Statuses

New Evangelisation and the Universal Call to Holiness

Ireland, like many other Western countries that once had strong and vibrant Christian communities, is now in need of evangelisation. The Universal Church has put New Evangelisation at the core of her concerns and actions. Pope Francis states, ‘In fidelity to the example of the Master, it is vitally important for the Church today to go forth and preach the Gospel to all: to all places, on all occasions, without hesitation, reluctance or fear. The joy of the Gospel is for all people: no one can be excluded’ (Evangelii Gaudium 23). In stating this, the Pope is giving strong and clear leadership to our Church regarding evangelisation. He is not allowing us to stay in our own comfort zone and leave large sections of society untouched by the Gospel. It is also important to note what the Holy Father said in relation to Church: ‘Being Church means being God’s people, in accordance with the great plan of his fatherly love. […] 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’ (Evangelii Gaudium 114). What a beautiful and wonderful vision is contained in those words. The task of all missionary disciples, but in particular, members of the Union of Catholic Apostolate, is to help everyone we encounter to experience and be part of the community that is this Church. However, if this vision is to be realised, a transformation must take place so that authentic humility and contemplation will be the outstanding attributes of God’s people.

It is also important to acknowledge, at all times, that our transformation or conversion can only happen with the help of the Holy Spirit. It is by the grace of God that we respond to the love that God has lavished upon us. We are called to proclaim the Word and to sow seeds, but it is the Spirit who acts once the seed is sown (Mk 4:26-29). To quote Pope Francis, ‘God’s word is unpredictable in its power. […] The Church has to accept this unruly freedom of the word, which accomplishes what it wills in ways that surpass our calculations and ways of thinking’ (Evangelii Gaudium 22). In order to allow God to surprise us and to be open to his work, in ourselves and in others, we need to prepare our own hearts by becoming closer to Jesus and to his Word.

We must not allow the sheer enormity of the task to paralyse us into inaction. Rather, all big ideas are accomplished by a series of small steps right down to the power of one of these. I believe that this is how God’s plan for us is worked out over time. The mission of the Universal Church is also the mission of the local and domestic Church. The task of evangelisation is not confined to bishops, priests and religious. It is the work of the whole church, the whole People of God.

The Universal Call to Holiness

Our God is a good and generous God as we see in the parable of the Labourers in the Vineyard (Mt 20:3-4): “Going out about the third hour he saw others standing idle in the market place and said to them ‘You go into my vineyard too’. This call is as vibrant today as it was 2,000 years ago, and was re-echoed by Vatican Council II and again in Christifideles Laici. It is addressed not only to the clergy and religious but to every baptised person. Each one of us receives from God a vocation and a mission to enter into collaboration for the good of the Church and of the whole world. In founding the Union of Catholic Apostolate, St. Vincent Pallotti realised the necessity of a structure to facilitate such collaboration in order to revive faith and re-kindle charity in our Church and in the world.

The first reaction of many lay people, myself included, when asked to become involved in evangelisation is to say, ‘I am not worthy or I am not holy enough to do this work’. But Jesus came to heal sinners and we are all sinners. We are all human; we disappoint ourselves and others in many areas of life; we often fail to reach our potential; yet God always offers us another chance.

Reflecting on the life of St. Peter helps illumine God’s work in us and offers great encouragement to all. Peter was a layman whose first reaction to God’s call was, ‘Leave me, Lord; I am a sinful man’. But Jesus said ‘Do not be afraid’ (Lk 5:8-10). Peter shows his determination when he attempts to walk on water, but immediately falls back once more into fear (Mt 14:8-32). Later on, Jesus tells him that he is an obstacle to God’s plan of salvation, because he fails to understand that suffering is part of Christ’s mission (Mt 16:23). Peter is also challenged by the infinite mercy of God and the call to imitate him in his boundless forgiveness (Mt 18:21-22) as he tries to get to grips with the far-reaching implications of being a follower of Jesus.

