Photo Round Up: Visit to Our Lady of Fatima Parish - Ice Sculptures at Winterlude

On Saturday and Sunday, Father Jeffrey L. de Witt King welcomed me to the Parish of Our Lady of Fatima in Ottawa's west end, where I presided at two of the Lord's Day Masses and preached at the other two.

On Sunday, coffee and sweets were served in the parish hall after all the Masses. I was able to greet many of the parishioners at the door and at the receptions. A truly dynamic community of faith!

Here are some photos from the many taken during my visit:

A family team (dad and his three boys) get ready for the 4:30PM Eucharist on Saturday, Father King's ordination anniversary

Father Edwin from Benin Diocese (Nigeria) and the lector and server pose before 9AM Mass

"We think Fatima is a wonderful parish..."

Friends in the Lord

While others socialize in the parish hall, a choir rehearses before Mass

The team at the 10AM Eucharist included Deacon Thomas Cuddihy

Refreshments hit the spot...

A proud mom and her three boys

The servers and lectors for the 11:30 Eucharist presided by the pastor, Father King

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ICE SCULPTURES at Confederation Park

Father Lawrence Raisanen, our canonist who is adjusting to his first winter in Canada, joined me in a visit to the ice sculpture display on Sunday afternoon. A couple of shots:

Facing the cold in the "Ice Palace"...

...with one of the winning sculptures

St. Josephine Bakhita - Vietnamese Visit for New Year of the Tiger

Today, the liturgy allows for two optional memorials: that of St. Jerome Emiliani (1486-1537), founder of the Clerks Regular of Somascha, which supported orphan boys and the poor, or that of St. Josephine Bakhita, canonized in October 2000. I have chosen to feature the latter with an edited version of the description of her life and witness given on the Vatican website (www.vatican.va):



ST. JOSEPHINE BAKHITA (1869-1947)

Mother Josephine Bakhita was born in Sudan in 1869 and died in Schio (Vicenza) in 1947. This African flower, who knew the anguish of kidnapping and slavery, bloomed marvelously in Italy, in response to God's grace, with the Daughters of Charity.

In Schio (Vicenza), where she spent many years of her life, everyone still calls her “our Black Mother”. The process for the cause of Canonization began 12 years after her death and on December 1st, 1978 the Church proclaimed the decree of the heroic practice of all virtues.

Divine Providence which “cares for the flowers of the fields and the birds of the air”, guided the Sudanese slave through innumerable and unspeakable sufferings to human freedom and to the freedom of faith and finally to the consecration of her whole life to God for the coming of his Kingdom.

Bakhita was not the name she received from her parents at birth. The fright and the terrible experiences she went through made her forget the name she was given by her parents. Bakhita, which means “fortunate”, was the name given to her by her kidnappers.

Sold and resold in the markets of El Obeid and of Khartoum, she experienced the humiliations and sufferings of slavery, both physical and moral.

In the Capital of Sudan, Bakhita was bought by an Italian Consul, Callisto Legnani . For the first time since the day she was kidnapped, she realized with pleasant surprise, that no one used the lash when giving her orders; instead, she was treated in a loving and cordial way. In the Consul's residence, Bakhita experienced peace, warmth and moments of joy, even though veiled by nostalgia for her own family, whom, perhaps, she had lost forever.

Political situations forced the Consul to leave for Italy. Bakhita asked and obtained permission to go with him and with a friend of his, a certain Mr. Augusto Michieli.

On arrival in Genoa, Mr. Legnani, pressured by the request of Mr. Michieli's wife, consented to leave Bakhita with them. She followed the new “family”, which settled in Zianigo (near Mirano Veneto). When their daughter Mimmina was born, Bakhita became her babysitter and friend.

The acquisition and management of a big hotel in Suakin, on the Red Sea, forced Mrs. Michieli to move to Suakin to help her husband. Meanwhile, on the advice of their administrator, Illuminato Checchini, Mimmina and Bakhita were entrusted to the Canossian Sisters of the Institute of the Catechumens in Venice. It was there that Bakhita came to know about God whom “she had experienced in her heart without knowing who He was” ever since she was a child. “Seeing the sun, the moon and the stars, I said to myself: Who could be the Master of these beautiful things? And I felt a great desire to see him, to know Him and to pay Him homage...”

