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FEAST DAY OF ST JOHN BOSCO - January 31
John Bosco was born on August 16, 1815, in a small town not too far from Turin, Italy. His father died when he was two years old. He was raised with tender love, yet firm discipline, by his mother, Margaret. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1841 and went to work in Turin, where the industrial revolution was attracting waves of young people to the city. The misery and abandonment of these youngsters moved John Bosco deeply.
He dedicated his life to them and began youth clubs for them. He then started hostels and boarding schools, where he taught them trades. In 1854 he founded the Salesian Society and in 1872, the Salesian Sisters to work for girls. Three years later, he sent the first missionary group to Argentina. His work spread throughout the mission world and today more than half the Society works in mission lands.
The educational philosophy of John Bosco can be condensed in three words: reason, religion, and kindness. The basic principle of his system was a deep understanding and love for young people and their problems.
John Bosco died on January 31, 1888. Today the Salesian Family numbers 40,000 members working in over 100 countries.
• About St. John Bosco
• Vision of St. Bosco
• St. Bosco Biography
• St. Bosco Oratory Project
• St. Bosco Dreams
• St. Bosco Ressurection
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| SPECIALS |
 WORLD DAY OF PRAYER FOR PRIESTS
On the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, last June 19, 2009, the 7th Annual World Day of Prayer for the Sanctification of Priest was celebrated; Pope Benedict XVI has proclaimed June 19, 2009-June 10, 2010 as the beginning of “Year of the Priest”. The said celebration organized four masses through four different countries. The first mass was from Sydney Australia, the second mass from Kerala India, The third mass was from Knock Shrine Ireland and the fourth mass was from New York USA. The following is a beautiful prayer for the priest that may be said;
Dear Lord,
We pray the Blessed Mother
Wrap her mantle around your priest
And through her intercession
Strengthen them for their ministry.
We pray that Mary will guide your priests
To follow her own words,“Do Whatever He tells you”
(jn 2:5)
May your priests have the heart of St. Joseph,
Mary’s most chase spouse.
May the Blessed Mother’s own pierced heart inspire them to embrace
All who suffer at the foot of the cross.
May your priests be holy,MO
Filled with the fire of your love
Seeking nothing but greater glory
And the salvation of souls.
Amen.
O Mary, Queen of Priest, pray for us
Saint John Vianney, pray for us.
Below is a copy of the address of His Holiness Benedict XVI to the Members of the Congregation for the Clergy on the Occasion of their Plenary Assembly as translated by Zenit:
* * *
Your Eminences,
Venerable Brothers in the Episcopate and in the Priesthood,
I am glad to be able to welcome you at a special Audience on the eve of my departure for Africa, where I am going to present theInstrumentum Laboris of the Second Special Assembly of the Synod for Africa that will be held here in Rome next October. I thank Cardinal Cláudio Hummes for the kind words with which he has interpreted the sentiments you share and I thank you for the beautiful letter you wrote to me. With him, I greet you all, Superiors, Officials and Members of the Congregation, with gratitude for all the work you do at the service of such an important sector of the Church's life.
The theme you have chosen for this Plenary Assembly "The missionary identity of the priest in the Church as an intrinsic dimension of the exercise of the tria munera" suggests some reflections on the work of these days and the abundant fruit that it will certainly yield. If the whole Church is missionary and if every Christian, by virtue of Baptism and Confirmation quasi ex officio (cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, n. 1305), receives the mandate to profess the faith publicly, the ministerial priesthood, also from this viewpoint, is ontologically distinct, and not only by rank, from the baptismal priesthood that is also known as the "common priesthood". In fact, the apostolic mandate "Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to the whole of creation" (Mk 16: 15) is constitutive of the ministerial priesthood. This mandate is not, as we know, a mere duty entrusted to collaborators; its roots are deeper and must be sought further back in time.
The missionary dimension of the priesthood is born from the priest's sacramental configuration to Christ. As a consequence it brings with it a heartfelt and total adherence to what the ecclesial tradition has identified as apostolica vivendi forma. This consists in participation in a "new life", spiritually speaking, in that "new way of life" which the Lord Jesus inaugurated and which the Apostles made their own. Through the imposition of the Bishop's hands and the consecratory prayer of the Church, the candidates become new men, they become "presbyters". In this light it is clear that the tria munera are first a gift and only consequently an office, first a participation in a life, and hence a potestas. Of course, the great ecclesial tradition has rightly separated sacramental efficacy from the concrete existential situation of the individual priest and so the legitimate expectations of the faithful are appropriately safeguarded. However, this correct doctrinal explanation takes nothing from the necessary, indeed indispensable, aspiration to moral perfection that must dwell in every authentically priestly heart.