Finally, all of Peter’s human weaknesses and emotions come to the surface in Mt 26: 33-69. His great courage and loyalty are shown during the arrest of Jesus. His failures and weakness are demonstrated by his inability to stay awake and pray in the Garden and above all by his denial of Jesus in order to save himself. These are all very human and natural traits. Yet God used his weakness and past failures to transform Peter. In responding to the Universal Call to Holiness each one of us ought to be inspired by the extraordinary transformation of Peter, through the power of God, into the great leader and martyr that he became.

If new evangelisation is to be realised it will not be through mere words, but by the quality of our witness in our local faith communities and parishes. The process of evangelisation will happen quickly if every person we encounter in our daily lives and work feels welcomed, loved, forgiven and encouraged as Pope Francis recommends. Our task locally is to help people to become aware or more aware of God’s presence in our world. A world where many people have lost a sense of mystery – where God and religion are being pushed out. A real awakening to a sense of the sacred is necessary if new evangelisation is to succeed. A greater awareness or sense of God’s presence is needed if people are to respond to the universal call to holiness and act on their vocation.

I have often spent time with young people exploring four lines of a poem by Elizabeth Barrett Browning:

 ‘Earth’s crammed with heaven,

And every common bush afire with God,

But only he who sees takes off his shoes;

The rest sit round and pluck blackberries’

My two and half year old granddaughter’s world is full of mystery and wonder which she has no difficulty in embracing wholeheartedly. What happens to us as we get older? Do we lose our sense of mystery? Do we settle for knowing how things work without ever asking why? Do we lose that sense that there is always ‘more’? If we do, we have become berry-pickers and we are in urgent need of being awakened to a sense of having come from God and of returning to God. Richard Rohr says that we ‘cannot attain the presence of God because we are already totally in the presence of God. What is absent is awareness’ (‘Everything Belongs’). In trying to bring about an awakening to the Spirit or a greater awareness of God’s presence we may discover that actions speak louder than words. How we relate to each other may well hold the key.

This focus on relationships is important because it is through relationships that God’s love, mercy, joy and forgiveness will be encountered and experienced. This is the real challenge that Christ puts before all of his followers. ‘It is easier to immerse ourselves in doing a thousand things or getting involved in various causes, especially if we can connect them to the Gospel, than to attend to relationships; because relating to people demands a certain degree of trust, openness and vulnerability, which can cause some discomfort’ (From a talk given by Rev. Ruth Patterson). Yet this is precisely what we will have to do in order to be missionary disciples. Jesus gave us a perfect template in the way he revealed the Kingdom of God through word, action and table fellowship.

In John 4:5-30, the encounter between Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well is a very good example of the Master at work. Jesus is humble and asks for a drink of water. He spends time with her, they discuss her life, he listens and he offers something of great value. It is in the dialogue that she recognises who he is. After the encounter with Jesus, the woman immediately becomes a missionary and, as a result, many Samaritans came to believe in him because of her testimony. If we are to be effective in evangelising our neighbour, we will first of all ourselves need to have encountered the risen Lord in a deeply personal and life-changing way.

If our communities, parishes and homes are truly places where God’s loving presence can be encountered, where his Word is broken open and shared, where his actions are experienced and his table fellowship is offered and real, then we can say we are wholeheartedly engaged with New Evangelisation and beginning to make the vision behind the Universal Call to Holiness a reality.

Questions for personal and/or group reflection:

• Can you remember a particular time in your life when you experienced God’s call to holiness in a more deeply personal way than before?
• How has your experience of God’s call changed over the years? And your response to that call?
• What communities of faith have helped you to nourish and deepen and   respond to that call in relationship with others? Your family? Your parish and diocesan family? The Union of Catholic Apostolate? Other groups? The Universal Church?
•  In what ways are you, in your local UAC group or another faith community, involved in discerning the signs of the times and the needs of those around you and in responding to them as apostles of the Infinite Love of God through concrete practical initiatives?

Prayer:

Come Holy Spirit, burn away our selfishness and fill us with your love.
Come Holy Spirit, burn away our anxiety and fill us with your peace.
Come Holy Spirit, burn away our jealousy and fill us with your generosity.
Come Holy Spirit, burn away our anger and fill us with your forgiveness.
Come Holy Spirit, burn away our unbelief and fill us with a faith in Christ that transforms our lives.