After several months in the catechumenate, Bakhita received the sacraments of Christian initiation and was given the new name, Josephine. It was January 9, 1890. She did not know how to express her joy that day. Her big and expressive eyes sparkled, revealing deep emotions. From then on, she was often seen kissing the baptismal font and saying: “Here, I became a daughter of God!”

With each new day, she became more aware of who this God was, whom she now knew and loved, who had led her to Him through mysterious ways, holding her by the hand.

When Mrs. Michieli returned from Africa to take back her daughter and Bakhita, the latter, with unusual firmness and courage, expressed her desire to remain with the Canossian Sisters and to serve that God who had shown her so many proofs of His love.

The young African, who by then had come of age, enjoyed the freedom of choice which the Italian law ensured.

Bakhita remained in the catechumenate where she experienced the call to be a religious, and to give herself to the Lord in the Institute of St. Magdalene of Canossa.

On December 8, 1896 Josephine Bakhita was consecrated forever to God whom she called with the sweet expression “the Master!”

For another 50 years, this humble Daughter of Charity, a true witness of the love of God, lived in the community in Schio, engaged in various services: cooking, sewing, embroidery and attending to the door.

When she was on duty at the door, she would gently lay her hands on the heads of the children who daily attended the Canossian schools and caress them. Her amiable voice, which had the inflection and rhythm of the music of her country, was pleasing to the little ones, comforting to the poor and suffering and encouraging for those who knocked at the door of the Institute.

Her humility, her simplicity and her constant smile won the hearts of all the citizens. Her sisters in the community esteemed her for her inalterable sweet nature, her exquisite goodness and her deep desire to make the Lord known.

“Be good, love the Lord, pray for those who do not know Him. What a great grace it is to know God!”

As she grew older she experienced long, painful years of sickness. Mother Bakhita continued to witness to faith, goodness and Christian hope. To those who visited her and asked how she was, she would respond with a smile: “As the Master desires.”

During her agony, she re-lived the terrible days of her slavery and more then once she begged the nurse who assisted her: “Please, loosen the chains... they are heavy!”

It was Mary Most Holy who freed her from all pain. Her last words were: “Our Lady! Our Lady!”, and her final smile testified to her encounter with the Mother of the Lord.

Mother Bakhita breathed her last on February 8, 1947 at the Canossian Convent, Schio, surrounded by the Sisters. A crowd quickly gathered at the Convent to have a last look at their «Mother Moretta» and to ask for her protection from heaven. The fame of her sanctity has spread to all the continents and many are those who receive graces through her intercession.

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OUR LADY OF LA VANG PARISH FOR THE VIETNAMESE FAITHFUL

A couple of days ago, representatives of the Vietnamese Catholic Parish of Our Lady of La Vang came by to extend to me their greetings for the Lunar New Year, celebrated by the Chinese and other Oriental peoples. There were gifts for the occasion, but the best part was an extended conversation with the pastor and heads of the pastoral and finance committees on the status of the community: continuing to grow.

Next Sunday I will celebrate Mass with the Chinese community that will be followed by a festive meal. The illustration indicates that Canada Post continues its pattern of recent years with a stamp for the Year of the Tiger.

Father Thong presented me with a Scriptural passage for the New Year (Job 1:20)

Here is some background information on the tradition of the animals in the 12-year sequence, interspersed with photographs of the Vietnamese visitors (Dominican Father Thong Pham Quoc).

Some special pastries for the festival

The Chinese use the lunar calendar for celebratory events which includes the New Year. This falls somewhere between late January and early February. The cycle of twelve animal signs originates from Chinese tradition as a way of naming the years.

A basket of special oriental fruit

The animals follow one another in an established order and are replicated every twelve years. The rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, rooster, dog and pig are the twelve animal signs. Every animal has particular characteristics and people born in a specific year are believed to take on these characteristics.

The ice wine sweetens the victuals

According to the Chinese Zodiac, the Year of 2010 is the Year of the Tiger, which commences on February 14, 2010 and ends on February 2, 2011. The Tiger is the third sign in the Chinese Zodiac cycle, and it is a sign of bravery. This courageous and fiery fighter is admired by the ancient Chinese as the sign that keeps away the three main tragedies of a household. These are fire, thieves and ghosts.

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...more scenes from Winterlude

More Than Gold and Vancouver's Olympic Games - The 25th Year of Companions of the Cross

The Vancouver Olympic Games begin in five days time. The involvement of Christian Churches in welcoming athletes and visitors for the sporting events is manifest in a cooperative venture called MORE THAN GOLD. Linked to this are strong statements, such as by the Canadian Bishops, on human trafficking.