Precisely to encourage priests in this striving for spiritual perfection on which, above all, the effectiveness of their ministry depends, I have decided to establish a special "Year for Priests" that will begin on 19 June and last until 19 June 2010. In fact, it is the 150th anniversary of the death of the Holy Curé d'Ars, John Mary Vianney, a true example of a pastor at the service of Christ's flock. It will be the task of your Congregation, in agreement with the diocesan Ordinaries and with the superiors of religious institutes to promote and to coordinate the various spiritual and pastoral initiatives that seem useful for making the importance of the priest's role and mission in the Church and in contemporary society ever more clearly perceived.
The priest's mission, as the theme of the Plenary Assembly emphasizes, is carried out "in the Church". This ecclesial communal, hierarchical and doctrinal dimension is absolutely indispensable to every authentic mission and, alone guarantees its spiritual effectiveness. The four aspects mentioned must always be recognized as intimately connected: the mission is "ecclesial" because no one proclaims himself in the first person, but within and through his own humanity every priest must be well aware that he is bringing to the world Another, God himself. God is the only treasure which ultimately people desire to find in a priest. The mission is "communional" because it is carried out in a unity and communion that only secondly has also important aspects of social visibility. Moreover, these derive essentially from that divine intimacy in which the priest is called to be expert, so that he may be able to lead the souls entrusted to him humbly and trustingly to the same encounter with the Lord. Lastly, the "hierarchical" and "doctrinal" dimensions suggest reaffirming the importance of the ecclesiastical discipline (the term has a connection with "disciple") and doctrinal training and not only theological, initial and continuing formation.
Awareness of the radical social changes that have occurred in recent decades must motivate the best ecclesial forces to supervise the formation of candidates for the ministry. In particular, it must foster the constant concern of Pastors for their principal collaborators, both by cultivating truly fatherly human relations and by taking an interest in their continuing formation, especially from the doctrinal and spiritual viewpoints. The mission is rooted in a special way in a good formation, developed in communion with uninterrupted ecclesial Tradition, without breaks or temptations of irregularity. In this sense, it is important to encourage in priests, especially in the young generations, a correct reception of the texts of the Second Ecumenical Vatican Council, interpreted in the light of the Church's entire fund of doctrine. It seems urgent to recover that awareness that has always been at the heart of the Church's mission, which impels priests to be present, identifiable and recognizable both for their judgement of faith, for their personal virtues as well as for the habit, in the contexts of culture and of charity.
As Church and as priests, we proclaim Jesus of Nazareth Lord and Christ, Crucified and Risen, Sovereign of time and of history, in the glad certainty that this truth coincides with the deepest expectations of the human heart. In the mystery of the Incarnation of the Word, that is, of the fact that God became man like us, lies both the content and the method of Christian proclamation. The true dynamic centre of the mission is here: in Jesus Christ, precisely. The centrality of Christ brings with it the correct appreciation of the ministerial priesthood, without which there would be neither the Eucharist, nor even the mission nor the Church herself. In this regard it is necessary to be alert to ensure that the "new structures" or pastoral organizations are not planned on the basis of an erroneous interpretation of the proper promotion of the laity for a time in which one would have "to do without" the ordained ministry, because in that case the presuppositions for a further dilution of the ministerial priesthood would be laid and possible presumed "solutions" might come dramatically to coincide with the real causes of contemporary problems linked to the ministry.
I am certain that in these days the work of the Plenary Assembly, under the protection of the Mater Ecclesiae, will be able to examine these brief ideas that I permit myself to submit to the attention of the Cardinals, Archbishops and Bishops, while I invoke upon you all an abundance of heavenly gifts, as a pledge of which I impart a special, affectionate Apostolic Blessing to you and to all your loved ones.
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| TEACHING
CATHOLIC FAITH |
Month of the Holy Family
The month of February is dedicated to the Holy Family
depicts the family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph as the
model of virtue of all Christian households. This special
devotion began in the 17th century with the institution
of Association of the Holy Family in Montreal, Canada
in 1663, and by the Daughters of the Holy Family in
Paris, France in 1674.
To better understand the life of the Holy Family, it
is best to reflect the home of Nazareth. Since the Holy
Family observed the Jewish law in its perfection, we
can deduce quite accurately what prayers they recited.
The Psalms, of course, were the favorites. Three times
a day Jesus, Mary, and Joseph said the Tephillah, "The
Prayer," consisting of eighteen long invocations
and blessings. Joseph (and later Jesus when He attained
to manhood) was obliged to say the Shema, a sort of
profession of faith in the one true God, twice daily.