Come Holy Spirit, burn away all that prevents us from hearing your call in the cry of the poor and from pouring out our lives in generous service of those who yearn for us to be for them living witnesses and missionary disciples of your Word, of your justice and peace, of your mercy and forgiveness, of your tenderness and compassion, of your goodness and truth, of your joy and simplicity, of your love. Amen.

(Adapted from a prayer given to me by the late Kevin Devlin RIP)

                                                              Pat Maguire,

                                                              Dublin, Ireland

____________________________________________________

Segretariato Generale, Unione dell’Apostolato Cattolico

Piazza San Vincenzo Pallotti 204, Roma, Italia    uac@uniopal.org

4th July 1976 – 4th July 2014

Friday 4th July marks the thirty-eight anniversary of the massacre of our five Pallottine confreres, Frs. Alfredo Leaden, Pedro Dufau, Alfie Kelly, and students Salvador Barbeito and Emilio Barletti. There will be several events in the Argentine to mark the anniversary.

 In Mercedes there will be a memorial service which will be held in the entrance to the parish church of San Patricio at 10.30. This service is organized by the Municipality of Mercedes, the Pallottine Community and the Municipal Commission por la Memoria (to keep alive the memory). The Municipality of Mercedes commissioned new plaques to commemorate them and they will be placed on the three streets that form part of the block in which the Church, Secondary School and Parish House are. Part of the tradition is to visit the cemetery of Mercedes for a prayer service at the graves of the three priests.

 In the parish of San Patricio, Belgrano, where the massacre occurred, a memorial concelebrated Mass will take place at 19.30.

 As a Province let us pray for our deceased confreres and accompany the members in Argentina as they commemorate another anniversary of the massacre.

Derry Murphy, SAC. Provincial Rector.

Return to Esso – Elaine Hogan

I returned to Tanzania in January to visit Esso – a parish run by the Pallottine Fathers – where I had lived before for over a year, and also to visit Malambo in the Ngorongoro conservation area where Fr. Mike O’Sullivan, a Pallottine Father from Co. Kerry, is now ministering to the Maasai tribe.

Esso is as vibrant as ever. I visited all the various “Pallotti projects” which have been set up over the past eight years and I am delighted to say that they are all thriving. The computer classroom was filled with new students, and being taught by Tanzanian teachers. The primary school now occupies six rooms in the Resource Centre. The Faraja (Joy) centre for children and adults with disabilities was being looked after by a young Tanzanian occupational therapist while Clare, the Irish lady who set it up, was home on holiday. The sports hall was packed with teenagers every afternoon and the buzz of activity around “Pallotti” is still there. The local people are now taking leadership of the projects themselves.

The new Church, built to hold 1,400 people, will be handed over to the parish for the Easter services… a credit to the locals who provided a lot of the cost through their weekly contributions. What a success story for all involved!
Fr. Noel O’Connor asked me to visit a family on his behalf to find out how they are getting on. There are seven children in the family and Fr. Noel is trying to support them by raising funds to send them to school. They lived in the changing rooms on a football field in Esso for a long time, but now they have a small plot of land in another parish and live in a wooden house – with absolutely no flooring, just mud – and the interior dividing walls are made from sheets of cardboard. They are gradually buying materials to build a brick house. The children are all doing very well in school. Their father is now working on a building site and the eldest son has found work installing solar panels. They are very happy and healthy, and each one proudly recorded a video greeting in English for me to show to Fr. Noel when I got home. I visited Fr. Mike in Malambo, an outstation of Loliondo parish. There are several outstations all around the hills and mountains of Malambo, which Fr. Mike tries to visit as often as possible. The landscape is outstanding and the peace and quiet was astounding! Fr. Mike says Malambo is “Africa’s best kept secret”.

One Sunday, Fr. Mike said Mass in Piaya. In this rural area the community only sees a priest two or three times a year. There are no tarmac roads and it is a three-hour drive away. In Piaya we visited the home of the parish chairman who had died tragically two weeks previously (Christmas week) leaving nine children behind, the youngest being only two years old.