More Than Gold is the coalition of Christian churches hoping to present a Christian witness at the 2010 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games. MTG is rejoicing over the “tremendous” volunteer response to its programs, according to a recent report in the B.C. Catholic.

Archbishop J. Michael Miller, CSB, an early supporter, has encouraged Catholics to join in solidarity with other Christians to offer “radical hospitality” to visitors to ensure that the face of Christ is clearly visible during the Games. Some months ago he appointed Barbara Dowding, vice chancellor of the archdiocese, to the MTG board.

More Than Gold, said Reed, is promoting hospitality and access to creative arts programs and to prayer events in 25 public spaces throughout Metro Vancouver.

“With the Games almost here, we are more than encouraged that 90 per cent of our volunteer base needs have been filled. Of the 65,000 volunteer hours needed, 60,000 hours have already been pledged, and volunteer training sessions have been under way throughout January at churches in several locations.”

The response to a call for prayer partners to pray for the safety of the Games and for the success of a wide variety of social initiatives sponsored by More Than Gold, including the outreach to the city’s poor and homeless and to victims of human trafficking, has “exploded,” Reed said.

“Many churches have designated (today) February 7th Olympic prayer kickoff Sunday, for pastors and their congregations to pause and pray for the opportunity to share Christ with athletes and visitors. Locations for prayer will be offered around the city 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and we expect people will flock to them.

“There has been a wonderful diversity of grassroots prayer outreaches gaining momentum everywhere. Youth With a Mission (YWAM), an international youth ministry which promotes evangelization and charity, is setting up missionary street zones to invite passers-by to stop and pray.”

Everyone, said Reed, is invited to the International Prayer Centre on Keats Island, where a team of seasoned prayer intercessors from around the world will oversee a variety of opportunities for focussed prayer each day from Feb. 12-28.

More Than Gold, said Reed, committed early on to sponsoring workshops and other events to prevent trafficking in men, women, and children during the Olympics. Through a partnership with Resist Exploitation, Embrace Dignity (REED), a Christian organization founded to support those at risk for sexual exploitation, many Canadians have been educated on the issue.

“We are hoping that the most popular T-shirts at the Games will be emblazoned with the message “Buying Sex is Not a Sport,” said Reed.

“We have seen a momentum building against trafficking on both the local and national level, and our forums which have taken place every week have raised awareness and engaged many people. I am pleased to say that the Catholic Women’s League and many Catholic religious sisters have taken on leadership roles.”

Information on all events and the MTG online store, which has clothing, equipment, and prayer books, is available at the MTG website, www.morethangold.ca.

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WINTERLUDE SCENES...

There was great weather yesterday morning and the crowds were numerous all day on the Rideau Canal, from the Rideau Street entrance all the way to Dows Lake and the extension to the shadow of Carleton University.

A couple of photos to catch the flavour:





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CC's Mark a Quarter Century

On Friday evening, welcomed by Moderator Father Scott McCaig, I joined several hundred of the faithful who came together at Tudor Hall for a weekend of festivities to begin observance of the Silver Jubilee of the foundation by Father Bob Bedard, a priest of the Archdiocese of Ottawa, and several young men of what would become known as the Companions of the Cross.

Many of those in attendance were "associates", men and women who feel drawn to the charism of this new religious community whose goal is to participate in the New Evangelization proclaimed by Pope John Paul II as the outgrowth of the Church's renewal by the Second Vatican Council. Yesterday there was a full day of reflection and animation that culminated in a Youth Fest.

Some photos taken at Friday evening's liturgy:

Preparing the incense within the sacred liturgy

Deacon David Bergeron, CC who will be ordained a priest on May 29 in Notre Dame Cathedral Basilica

The priests and seminarians of the Companions of the Cross and the women aspirants who share a kindred spiritual vision, the Servants of the Cross

St. Paul Miki and Companions, Martyrs of Japan - Skating on the Rideau Canal

Christianity grew rapidly in Japan after St. Francis Xavier first came there in 1549; by 1590 around 200,000 Christians lived on the southern island of Kyushu or in central Japan. Several influential political leaders became converts and Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the general who unified Japan under his rule, looked favorably on the new religion at first. His attitude later changed and he issued a decree on July 25, 1587ordering all foreign missionaries out of Japan.