A very interesting Jewish custom of prayer that must
have been observed in the house at Nazareth was that
of the Mezuzah, "the doorpost," and the "phylacteries,"
small square calfskin boxes with Scripture texts written
on parchment inside them. Such was the vocal and the
more or less formal prayer which Jesus, Mary, and Joseph
offered in their home at Nazareth. In their hearts,
however, they prayed always. Just as the Heart of Jesus
was constantly united with His divinity, so were the
hearts of Mary and Joseph so closely bound to God that
their every action was a prayer.
The Holy Family models for us what family life should
exemplify. It is a school of virtue for both parents
and children. There we find God, and learn how to connect
with God and with others. The family is where love is
freely given without self-interest. It is where we learn
to love, to pray and to practice the gift of charity.
We should ask ourselves if our own families model that
of the Holy Family. We need to be open to God’s
grace to value the positive and to accept our mistakes
— and to be willing to rectify them. Parenting
is a very challenging responsibility and at times errors
are made despite the best intentions. Recognizing this,
children should trust their parents and never forget
that parents want only what is best for them.
Which leads us to what may be the most important family
virtue — forgiveness. Living so intimately within
the family nucleus naturally gives rise to unpleasant
situations where someone is apt to be offended. St.
Paul knew this when he told us to “bear with and
forgive one another.” The health of our family
may depend on how quickly we learn to forgive without
harboring feelings of resentment. No family can thrive
and grow without constant work. Even the material details
that take time and effort are essential to keeping the
family strong. Everyone has to pull together for the
good of the family — even to the point of putting
ahead of our own needs and ambitions the happiness of
other family members, setting aside our own selfish
desires. It is also important to pray as a family, especially
the holy rosary. Prayer will help us to intensify our
closeness with each other and to learn to forgive.
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| SCRIPTURES |
 "People
came to Jesus from every quarter"
Mark 1:40-45
And
a leper came to him beseeching him, and kneeling said
to him, "If you will, you can make me clean."
Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched
him, and said to him, "I will; be clean."
And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made
clean. And he sternly charged him, and sent him away
at once, and said to him, "See that you say nothing
to any one; but go, show yourself to the priest, and
offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, for a
proof to the people." But he went out and began
to talk freely about it, and to spread the news, so
that Jesus could no longer openly enter a town, but
was out in the country; and people came to him from
every quarter.
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PowerPoint
Inspiration |
| Download
and Play this Powerpoint |
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MIRACLES OF OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE |
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THE
MYSTERIOUS STAIRCASE |
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WHERE GOD WANTS ME TO BE |
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| LIVES
OF THE SAINTS |
JANUARY 1
MARY, MOTHER OF GOD
Today we begin our new year at the Eucharistic Celebration. We thank God for Mary, Jesus' mother, who brought the Savior into the world. Because she is the mother of Jesus, God's Son, she truly is the Mother of God.
JANUARY 2
ST. BASIL AND ST. GREGORY NAZIANZEN
Sts. Basil and Gregory were born in Asia Minor in the year 330. This area is modern-day Turkey. Basil's grandmother, father, mother, two brothers and a sister are all saints.
JANUARY 3
ST. GENEVIEVE
St. Genevieve was born around 422 in Nanterre, a small village four miles from Paris. While still very young, she desired to devote her life to Jesus.
JANUARY 4
ST. ELIZABETH ANN SETON
St. Elizabeth was called "Mother Seton" by everyone knew her by when she died on January 4, 1821, in Emmitsburg, Maryland.
JANUARY 5
ST. JOHN NEUMANN
St. John Neumann was not only quiet, he was short-five feet, two inches tall. His eyes were very kind and he smiled a lot.
JANUARY 6
BLESSED ANDRE BESSETTE
St. Alfred Bessette was born on August 9, 1845, not far from Montreal, Canada. He was the eighth of twelve children.
JANUARY 7
ST. RAYMOND OF PENYAFORT
St. Raymond was born between 1175 and 1180 in a little town near Barcelona, Spain. He was educated at the cathedral school in Barcelona and became a priest. .
JANUARY 8
ST. THORFINN
St. Thorfinn's life were discovered in details long after his death. He died in 1285, in a monastery in Belgium. Fifty years later, his tomb was accidentally opened during some construction work.
JANUARY 9
ST. JULIAN AND ST. BASILISSA
St. Julian and St. Basilissa were husband and wife. They lived in the early part of the fourth century.
JANUARY 10
ST. WILLIAM
St. William came from a wealthy French family. Even as a boy, he did not waste time fooling around or being idle.