When we arrived, his widow welcomed us and had already prepared refreshments. She was a truly beautiful lady and an inspiration. Her attitude was to get on with things for the sake of her children. There were a lot of other children around that day and also a catechist who had been in Piaya to prepare them for the sacraments. Fr. Mike heard confessions before Mass; and during Mass there were baptisms, first communions and confirmations.

After the long Mass, we were invited back to the house where a feast had been prepared for everyone in celebration of all the sacraments received that day. On the journey home we were joined by an old Maasai man and two young boys. There are only a handful of cars in the area, so if there is the opportunity of a lift somewhere, the people will take it. The boys were on their way to a government-run boarding school for hundreds of Maasai children, and without a lift they would have to walk for two days through wide open land with lots of wild animals. 

The school year begins in January, so driving around the area at that time we saw children either running after a car asking for a lift, or running in the other direction if they thought it was a government car sent to take them to school! But some parents don’t send their children to school as they are needed at home to look after the cattle.
On that Sunday, our youngest passenger, who was about eight years old, had car sickness… and there was nothing we could do only keep on driving; we were in the middle of nowhere. Fr. Mike had arranged a meeting at another outstation on the way home as he was planning a seminar and wanted to personally invite the young people. While the meeting took place under a tree with the men of the village, the women took the sick little boy and washed him and his clothes, and by the time we left a half an hour later, the car was clean, the child was clean, his clothes were dry and the women had wrapped a plastic sick bag around his ears before allowing him back into the car again, the poor little guy!

We returned to the same village later in the week for their first catechism class. It had rained the night before, so the people who had requested the classes were out in the fields looking after their crops. We waited around for them for over an hour (no hurry in Africa). In their first class they learned how to make the sign of the cross. Then Fr. Mike spoke to the surprisingly large gathering of men, women and children.

He held up a bottle of water and explained how it would be blessed and then he would sprinkle it over them and they would be blessed. The sign of the cross and holy water: two things I take for granted every day, these people were only learning now, in the year 2014! Fr. Mike told them that he would be back again soon to bless their houses (mud huts) and their animals, and they were very happy. An elderly woman jokingly asked if she could attend the seminar for the youth: she must have been eighty years old… and she was only just learning how to make the sign of the cross! One day in Malambo we visited a woman Fr. Mike had met a few times before. She had been working in the field one day when a dust storm came and lifted her into the air with such force that when she landed she was paralysed. Now she was sitting outside on a bucket in the shade with her three toddlers playing beside her. Fr. Mike said it was the first time he had seen her sitting; she was usually in so much pain she had to lie flat on the ground. There was also a very beautiful, quiet and shy teenage girl. They all lived in a tiny mud hut, but a strong wind had blown the roof off it. Fr. Mike told her that he was making arrangements to build a small two-bedroomed house for her and her family – it would be made from brick and would have windows and doors. (At a cost of about one thousand Euro). The woman was stunned by this news: she was speechless. As we walked away Fr. Mike said “If anyone deserves a break in life, it’s that woman”.

I must mention the child who was born while I was there – whose father I had met a few days before he had died of cancer a week earlier and whose mother had died as she gave birth to him. That little boy will be raised by his relations now and I have no doubt he will be happy, but I can’t help but feel sad for him.

I could write a hundred stories about how difficult life is for the people, but I would also have to say how unbelievably happy they are despite all the hardships and poverty they face every day. And I have to take this opportunity to say a sincere “Thank You” to all who have donated towards the work of the Pallottines in Tanzania. Your donations really do go a very long way.

“Ensuring the Safety of Children”

 A Message from the Provincial

To all Pallottine confreres, associates, members of the Union of Catholic Apostolate[1], collaborators and friends of the Mother of Divine Love Province.

Safeguarding Children, to whom Jesus Christ referred when he said “anyone who welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me”[2], is our primary responsibility and principal concern. The disclosures of child sexual abuse by members of the clergy and by religious have caused great hurt, sadness and disillusionment in the Church. As members of the Church we are called together with all who minister to children to provide assurance and to demonstrate that children are safe in the Church.