Some Jesuits obeyed but most remained in the country and worked undercover to minister to their converts. This edict marked the start of a period of time of persecution when authorities used imprisonment, torture and the threat of execution in an attempt to stamp out Christianity. Many Christians refused to yield, including many Jesuits who were martyred for their commitment to serving the persecuted Church.

St. Paul Miki (1562-1597) was converted to Christianity by St. Francis Xavier and, feeling a call to religious life, became a Jesuit.

Miki preached the Gospel throughout Japan and for that he was condemned to death. He and his companions were marched 600 miles so they could be abused along the way. His preaching lead to many converting to Christianity; his last sermon, from the Cross on which he was crucified, is described in this account of his martyrdom:

The crosses were set in place. Father Pasio and Father Rodriguez took turns encouraging the victims. Their steadfast behaviour was wonderful to see. The Father Bursar stood motionless, his eyes turned heavenward. Brother Martin gave thanks to God’s goodness by singing psalms. Again and again he repeated: “Into your hands, Lord, I entrust my life”. Brother Francis Branco also thanked God in a loud voice. Brother Gonsalvo in a very loud voice kept saying the Our Father and Hail Mary.

Our brother, Paul Miki, saw himself standing now in the noblest pulpit he had ever filled. To his “congregation” he began by proclaiming himself a Japanese and a Jesuit. He was dying for the Gospel he preached. He gave thanks to God for this wonderful blessing and he ended his “sermon” with these words: “As I come to this supreme moment of my life, I am sure none of you would suppose I want to deceive you. And so I tell you plainly: there is no way to be saved except the Christian way. My religion teaches me to pardon my enemies and all who have offended me. I do gladly pardon the Emperor and all who have sought my death. I beg them to seek baptism and be Christians themselves”.

Then he looked at his comrades and began to encourage them in their final struggle. Joy glowed in all their faces, and in Louis’ most of all. When a Christian in the crowd cried out to him that he would soon be in heaven, his hands, his whole body strained upward with such joy that every eye was fixed on him.

Anthony, hanging at Louis’ side, looked toward heaven and called upon the holy names – “Jesus, Mary!” He began to sing a psalm: “Praise the Lord, you children!” (He learned it in catechism class in Nagasaki. They take care there to teach the children some psalms to help them learn their catechism).

Others kept repeating “Jesus, Mary!” Their faces were serene. Some of them even took to urging the people standing by to live worthy Christian lives. In these and other ways they showed their readiness to die.

Then, according to Japanese custom, the four executioners began to unsheathe their spears. At this dreadful sight, all the Christians cried out, “Jesus, Mary!” And the storm of anguished weeping then rose to batter the very skies. The executioners killed them one by one. One thrust of the spear, then a second blow. It was over in a very short time.

"The only reason for my being killed is that I have taught the doctrine of Christ. I thank God it is for this reason that I die. I believe that I am telling the truth before I die. I know you believe me and I want to say to you all once again: Ask Christ to help you become happy. I obey Christ. After Christ's example, I forgive my persecutors. I do not hate them. I ask God to have pity on all, and I hope my blood will fall on my fellow men as a fruitful rain." - Saint Paul Miki

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WINTERLUDE BEGINS

The way to make the best of winter is to enjoy it -- the skiing, skating and other outside activities. So today, I will head out to the Rideau Canal for a good workout with the hundreds, perhaps thousands, of Ottawans and visitors here for the two and a half weeks of Winterlude that began last night with ceremonies and fireworks. Conditions are a bit brisk (-16 C this morning), but the sun will shine and the weatherman promises it to warm up to -8C by noon. Here are some photos from an earlier excursion on the Canal:

St. Agatha - Photo Round Up: Events in Rome - First Friday

One of the most highly venerated virgin martyrs of Christian antiquity, put to death for her steadfast profession of faith in Catania, Sicily.

Although it is uncertain in which persecution this took place, we may accept, as probably based on ancient tradition, the evidence of her legendary life, composed at a later date, to the effect that her martyrdom occurred during the persecution of Decius (250-253).

We have little reliable information about this martyr, who has been honoured since ancient times, and whose name is included in the canon of the Mass.

Young, beautiful and rich, Agatha lived a life consecrated to God. When Decius announced the edicts against Christians, the magistrate Quinctianus tried to profit by Agatha’s sanctity; he planned to blackmail her into sex in exchange for not charging her. Handed over to a brothel, she refused to accept customers.

