The Magazine of the Missionary Society of St. Columban
March/April 2015
The Power of Forgiveness
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C
o n t e n t s
Issue Theme –The Power of Forgiveness
Volume 98 - Number 2-March/April 2015
Columban Mission Published By The Columban Fathers
Columban Mission (Issn 0095-4438) is published eight times a year. A minimum donation of $10 a year is required to receive a subscription. Send address and other contact information changes by calling our toll-free number, by sending the information to our mailing address or by e-mailing us at MISSIONOFFICE@COLUMBAN.ORG. Mailing Address: Columban Mission PO Box 10 St. Columbans, NE 68056-0010 Toll-Free Phone: 877/299-1920 Website: WWW.COLUMBAN.ORG Copyright © 2015, The Columban Fathers (Legal Title)
Hidden Christians
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How the Light Gets In 20
4 A Mother’s Anguish
A Family Finds Healing
5 Giving Back to Others
Helping Others Learn to Live with HIV
8 Columban, a Universal Saint for Today
A Man with a Living Bone
10 The Europe to Which St. Columban Went
Reforming the Church in France
16 Pastoral Visitation in Seoul
From Fiji to South Korea
18 A Letter from Fr. Jim McCaslin
Reflections on a Cancer Diagnosis
22 The Gong
Opening Our Minds
Departments 3 In So Many Words 23 From the Director
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PUBLISHER REV. TIMOTHY MULROY, SSC DIRECTORUSA@COLUMBAN.ORG EDITOR KATE KENNY KKENNY@COLUMBAN.ORG EDITORIAL ASSISTANTS CONNIE WACHA CWACHA@COLUMBAN.ORG MARCI ANDERSON MANDERSON@COLUMBAN.ORG GRAPHIC DESIGNER KRISTIN ASHLEY EDITORIAL BOARD DAN EMINGER CHRIS HOCHSTETLER KATE KENNY REV. TIMOTHY MULROY, SSC JEFF NORTON GREG SIMON FR. RICHARD STEINHILBER, SSC CONNIE WACHA SCOTT WRIGHT
The Missionary Society of St. Columban was founded in 1918 to proclaim and witness to the Good News of Jesus Christ. The Society seeks to establish the Catholic Church where the Gospel has not been preached, help local churches evangelize their laity, promote dialogue with other faiths, and foster among all baptized people an awareness of their missionary responsibility.
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Forgiveness
O
ur Father, Who art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy name; Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen. The Bible is not quiet about forgiveness. Our amazing and loving Heavenly Father forgives us of all trespasses. God calls sinners to Him and promises them forgiveness. Through mercy and grace, God rescues us all. Jesus was forsaken; we are forgiven. Through the sacrifice of His life, we live life in full. And, yet, forgiveness is problematic for many us. It is difficult to acknowledge that our actions caused someone else hurt. In order to ask forgiveness, we have to acknowledge that something we did or said caused them pain. Even if we meant no harm, if our words or deeds wounded someone, it can be hard for us to admit. When the position is reversed and we are the ones in pain, it is challenging to offer forgiveness to the person who wronged us. Sometimes we hold onto our resentments because it “seems justified.” Others might experience pleasure from holding onto the ways they have been wronged. Unfortunately, there is a high price to pay for In So Many Words Greg Simon withholding our forgiveness. The emotional stress can manifest itself in physical ailments, and our relationships with our loved ones may also suffer. Nothing can change the past, not even forgiveness of past transgressions. What we can change is how we feel about past events. When we forgive, we make peace with the past which frees us to live better, fuller lives today. Through forgiveness, we are free to live the lives Jesus wants us to live. On the cross, Jesus acknowledged human fallibility when he said, “Forgive them Father, for they know not what they do.” Infinitely human, infinitely fallible – when we understand and recognize that everyone makes mistakes, it makes it easier to forgive others, and maybe even ourselves.
God calls sinners to Him and promises them forgiveness.
Greg Simon is the marketing specialist/web master for the U.S. Region of the Society at the St. Columbans, Nebraska, office.