We are a missionary Society of Apostolic Life in the Catholic Church and as such are members of the IMU (the Irish Missionary Union) and of CORI (the Conference of Religious in Ireland). With the bishops of Ireland, representing all the Dioceses, the IMU and CORI are signatories to the child protection document ‘Safeguarding Children’ which details the policies and procedures for the Catholic Church in Ireland in regard to the protection and well-being of children.

We, the members of the Mother of Divine Love Province of the Pallottines, a Society of Apostolic Life, are a community of priests and brothers who endeavour to revive the faith of the entire People of God and re-enkindle charity and to spread these virtues throughout the world. Our common vocation engages us in a particular commitment to awakening and deepening in all people an awareness of their vocation to cooperate in the apostolic work of Jesus Christ in the Church and in the world. Our SAC Law states in article 3 that in order to live our objectives “our Society will use whatever means are appropriate to promote, defend and nourish Christian life.”

In accordance with the stated aim this present document, “Safeguarding Children, Society of the Catholic Apostolate, Pallottine Fathers and Brothers, Irish Province” presents our Policy with regard to Safeguarding Children and provides clear guidelines and procedures to be implemented and followed in living out the ministry entrusted to our Province. Our Founder, St. Vincent Pallotti, advocated the sacred nature of each and every life quoting, on countless occasions, Genesis 1, 26, where it is affirmed that God made man and woman in his own image and likeness and from this act of creation the sacred nature of all life is affirmed. Therefore we are obliged to promote, defend and nourish life in all its stages and phases and to do so imbued with the spirit and teaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, Apostle of the Eternal Father.

Each and every contravention against the integrity and well-being of children is an affront to their God-given dignity and is to be avoided. It is particularly damaging if such contraventions are caused or enacted by members of our Province who are men consecrated to God and to the following of Jesus Christ and his Gospel. It is similarly reprehensible if such contraventions are caused or enacted by persons who are in our employment, are our collaborators or voluntarily join in our apostolic endeavours.

While reaffirming the motto of our Society that it is “the love of Christ which impels us” to live and work as Pallottines, and embracing anew the fundamental rule of life which our founder, St. Vincent Pallotti, identified as ours, namely “The members wish to live this vocation fully: by their determination to follow Jesus Christ in the Society; by making his hidden and public life, even to death on the cross, the fundamental rule of their lives…” (Law of the SAC 12), this document on Safeguarding Children is an integral part of our lives and ministry as Pallottines.

I request that

• the members of the Province study and familiarize themselves with all aspects of the document and ensure that it is observed and enforced;
• that it is used to give informed awareness and concern for child protection issues wherever you work and minister;
• it be implemented fully and diligently by each and every one of you.

As Provincial Rector of the Irish Province and on behalf of the Provincial Council, I approve, adopt and sign this policy document of procedures and guidelines thereby establishing them as normative and effective from this 21^st of May 2013.

Fr. Jeremiah Murphy, SAC.

Provincial Rector.

Click HERE  to read the complete SAFEGUARDIING CHILDREN PROTECTION POLICY AND PROCEDURES

I have to make a confession – as a Pallottine, I struggle with the spirituality of our Founder St. Vincent Pallotti. There are many times when I read something about his life and it just doesn’t do it for me. He doesn’t fire me up like some of the other Saints do. Yet, I know Vincent Pallotti works closer to me, then I collaborate with him.

There is something humbling of not being sure of what you are about, even the spirituality of one’s founder, being unsure keeps you on your toes and it keeps you searching. That’s the mystery of life. It’s like if you have an area of weakness in your life causing you to sin, and you can’t get the better of it, you can do one of two things, you can either throw in the towel or you can keep on going back to the source of love and mercy seeking His grace and pardon. Pallotti writes some lovely stuff on the area of mercy. “My Jesus, just because I am the greatest of sinners who has ever been or ever will be, you wish to grant me and you are granting me the greatest mercy that you have ever granted or will ever grant”. OOCC X 227

Today, so many people need to hear that they are loved by the Lord. People are weary and are struggling and what are we doing to help them. The reason I ask that question is, because we as friends of the Pallottines, members of the Union of the Catholic Apostolate sometimes don’t know what direction we should be taking in terms of our apostolic activities. There is something inside us saying we can do more. Many people today have no relationship with the sacramental church; they are looking in, instead of looking out. They feel they don’t belong or they are made not to belong.