After rejecting Quinctianus’s advances, she was beaten, imprisoned, tortured, her breasts were crushed and cut off. She told the judge, “Cruel man, have you forgotten your mother and the breast that nourished you, that you dare to mutilate me this way?”

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SCENES FROM ROMAN INTERLUDE (January 25-31)

The Holy Father speaks from his apartment high above St. Peter's Square to a large crowd gathered for the noon-time Sunday Angelus

The Holy Father has two weekly rendez-vous with the general public: at the Wednesday morning audience and at the Sunday noon recitation of the Angelus high above St. Peter's Square. Large numbers attend this second, which is a pleasant break after Sunday morning Mass and before pranzo the midday meal. Father Owen Keenan and I took in last Sunday's Angelus trying to keep dry under one umbrella.

It was a pretty soggy day on Sunday, January 31 as people gathered for the greetings from the Holy Father to the representatives of the many linguistic groups

Then it was over to via Crescenzio 75, where the Canadian College is located for conversations over an aperitifo and a lovely Sunday dinner.

Father Robert Wild of Madonna House, Combermere, is using the Canadian College as his base while taking a course on saint-making (he is postulator of the cause of Catherine de Hueck Doherty)

The Toronto contingent at Pontificio College Canadese (Pontifical Canadian College)

Some other scenes from the days in Rome:

Coffee after pranzo in the Jesuit Curia common room

Pranzo (midday meal) at the Pontifical North American College

The Ottawa contingent in Rome out for cena one evening during my stay: left to right Abbe Daniel Paquin, Msgr. Jose Bettencourt

Father Bernard O'Connor of the Antigonish Diocese, staff member of the Congregation for Oriental Churches

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The Apostleship of Prayer has a worldwide membership of those who commit to praying the Daily Morning Offering and praying to make one's own the intentions of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. There are no dues or meetings; sinners and saints have belonged (St. Therese of Lisieux was one of the early joiners). Members also pray for the Holy Father's monthly General and Missionary intentions. This month these are respectively:

Scholars. That scholars and intellectuals, by sincere search for the truth, may come to know the one true God.

The Church's Missionary Identity. That the Church, aware of its missionary identity, may strive to follow Christ faithfully and to proclaim his gospel to all peoples.

A Morning Offering Prayer

Eternal Father, I offer You everything I do this day: my work, my prayers, my apostolic efforts; my time with family and friends; my hours of relaxation; my difficulties, problems, distress, which I shall try to bear with patience.

Join these, my gifts, to the unique offering which Jesus Christ, Your Son, renews today in the Eucharist.

Grant, I pray, that, vivified by the Holy Spirit and united to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, my life this day may be of service
to you and your children and help consecrate the world to you. Amen.

Photo Round Up: Confirmations at Sainte-Trinité (Rockland), Visit to Good Shepherd Parish (Blackburn Hamlet)

Prior to flying to Rome on January 24, I celebrated Confirmations at Paroisse Très-Sainte-Trinité in Rockland (illustrated at left) and celebrated Mass with the faithful of Good Shepherd Parish, Blackburn Hamlet.

Due to internet access limitations in Rome, I was not able to upload photos from these events or from several other occasions in the past few days to the blog.

Today we begin to clear the backlog. Enjoy!

Rockland Confirmations:

In the sacristy before the ceremony, just a little bit of nerves...

"Sois marquée de l’Esprit saint, le don de Dieu"

La paix soit avec toi -- Et avec votre esprit

Good Shepherd Parish Mass:

Where did the rest of the family go?

Spiritual bouquets are "in" again

Altar servers and clergy get ready for Mass

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First Thursday of February

Today, being the First Thursday of the Month in the Year of Priests, it is possible to obtain the Plenary Indulgence for the living (oneself) or the dead, following the usual conditions:

o hatred of sin and desire to adhere to God's will;
o Mass and reception of Communion;
o confession of sins (within the week);
o and prayers for the Holy Father's intentions.

St. Blaise - Ottawa Celebration of Religious Life - Alfred Delp

Today the liturgy permits an optional memorial of St. Blaise, bishop and martyr (b. Armenia, 3rd century; died c. 316).

Many Catholics might remember Saint Blaise's feast day because of the Blessing of the Throats that took place on this day. Two candles are blessed, held slightly open, and pressed against the throat as the blessing is said.

Saint Blaise's protection of those with throat troubles apparently comes from a legend that a boy was brought to him who had a fishbone stuck in his throat. The boy was about to die when Saint Blaise healed him.