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A Mother’s Anguish A Family Finds Healing As told to Columban Fr. Tony Coney
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he nightmare stared when I found my 10-year-old daughter Diana bleeding from her sounds after being sexually abused. I rushed her to the hospital thinking that she would be safe there, and treated for her wounds after like any other patient, but one night she was taken off in a car without my being told her destination. I ran after the car shouting to give me back my daughter, but off they drove. I went back into the hospital to find out where they had taken Diana and learned that she had been transferred to a home of the INABIF, a government agency. I took a taxi to their offices and asked to have my daughter, but once again this request was ignored. Later that day as she was being taken in another car, and into which I managed to clamber, the nurse accompanying Diana received a phone call telling her to put me out of the car. So, the car stopped and I was forced out screaming and shouting. Once again I returned to INABIF demanding to know where they had taken Diana, but nobody would tell me. Eventually I heard someone say by telephone that she had been taken to Pachacamac. This is an area in the south of Lima, the size of a large town, but off I went in search of Diana. I looked for three full days when eventually I came across a high wall behind which I heard children playing. I scaled the wall and asked a
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young girl if she knew my daughter, and described her to the young girl. She said that, “Yes, she was here,” and opened the door to let me in. But before I could enter, another person came along at that moment and refused me entry. I complained that my daughter was in there and wanted to see her, pleading with the women as a mother. She said my daughter was here, but I would need permission to see her. I asked where I would get this permission, and she replied, “INABIF.” Off once again to INABIF and after two days of fighting with the personnel I eventually received the
document that would let me see my daughter. When I arrived back at Pachacamac, they accepted the permission but told me that there were visits only on a Sunday, to return then. Another three or four days of waiting, but I did finally see Diana and had visits every Sunday. I used to go early in order to try and get in before the specified hour, or offer to do some volunteer work in order to be close to Diana, and thus passed a year of visits. Diana was always complaining at the treatment she received from those in charge, beaten and abused, and living in very unhygienic conditions. But what could I do? There was no WWW.COLUMBAN.ORG
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way I was allowed to take her out and bring her home. Then one day Diana was accused of breaking something in the kitchen, and her visits were suspended. When I was eventually allowed back in I discovered that she was no longer there, she had been transferred to someplace else. This took me back to INABIF where I eventually learned that she had been taken to a Home in San Martin de Porres, another huge area in the north of Lima, and so my search started again. Eventually somebody pointed me in the direction of St. Bernadette’s Children Center situated atop a hillside. I went up the hill to inquire, at my wits end, and from there was sent to the Children’s Home a few minutes’ walk away. There I knocked on the door nearly in hysterics at this stage, and was greeted by Abel, one of the resident psychologists. He tried to calm me down as I told something of my story, and asking him was Diana there. He replied that she was and would go and get her, and to my relief
there she was running down the stairs and into my arms. I had imagined all sorts of horrors happening to her, but now I was with her again. I asked what was going to happen, was something bad going to come of this, but Abel explained to me the processes in the Center which gave me hope.
But before I could enter, another person came along at that moment and refused me entry. I complained that my daughter was in there and wanted to see her, pleading with the women as a mother. Having talked with Abel and Violeta , the psychologist in charge, who explained that they also were tied to orders of INABIF, I could see that it was in the best interest for Diana and myself that she stayed there in order to receive the attention she needed
Giving Back to Others Helping Others Learn to Live with HIV By Luis and Columban Fr. Cathal Gallagher
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y name is Luis and I am a psychologist working with “Sí, da Vida,” an organization that promotes quality of life for people living with HIV as well as promoting prevention of the spread of the virus, in Lima, Peru. In 2008 I was only 22 years old, studying psychology in my second last year, when I came down with the flu. I had a fever, swollen glands, sore throat, WWW.COLUMBAN.ORG
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muscle and joint aches and pains, fatigue, and a headache. I went to the doctor, and he recommended that I get tested for HIV. I received a positive HIV diagnosis. Honestly, I thought to myself, I have to take responsibility for my actions so I took the result calmly, accomplishing the visits for my first routine checks for a person living with HIV. However, no more than
to overcome her experiences of being abused. But the difference this time was that I was part of the process and could see her frequently. The Children’s Home became my second family over the following year. They did so much for Diana and me that I will always be grateful to them. I will do anything I can to help them as I owe them so much. I have grown myself as a human being through the therapy I received and now am more able to give my daughter what she needs. So, I went from complete desperation, my heart breaking and not wanting to live, to new hope, happiness and joy. I am so grateful. Thanks to the Home we can live again as a family. CM Columban Fr. Tony Coney founded the St. Bernadette’s Children’s Home for abused and exploited children in Lima, Peru.
two weeks had passed when I began to feel the ravages of life with the virus, which as I know now, involves confronting a number of myths and stigmas that can emotionally consume the person living with HIV. That is, I began to go through the process of acceptance, where sadness, guilt and fear began to overpower me. I was devastated. I now say “the process of acceptance,” but at the time the feelings were overwhelming. What will my parents say? What will my friends say? How did I arrive here? Where do I go from here? I am not nor was I ever a promiscuous person. Yes, I had a partner, and we even talked about HIV and the risks of infection, but it never occurred to me that I was at risk. March/April 2015
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I began to feel the ravages of life with the virus, which as I know now, involves confronting a number of myths and stigmas that can emotionally consume the person living with HIV.