As members of the Union of Catholic Apostolate, as friends of the Pallottine Family and more importantly as followers of Jesus Christ what can we offer? Sometimes we feel we have to do big and extraordinary things to be effective, to make Pallotti’s message known. My advice today is to keep it simple. If we are on fire with God’s love, with the message of Pallotti, then we will win souls for the Lord. After the Murphy report on child sexual abuse came out, the coverage of it got me down and I felt like throwing in the towel, but I felt the Lord saying to me one day, Emmet what’s going on in the church at present is my problem. Your job is to win souls for me. That goes for us all; we are all called to look after our neighbour. In Pallotti’s time there was the need for spiritual revival. He saw in people a deep yearning for something and that something was God’s love. The challenges Pallotti faced in his day, we too face them as well. There is a spiritual hunger out there and it is our duty to feed our neighbour with God’s love and we can do that through the charism of St. Vincent Pallotti. In one of his reflections he writes: “We have an obligation to support each other on the road to our final destination. Nobody can be indifferent towards the death of a neighbour. Indeed, everybody must try to prevent the eternal loss of their neighbour and must use every means for their salvation”. OOCC IV 131

Who is my neighbour? My neighbour is all those around me, my work colleagues, the people I live with, the people I socialise with, the people on the street where I live, the bereaved, the addict, the separated, and the non-believers. Pallotti reached out to everyone. He didn’t put a limit on what Christ could do. If we limit Christ, then we limit what he can do with us.

If Pallotti was alive today, he would love the challenges the church is faced with today. He wouldn’t cow away. The love of Christ drove him on and he shared his vision, his dream with those around him. We have to do the same, share his vision, his dream with all the baptised. And it is happening, in our parishes, in our Pallottine communities, within our families and you being here today is a testimony to the fact that Pallotti is alive in you. And yet we can do more.

Today the church in Ireland is facing up to a lot of home truths from its past sins, in the face of this tribulation we the church has to stand firm with Mary at the foot of the cross. To ‘stand’ in Hebrew means to be strong. We have to pause, reflect and to endure, take in what’s going on around us, to pray silently, the situation can make one depressed, it can bring you down but eventually we have to move on and let healing take place. This will take time.

Yet, the Risen Lord will always remain alive in our hearts if we stay close to him. He promises us the gift of the Holy Spirit. Tomorrow we celebrate that arrival with Pentecost Sunday. We have to allow that outpouring of God’s Holy Spirit touch our hearts and transform us, we have to lose the mantle of fear and anxiety and replace it with the power of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit helps us in giving witness to the Gospel message, its values, its promises. As followers and disciples of Jesus, it is now our time to give witness to our faith in him. With the help of the Holy Spirit, we are to reach out to all people sharing the Gospel with them. If we keep the message of Jesus to ourselves, we have not really understood it at all. Open your hearts to receive the gifts of the Holy Spirit and when you have received them use those gifts in bearing fruit. The Pallottine Charism comes from this same Spirit. Our mission is to enliven faith and rekindle charity among all the believers, so that all may know and love the one Lord.

Last week in Fatima Pope Benedict encouraging the faithful to cultivate an interior watchfulness so as to see God with the “eyes of the heart.”  We have to allow ourselves be transformed each day into God’s image and likeness. Pallotti spirituality gives us a licence to do that.

We can’t do it on our own; we do it together in union with Mary Queen of Apostles. We come here every year to honour Mary and the role she plays in our lives. Today on this Feast of Our Lady Queen of Apostles, we come to Knock a very special place of prayer and intercession, the message is one of simplicity. Mary has appeared in different parts of the world, but for me Knock is probably the most authentic. In the different places in which Mary has appeared she came with a message that was already given to us by Christ during his life on earth. In the vision of Knock Mary nothing was said, yet the vision even though given to poor and humble people, has a deep theology. The vision at Knock brings together the Old and New Testaments.