Very few facts are known about Saint Blaise. We believe he was a bishop of Sebastea in Armenia who was martyred under the reign of Licinius in the early fourth century.

Blaise is the patron saint of those with throat maladies.

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World Day of Consecrated Life at Visitandine Monastery

Ottawa's observance of World Day for Consecrated Life took place at the Monastery of the Visitation on Richmond Road, a property that has recently been sold so the Visitandines may care for their elderly and infirm sisters at the St. Joseph Sisters' Motherhouse in Pembroke (by the end of September 2010).

2010 year marks the 400th anniversary of The Visitation Order's foundation by St. Francis de Sales and St. Jeanne Frances de Chantal in France; it is also the Centennial Year of the Ottawa Visitation Monastery. Several celebrations for the families of the Sisters, for the friends and benefactors on site will culminate with a bilingual Mass of Thanksgiving in Notre Dame Cathedral Basilica on Sunday, August 15 at 9AM.

In light of this special anniversary of the lone contemplative congregation in the Archdiocese, it was decided to hold the celebration of Religious Life with Solemn Vespers late yesterday afternoon. This was preceded by tours of the common rooms of the residence and refreshments in the dining-room. There were also special displays.
Everyone in attendance thought it was a very special occasion that helped us see the diversity of consecrated life among us and to rejoice together.

Herewith some photos of the occasion interspersed with excerpts from the Holy Father's address to religious in Rome:

Consecrated persons are called in a particular way to be witnesses of this mercy of the Lord, in which man finds his salvation. They have the vivid experience of God's forgiveness, because they have the awareness of being saved persons, of being great when they recognize themselves to be small, of feeling renewed and enveloped by the holiness of God when they recognize their own sin. Because of this, also for the man of today, consecrated life remains a privileged school of "compunction of heart," of the humble recognition of one's misery but, likewise, it remains a school of trust in the mercy of God, in his love that never abandons.

In reality, the closer we come to God, and the closer one is to him, the more useful one is to others. Consecrated persons experience the grace, mercy and forgiveness of God not only for themselves, but also for their brothers, being called to carry in their heart and prayer the anxieties and expectations of men, especially of those who are far from God.

In particular, communities that live in cloister, with their specific commitment of fidelity in "being with the Lord," in "being under the cross," often carry out this vicarious role, united to Christ of the Passion, taking on themselves the sufferings and trials of others and offering everything with joy for the salvation of the world.
Finally, dear friends, we wish to raise to the Lord a hymn of thanksgiving and praise for consecrated life itself. If it did not exist, how much poorer the world would be! Beyond the superficial valuations of functionality, consecrated life is important precisely for its being a sign of gratuitousness and of love, and this all the more so in a society that risks being suffocated in the vortex of the ephemeral and the useful (cf Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation. Consecrated Life, 105).



Consecrated life, instead, witnesses to the superabundance of the Lord's love, who first "lost" his life for us. At this moment I am thinking of the consecrated persons who feel the weight of the daily effort lacking in human gratification, I am thinking of elderly men and women religious, the sick, of all those who feel difficulties in their apostolate. Not one of these is futile, because the Lord associates them to the "throne of grace." Instead, they are a precious gift for the Church and the world, thirsty for God and his Word.

Full of trust and gratitude, let us then also renew the gesture of the total offering of ourselves, presenting ourselves in the Temple. May the Year for Priests be a further occasion, for priests religious to intensify the journey of sanctification, and for all consecrated men and women, a stimulus to support and sustain their ministry with fervent prayer.



This year of grace will have a culminating moment in Rome, next June, in the international meeting of priests, to which I invite all those who exercise the Sacred Ministry. We approach the thrice Holy to offer our life and our mission, personal and community, of men and women consecrated to the Kingdom of God.

Let us carry out this interior gesture in profound spiritual communion with the Virgin Mary: while contemplating her in the act of presenting the Child Jesus in the Temple, we venerate her as the first and perfect consecrated one, carried by that God she carries in her arms; Virgin, poor and obedient, totally dedicated to us because totally of God. In her school, and with her maternal help, we renew our "here I am" and our "fiat." Amen.

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A modern witness

The British Jesuits host an on-line journal called Thinking Faith (www.thinkingfaith.org) which I look at occasionally.

