye,
thank you. It was a nice conversation.
What did he, my Buddhist questioner understand? I really do not know. But I know that I will never forget that question. It
accompanies me now, reviving in me the gratitude for the gift of the incredible closeness of God daily.
The mission of every Christian is to make visible the opportunity given to us to be able to touch God every day. It brings
us close to the way of Jesus, to be a meeting place, a space for a relationship between God and people; a place that
allows God to reach out to our brothers and sisters and allows our brothers and sisters to encounter and touch God who
dwells in us. May Jesus make us house inhabited by God where others can enter so that meeting may occur.
I could touch
heaven with
my soul...
In March
of 2013
during
the
homily
at Mass,
I had an inspiration to accuse the
many husbands present of not loving
their wives since most of them had
not paid the traditional dowry yet,
after years of living together. To my
total surprise, not only were they not
offended, but 22 of them
promised on the spot, that
they would pay the necessary amount (about $100150) by December 31st.
Who would believe
them? Not I, though I
was hoping that at
least five couples
would make it. We
began to hold weekly meetings for the
22 couples to
understand
Christian marriage. Many husbands and wives
attended. Fourteen
couples definitely decided to
celebrate their customary weddings
A few years
later, the
Xaverian
Fathers, who
had a novitiate in
Petersham,
MA, asked for the sisters assistance. It
had been in collaboration with another
Xaverian Father James Spagnolo
that Mother Celestina, then an English
teacher, founded the Xaverian Missionaries of Mary in 1944 in Italy. After
struggle and prayer Celestina agreed
to help, and young women joined her.
If the sisters are like Mother Celestina, she must have been incredible,
Xaverian Father Carl Chudy, provincial superior, said in his homily. Shes with us today through
them helping us to transcend all
the things that weigh us down, he
said. Everyone always has that power
to defy gravity; its the power the
Church is celebrating between the
feasts of Ascension and Pentecost.
We recognize the Trinitys power
working through Mother Celestina
and the urgency of the global mission today.
Josephine Belli, of St. Anthony of
Padua Parish in Fitchburg, recalled
meeting Mother Celestina in 1972,
when she and her sister-in-law went
to Italy. They stopped at the motherhouse. Mother Celestina invited them
to lunch. We had such a pleasant
time, Ms. Belli said. She was just
an outstanding woman so loving
and caring. Such a warm embrace.
Always open arms, added Sister
Rosetta. She was a mother. She was
writing all the time and asking how
the community was. Always with a
Always
open arms...
The next day, June 22, Sunday, the Mass was celebrated under the large tent close to the statue of Saint Francis
Xavier. The Saint Alphonsus Bell Choir made beautiful music during the Mass and received well deserved applause
at the conclusion of the liturgy. Fr. Mark presided at the Mass and Frs. Dominic, Larry and Aniello were the
concelebrants.
On Sunday, June 22, the weather remained pleasant and people came in. The flow of visitors was less than
Saturday, but almost the same of that of last years Festival.
A Climate of Joy!
The baked chicken dinner went well and all the dinners were sold. The Bands of Vern Tretow & the Original and
the Kenny Brandt Band offered their enjoyable music and people danced.
There was a climate of joy!
This year together with the Mission Tent booth, large posters on the missions were displayed. People were
interested in them and asked questions to the Fathers.
The mission raffle went very well.
The Knights of Columbus offered their service for wine and beer. The volunteers were great and generous with
their time. The booths were covered by the volunteers and so the games and the selling of food and ice Cream and
popcorn went on till the end. Mr. Fred Michalek, the chairman of the festival, organized everything very well and
ran it with all his skill and competence.
me ...Come on!
concise and
comprehensive rule
of Faith, a resolution
encompassing all
resolutions
n our work in dialogue with those of other faiths and with those who do not espouse any
particular faith at all, we want not only to make meaningful connections in respectful
dialogue with those who do not share our faith, but also to encourage our own faith
brothers and sisters how important this is for all Catholics and Christians to engage in.
When I share these experiences in parishes and with groups in many places, I am given the
response, Have you converted them yet? It saddens me when I hear this because it indicates
we understand so little of what it means to share ourselves and our faith with others. It also shows
we have little practice in it.
Dialogue
with those
who do
not share
our faith
begins with
listening
to each
others life
journeys.
Bamenda (Agenzia
Fides) The dynamism,
the vitality, commitment
and growth of the
Church in Cameroon, is
the result of excellent
missionary work of the
part of numerous men
and women missionaries
of the past to whom
we pay homage today;
however it is also the
Indigenous children in Brazil
fruit of the pastoral
work undertaken in
your respective dioceses,
with great sacrifice
and dedication, this
was underlined by
the Prefect of the
Congregation for the
Evangelization of Peoples,
Cardinal Fernando
Filoni, in his meeting
with
the Bishops of
A child holds a cross representing one of the
hundreds of migrants who have died attempt- the African country.
ing to enter the United States
Despite the limited
means at her disposal,
and often under difficult conditions,
the Cardinal said, the local Church
makes a considerable contribution
towards alleviating the suffering of
people afflicted by poverty, insecurity
and other social constraints. I
warmly encourage you to continue
this important mission to proclaim
the Gospel and promote human
development following the example of
Jesus.
Fr. Martin Ali Keke Ndemsous ordination
celebration in Xaverian Cameroon-Chad
AMERICA/BRAZIL
Mission to relieve the missionary campaign against
human trafficking in persons
AMERICA/UNITED
STATES
Children and young immigrants in the USA: They
are not seeking adventure,
they are fleeing from a
war
XAVERIAN SISTER
RENEWS VOWS
On July 2nd the Xaverian Community
of Holliston joined the Xaverian
Sister community of Worcester to
celebrate a special day when many
of the sisters either take their first
vows, renew their vows or profess
final vows. It was an important day
of commitment for their founder,
Mother Celestina Healy Bottego and
is now part of the tradition of the
sisters. Sr. Susana Miranda Jimenez
WAYNE: COMMON
GROUND JOURNAL
NOW AN E-BOOK.
vocational discernment
work with those who
inquire. Eventually he
will also be specializing in media.
Fr. Alex studied theology at CTU in Chicago,
was ordained a priest
in 2008 and has spent
the past 6 years in
the Xaverian Missions
in the Philippines.
~Fr. Carl Chudy SX
Calling all mobile users. You can download the journal of our Common Ground
Conference bringing together humanists, atheists and religious believers on
shared values and ethics. The links are:
Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00L
2GAA3I?ie=UTF8&camp=213733&creative
=393177&creativeASIN=B00L2GAA3I&link
Code=shr&tag=eauciuen0a-20
Apple IBooks
https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/
common-ground/id890132601?mt=11
FRANKLIN WELCOMES
FR. ALEJANDRO
Fr. Alejandro Gomez Rodriquez SX will
be joining our Franklin Community of
the USA region in August where he will
be the Midwest extension of theGYM
team, based in Holliston. He will focus
on encouraging global mission with
youth and young adults, as well as
11
Sister Teresa Bello XMM states: I can touch God every day. God wants people to love one another
freely, just like Jesus. If you are called to touch God as a missionary,
Contact:
thegym@xaviermissionaries.org
508-429-2144
Xaverian Missionaries Serve In:
Bangladesh Brazil Burundi Cameroon Chad Colombia Democratic Republic of Congo France
Indonesia Italy Japan Mexico Mozambique Philippines Sierra Leone Spain Taiwan Thailand UK USA
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