 We have the Lamb, Saint Joseph, Saint John the Evangelist and Our Blessed Mother. What’s the significance of this coming together? The Blood of the Pascal Lamb saved the chosen people from the hands of the Egyptians and delivered them from slavery. The Lamb was their food for their journey to the Promised Land. Over one thousand years later, St. Paul could cry out “Christ our Pasch is sacrificed”. Here is our food for the journey; we are saved through his blood on the cross. Our Pascal Lamb Jesus Christ saves us from our slavery, sin. In the vision we have John symbolising love, “Think of the love the Father has lavished on us, by letting us be called God’s children; and that is what we are”. Jn 3: 1.     We have Joseph, head of the family, symbolising the carer of family life. Finally we have Our Lady, the mother of the Lamb, the wife of Joseph the protector and John who was given the glorious privilege of looking after Mary by Jesus as he hung upon the Cross, saying: ‘woman this is your son’. To the disciple he said, ‘this is your mother’. And from that hour the disciple took her into his home and that made us Her sons and daughters as well.

The whole vision symbolises ‘the family’, the extended family if you include St. John. It includes the entire spiritual family which includes us. This vision inspires faith and love. The revival of faith and love were the virtues that inspired Pallotti to form the Union of the Catholic Apostolate and ask all to become involved to ensure the success of this movement. To quote Fr. Ned O’Brien SCA who would love to be standing here giving this sermon, “together we journey, and together we serve”.

We have been given a great spirituality through Saint Vincent Pallotti, the message of   Knock echo’s that. What we have to do, is to respond to the gift of faith given to us at our baptism, we were given the gift of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Pallotti was greatly devoted to the method which St. Francis de Sales used for making the Sign of the Cross and I am going to end with this: “Of myself I can do nothing. With God I can do everything. I will do everything for love of God. To God the glory, to me contempt”. These words sum up Vincent Pallotti’s spirituality. “Anybody who, by repeating the words of this prayer, arms themselves with the sign of the Cross can be sure of doing everything that will lead to the greater glory of God and will be for the benefit of their own soul and that of their neighbour”. OOCC III 449-450

On the Eve of Pentecost Sunday, may the Lord fill each of your chosen hearts with the joy, peace and love of His Holy Spirit.

Tuesday 15^th December 2009

To the Mayor, Members, Manager and Town Clark I would like to express the gratitude of the Pallottine Community for the honour you have shown us in holding this reception. We are happy that we are being honoured in the same year as The Tipperary Star and Thurles Golf Club. The Tipperary Star has always been generous in publicising our efforts and in these times we are grateful for the support of Michael Dundon and other members of the staff.

Beginnings

The Pallottine family had its beginnings in Rome in 1835 when St. Vincent Pallotti received the inspiration that every baptized person is called to participate in the mission of Christ and the Church. That mission, at its most basic, is the spreading of faith and charity throughout the world, each person using the gifts and circumstances of life given by God. It is a mission that is best achieved by collaboration rather than by individual efforts.

It is a mission that brought the Pallottines to Thurles on March 23^rd 1909. Mons. James Ryan, who was President of St. Patrick’s College at the time, was friendly with some Pallottines in Rome and London and it was through him that we came here, having received the permission of Archbishop Thomas Fennelly.

As well as playing a key role in our coming to Thurles, Mons Ryan was also a very generous benefactor. On his death he bequeathed to the Pallottines his house (named the Hermitage) and some land. This became the Pallottine Novitiate from 1943 until 1971.

The People of Thurles

From our first building at the corner of Kickham St and College Lane to our present College, a very special part of Pallottine history has, and is being lived out.  The people of Thurles and of the Archdiocese have been very generous in terms of personal effort and financial support for the work of the Pallottines. Without this generosity the mission of the Pallottines would not have been possible. We would not be where we are now; what has been achieved would not have been possible without the faith and dedication we have encountered here over the years.

Of crucial importance is the fact that the people of Thurles did not just help fund the Pallottine mission but they took us into their hearts and helped us create a true home, a home that is the heart of the Irish Province of the Mother of Divine Love. Heart and home and Divine Love are essential characteristics of our way of life. 