Yesterday, I was deeply moved by an article written by the present Jesuit Provincial Michael Holman who recalls that Alfred Delp was put to death by the Nazis 65 years ago this week [February 2, 1945] for this defence of the Gospel of Life.

Here is an excerpt of the biography which recounts his heroic witness that seems strikingly modern.

...Alfred Delp was born in southern Germany in 1907. He was illegitimate; his parents married not long after he was born. His mother was a Catholic but he was raised a Lutheran, the faith of his father. Later on in life, he wrote that ‘if ever they try and canonise me just tell them I was a brat’. He was wild and independent but it was that spirit which at the age of seventeen or thereabouts led him to decide for himself that he would become a Catholic, and which three years later took him into the Society of Jesus....

His training was much like my own half a century later, with the study of philosophy followed by the study of theology, with a period of three years working in a school in between. The biography included photographs of Delp; I could see him in young people I had known myself, so modern did he look. When working in that school he liked to try things out, to spread his wings, to do things his way and to show he could succeed. All this annoyed his Jesuit headmaster who later became his Provincial! I too was once a headmaster and now I am Provincial, and yes, I have known Jesuits like him. There was much I could relate to in his story.

Alfred Delp was ... very much taken up with the new humanism that was sweeping the Church in the pre-war years, as it would in the years before and after the Second Vatican Council, which he never saw. This humanism we must never lose sight of because it was forged in an age of so much human suffering which gives it a peculiar authority. It stressed the importance of the human person, the individual human person, the uniqueness and dignity of each person and the wonder of each person as God’s creation in God’s own likeness.

In his studies, Alfred became an expert in the social teaching of the Church, that ‘best kept secret’ of our Catholic tradition, and he was doing all this in the mid-thirties when his homeland was in the grip of Hitler and the Nazis. He did all this at a time when the totalitarianism of Russia and his own country emphasised ‘mass-man’ and put the rights and dignity of the individual at the service of the State.

Alfred was ordained priest in 1937 and after a while was sent to be pastor of a church that the Jesuits had responsibility for in Munich. In 1941, the Nazis produced a propaganda film, explaining their policy of euthanasia, the ‘mercy killing’ of the handicapped. From his pulpit he denounced the film. He spoke of the importance of those living with disability, both as individuals and in terms of their significance in the community, and their significance in calling forth the best of human qualities – God-like qualities – in the rest of us.

Perhaps you would expect this kind of protest from a Catholic priest. Living in circumstances such as those, what else would he do? Astonishingly, to many if not to most, things didn’t seem so clear. There came a time when the German bishops wanted to produce a report condemning euthanasia and the disappearance of so many people, among them so many priests. Delp approved of a draft of the document, which was outspoken in its criticism of the regime. But the bishops were divided and feared an all-out assault on the Church. Moreover, Catholics fought in the army of the Reich so some thought this a time for patriotism. As the brave Bishop of Berlin put it, the final version ‘was dry cleaned, the spots removed and all the colour too’.

Towards the end of 1944, Delp was arrested and imprisoned. For two years he had been meeting with like-minded intellectuals, the so-called Kreisau group, planning the future of post-war Germany. He was now suspected of involvement in the assassination attempt on Hitler featured in the recent Tom Cruise movie, Valkyrie. He was charged with treason.

Friends brought bread and wine to Alfred in prison and he celebrated Mass. He kept the Blessed Sacrament with him always. In his laundry, his friends smuggled in a pen, ink and paper. He wrote a diary and a set of reflections on the Church and on society, which have proven extraordinarily prophetic. Writing of England all those years ago, he talked about it having lost its spirit and soul to materialism. But above all, these writings tell us of his struggle to remain committed to Christ, his temptation to compromise, his struggle to live knowing that ‘God alone suffices’, as Teresa of Avila wrote.

On 8 December, a Jesuit visited him in prison and, handcuffed, with tears pouring down his face, he made his final profession in the Society of Jesus.

In January 1945, he was put on trial. They found no evidence for his complicity in the assassination attempt. But his judge was a fanatic Nazi who hated Christianity, hated the Catholic Church and hated Jesuits above all. Delp was sentenced to death.

On 2 February, aged 37, he was taken to the Plötzensee Prison and that afternoon, in a room that is now a shrine, he was hanged from a meat hook in the ceiling. He was then cremated and his ashes were scattered over human sewage, as was required for traitors. His few possessions were collected together and presented to his mother who kept them under her bed in a suitcase until she died in 1967.