JANUARY 11
ST. THEODOSIUS
St. Theodosius was born in Asia Minor in 423. As a young man, he set out on pilgrimage to the Holy Land.
JANUARY 12
ST. MARGUERITE BOURGEOYS
St. Marguerite was born in Troyes, France, on April 17, 1620, but spent most of her eighty years in Montreal, Canada.
JANUARY 13
ST. HILLARY OF POITIERS
St. Hilary was born into a pagan family on 315 in Poitiers, a town in France. His family was rich and well-known. Hilary received a good education.
JANUARY 14
ST. MACRINA
St. Macrina and her husband learned the high price of being true to their Christian beliefs.
JANUARY 15
ST. PAUL THE HERMIT
St. Paul was born into a Christian family in the year 229. They lived in Thebes, Egypt. Paul's parents showed him by their own lives how to love God and worship him with one's whole heart. Paul
JANUARY 16
ST. BERARD AND COMPANIONS
Six Franciscan friars accepted from St. Francis of Assisi an assignment to go to Morocco. They were to announce Christianity to the Muslims.
JANUARY 17
ST. ANTHONY OF EGYPT
St. Anthony was born in 251 in a small village in Egypt. When he was twenty years old, his parents died. They left him a large estate and placed him in charge of the care of his young sister.
JANUARY 18
BLESSED CHRISTINA
Blessed Christina lived in the sixteenth century. She was born in Abruzzi, Italy. Her baptismal name was Matthia. As she grew up, Matthia felt the call to a life of prayer and penance.
JANUARY 19
ST. CANUTE
St. Canute was a strong, wise king of Denmark. He lived in the eleventh century. Canute was a great athlete, an expert horseman, and a marvelous general.
JANUARY 20
ST. FABIAN AND ST. SEBASTIAN
St. Fabian was a pope who died a martyr in 250. It was during the persecution by Emperor Decius.
JANUARY 21
ST. AGNES
St. Agnes was a Roman girl who died in 304. She was just twelve years old when she suffered martyrdom for her faith.
JANUARY 22
ST. VINCENT OF SARAGOSSA
St. Vincent was martyred in Spain in 304. This was the same year that Agnes was martyred in Rome.
JANUARY 23
ST. JOHN THE ALMSGIVER
St. John was a dedicated Christian nobleman. He used his wealth and position to help poor people. After his wife passed away, John became a priest and bishop. In 608, he was consecrated the patriarch of Alexandria, Egypt.
JANUARY 24
ST. FRANCIS DE SALES
St. Francis was born at the de Sales castle in Savoy, France, on August 21, 1567. His wealthy family provided him with an excellent education. By the age of twenty-four, Francis was a Doctor of Law.
JANUARY 25
CONVERSION OF ST. PAUL
St. Paul lived at the time of Jesus but as far as we know they never met. Paul was first called Saul. As a young man, he was a very bright student of the Hebrew religion.
JANUARY 26
ST. TIMOTHY AND ST. TITUS
St. Timothy was born in Lycaonia in Asia Minor. His mother was a Jew and his father was a Gentile.
JANUARY 27
ST. ANGELA MERICI
St. Angela was born in the small Italian town of Desenzano, Italy, around 1474. Her parents died when she was ten. She and her only sister, who was three years older, loved each other very much.
JANUARY 28
ST. THOMAS AQUINAS
St. Thomas lived in the thirteenth century. He was the son of a noble family of Italy. He was very intelligent, but he never boasted about it. He knew that his mind was a gift from God.
JANUARY 29
ST. GILDAS
St. Gildas was born around the year 500 in Britain. He set out as a young man to practice a self-sacrificing lifestyle.
JANUARY 30
ST. BATHILDIS
St. Bathildis was a frightened, Christian English girl could have never imagined what her future would be like.
JANUARY 31
ST. JOHN BOSCO
St. John Bosco was born in Turin, Italy, on August 16, 1815. His parents were poor farmers. When John was two, his father died. John's mother struggled to keep the family together.
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PRIEST
OF THE MONTH |
 Father
Thomas Pandippally
Father
Thomas Pandippally is a young portrait of martyr. This 38
year old Cheenkallel-born priest was the sixth of seven children
who gave light on July 12, 1971. Father Pandippally joined
the Carmelite of Mary Immaculate (CMI) Congregation in 1987
and made his first profession on March 19, 1992.