St. Patrick’s College

Out from this Thurles home about 170 Pallottines were sent to different parts of the world – England, the United States, Rome, Argentina and East Africa. Central to the sending out of those men was the education we received in St. Patrick’s College where our future priests studied from 1909 until 1986. John Boyle from Cassestown, Thurles was the first Pallottine ordained in Thurles. In our present time we are also truly blessed to have another Thurles man, Donal McCarthy, as member of our Province.

We would like to express our sincere gratitude to everyone in St. Patrick’s College – Professors, Sisters, Staff and Students – who have enriched our lives in so many ways. While the College no longer has clerical students, St. Vincent Pallotti would be very pleased to see the collaboration now taking place between the College and the Tipperary Institute.

In recognizing the role of St. Patrick’s College I would also like to express our appreciation for the priests of the Archdiocese who have befriended and supported us down through the years.

CBS

The CBS was also an import part of the education of Pallottines in Thurles. For many years we had a juniorate which, at its peak, had 60 secondary students attending the CBS. The more skilful students played on the different CBS teams and brought honour to themselves and the school. One of the students who attended CBS is the present Bishop of Ossory, Seamus Freeman.

The other Religious Communities have always been very kind and welcoming towards us. Their feminine, motherly influence on our lives has been an important aspect of our Thurles experience.

The Pallottine College Today

Historically we have been a Missionary Province with the vast majority of our members going abroad until the early 1980’s when we began to see the Pallottines having a ministry within Ireland. In Dublin we were given the pastoral care of the parish of Corduff and later we were also given the pastoral care of Shankill. Both of these experiences have greatly enriched our life as a Province.

The decision to move our House of Formation to Dublin changed the nature of the Pallottine College here in Thurles. It always has been and remains the Centre for our Mission Promotion, the Director now being a man of Africa, Fr. Matthew Sanka.

The College also became the official retirement house for the Province and, as such has been home to many of our great priests and brothers.

It is important on an occasion like this to pay tribute to the Pallottine Sisters who cared for our Thurles community from the early 1960’s until 1997. The last Sister to serve in Thurles was Sr. Juliana who spent 25 years in Thurles and was well known to many in the town. Since 1986 the College has been a centre and a base for retreats, spiritual renewal, and healing.

The present community of eight is made up of Fr. Phil Barry as Rector, who has a great instinct for everything and everyone local. Fr. Pat Dwyer, former Rector and former Provincial, has been giving retreats for many years. Fr. Roger Rafter, who manages the farm in Cabra, is well known in Thurles and very much part of its life. Fr. John Bergin is the Guest Master who has been here for many years. Frs. Emmet O’Hara, Matthew Sanka and John Egan are the young blood of the community – they are all 37 years of age. Emmet and John are giving retreats, with special emphasis on young people. Fr. Aidan Maguire, who retired from the USA a few years ago, is in St. Theresa’s Nursing Home. 

Celebration

It has been a year of celebration in different parts of the Irish Province, each celebration being simple in keeping with our times and our spirit. The most important for us was the celebration in the Cathedral of the Assumption on May 3^rd and we are very grateful to Archbishop Dermot Clifford for facilitating us and leading us on the day. We thank sincerely Fr. Martin Hayes and all the team at the Cathedral for going out of their way to make the day special.

Phil Barry, being a committed Pallottine and a dedicated GAA man searched diligently for a date on which there would be no match to clash with our event. May 3^rd was free but, as you know, it did not remain free and the Pallottines and the GAA were in action on the same day. Some of us worried that the match might take away our crowd and others of us worried that they would not get to see any of the match. There was almost an “unholy” dash from the sacristy after Mass.

Benefactors

We can never express enough gratitude for all our Associates, lay members of the Union of Catholic Apostolate, our benefactors and the College staff.

The most important people in the eyes of God are those who live faithful, hidden, seemingly insignificant lives. For us Pallottines the “ordinary” person is the one who most reveals the face and the generosity of Christ in our midst and I pray that our society and our Christian community may have the wisdom, the vision, to find Christ in the least, most unexpected places.

Thank you Mayor and all of you for your service on behalf of all the people of Thurles.

Eamonn Monson SAC

Provincial, Pallottine Fathers

December 15, 2009