Father Pandippally was actively involved in education and
social services. After taking a bachelor degree in science
from Christ College, Bangalore, Father Pandippally studied
Philosophy at Darsana Philosophate, Wardha and Theology at
Jnana Deepa Vidyapeeth, Poona. After his ordination in 2002
he taught at Jeevandan School at Yellareddy for three years
until he was assigned as the Rector of Aspirants at Nazareth
Bhavanam in Bellampalli. He returned to Yellareddy in April
2007 to become the Director of Jeevadan Centre, Parish Priest
and Correspondent of Jeevadan School.
In his outpouring love, Father Pandippally has watered the
ground with his blood with what appeared to be acts of Hindu
extremists. He was on his way alone to Yellareddy, a village
in the eastern state of Andhra Pradesh, India. He was riding
a motorcycle when he was brutally killed by what appeared
to be Hindu extremists according to reports. His corpse was
found the next morning with 18 stab wounds on the body, broken
arms and legs, and gouged out eyes.
Father Pandippally demise was has stirred believers in India
to cry for more protection by the government amid continued
Christian persecution. More than 2,000 Christians gathered
in Hyderabad to protest the death. A wave of violence against
Christians spread over the neighboring state of Orissa as
they were blamed for the murder of a Hindu political leader
Swami Laxmananada Saraswati.
Christian leaders in Andhra Pradesh were terribly shaken
by Father Pandippally’s incident. They were dismal over
the murder Archbishop Marampudi Joji of Hyderabad, India stated
that the Church in India is shocked and deeply saddened by
this barbarous killing, the result of a growing climate of
intolerance and violence against Christians in this country.
Even though Archbishop Joji was saddened by Father Pandippally’s
demise, he called the priest a martyr. He said: "He sacrificed
his life for the poor and marginalized. But he did not die
in vain, because his body and his blood enrich the Church
in India, particularly the Church in Andhra Pradesh –
the southeastern state where he died."
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| QUOTE
OF THE MONTH |
St. Joseph
“Dear brothers and sisters, our meditation
on the human and spiritual journey of Saint Joseph invites
us to ponder his vocation in all its richness, and to see
him as a constant model for all those who have devoted their
lives to Christ in the priesthood, in the consecrated life
or in the different forms of lay engagement. Joseph was
caught up at every moment by the mystery of the Incarnation.
Not only physically, but in his heart as well, Joseph reveals
to us the secret of a humanity which dwells in the presence
of mystery and is open to that mystery at every moment of
everyday life. In Joseph, faith is not separated from action.
His faith had a decisive effect on his actions. Paradoxically,
it was by acting, by carrying out his responsibilities,
that he stepped aside and left God free to act, placing
no obstacles in his way. Joseph is a "just man"
(Mt 1:19) because his existence is "adjusted"
to the word of God.” Pope Bendict XVI, March 18,
2009
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| PHOTO
OF THE MONTH |
Tour
of the Relics of the Passion
(International Center
for Holy Relics)
www.HolyRelics.org |
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INSPIRATIONAL
STORY OF THE MONTH |
 THE
MYSTERIOUS STAIRCASE
City
of Santa Fé, in New Mexico, USA.
A mystery of over 130 years and attracting around 250 thousand
visitors every year. Point of attention : Loretto Chapel
What makes this chapel different from all others is that the
subject of the supposed miracle that took place in it is a
Staircase....
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| REFLECTIONS |
 Jesus
Heals the Leper
Do you seek the Lord Jesus with expectant faith? No one who
sought Jesus out was refused his help. Even the untouchables
and the outcasts of Jewish society found help in him. Unlike
the people of Jesus' time who fled at the sight of a leper,
Jesus touched the leper who approached him and he made him
whole and clean. Why was this so remarkable? Lepers were outcasts
of society. Their physical condition was terrible as they
slowly lost their limbs and withered away. They were not only
shunned but regarded as "already dead" even by their
relatives. The Jewish law forbade anyone from touching or
approaching a leper, lest ritual defilement occur. This leper
did something quite remarkable. He approached Jesus confidently
and humbly, expecting that Jesus could and would heal him.
Normally a leper would be stoned or at least warded off if
he tried to come near a rabbi. Jesus not only grants the man
his request, but he demonstrates the personal love, compassion,
and tenderness of God in his physical touch. The medical knowledge
of his day would have regarded such contact as grave risk
for incurring infection. Jesus met the man's misery with compassion
and tender kindness. He communicated the love and mercy of
God in a sign that spoke more eloquently than words.
How do you approach the untouchables and outcasts, and those
you find difficult to love. Do you offer them mercy and help
as Jesus did? The Lord is always ready to show us his mercy
and to free us from whatever makes us unclean.
"Lord Jesus, inflame my heart with your love and make
me clean. May I never cease to tell others of your love and
mercy."
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