I did return to the clinic for eight months, until October of that year when I met a peer counselor who, in turn, worked as an instructor in an organization called “Sí, da Vida,” which at the time I had heard of just from friends who mentioned it in conversation. This counselor invited me to participate in a SelfManagement Program for people living with HIV that lasted seven weeks, to which I agreed to attend despite my lack of motivation. I still remember the first day I went—the clammy hands, the furtive looks, will someone recognize me and ask me what I am doing at the program? I had decided that I would say that I was there because of my studies, but once I started into the process I began to recognize that the process was about me. I began to see the importance of taking care of my health and how beneficial it is to learn to live with a chronic condition such as HIV. So I decided to resume my treatment protocols in a hospital near my house. During this program I learned many skills and tools that helped me to appreciate the importance of 4
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knowing and accepting that I am living with HIV, as well as things that I did not value nor give due importance to, especially related to my health like diet, exercise, rest; basically me taking control of my life. I continued my studies working harder than ever as the program highlights how valuable it is to meet one’s goals and fulfill one’s plans in life. Later, aware of the career I was studying, the Director of “Sí, da Vida” invited me to carry out my preprofessional psychology practice with the organization, training me as both an Instructor and Lead Trainer of the self-management program that “Sí, da Vida” provides for improving the quality of life of people living with HIV. Today, I have improved a lot in my health as a person living with HIV, which is controlled through treatment and the capacity that we all have as human beings to be the main actors in the process of improving our quality of life. I am also part of the team at “Sí, da Vida” that day after day promotes prevention of the spread of HIV and self-management for people
living with HIV, with its emphasis on the dignity of the person and inclusion of all, especially those who are on the fringe of society. In “Sí, da Vida” there is no discrimination, and those who pass through its doors are taught not to self-stigmatize but are rather given the ability to take charge of their life and well-being. I am in charge of the area of resocialization in our institution which was given an award for “Best Practice in HIV 2011 – 2013” by the Peruvian Ministry for Health and the National Institute for Health on World Aids Day last year. I also develop and deliver seminars on HIV prevention, especially to young people who so often do not know that they too can be at risk of HIV infection. I now know how lucky I was to have had friends who pointed me in the right direction at a critical time in my life. My motivation is to give back to others, with empathy and in solidarity, all that I have had the privilege to learn. CM Luis and Columban Fr. Cathal Gallagher work at “Sí, da Vida” in Lima, Peru. WWW.COLUMBAN.ORG
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If you forgive others their transgressions, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your transgressions.
~ Matthew 6:14
“I forgive you,â€? are perhaps three of the most diďŹƒcult words to say. When we think about the times we have been wronged and the accompanying pain we felt, the words are even harder to get out. Yet, they are also the words that can set us free. Over the years, there has been plenty of opportunity for our missionaries who cross, and even remove, the boundaries of culture and language to know forgiveness. From those who martyred our missionaries for their faith, to those who interned them as prisoners of war; even for those of us who may have just stumbled in some small way with the awkwardness of learning a new culture, we seek both to forgive and ask for forgiveness. Along the way, you have always been with us on this journey of discovery and forgiveness. We are thankful for you and your willingness to embrace forgiveness. Please use the envelope enclosed in this magazine to support our missionaries as we continue the journey, together. As always, we remain deeply grateful to you and will remember you and yours in our Masses and prayers. For information regarding gift annuities, membership in our Legacy Society, obtaining our legal title or for a handy booklet on how to prepare a will, contact Chris Hochstetler at: Columban Fathers P.O. Box 10 St. Columbans, NE 68056 Phone: 402/291-1920 Toll-free: 877/299-1920 Fax: 402/291-4984 www.columban.org plannedgiving@columban.org
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Columban, a Universal Saint for Today A Man with a Living Bone By Fr. Derry Healy
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he parish church that I come from in the southwest of Ireland has parish records dating back to the early 19th century. As a young altar server, I got a job from the sacristan during the summer school holiday months to take out these baptismal, confirmation, marriage and death records from the wellprotected safe. There, in the company of Irish Americans who had come to Ireland to trace their family ancestors, I would gracefully open the pages and the smell of old manuscripts would perfume the air. Our American visitors, or “the Yanks” as we called them, manifested a curiosity and inherent longing to connect with their past as they became immersed in piecing together family history. As they pondered in amazement at names, dates, in an unexpected instance they would come on a name, a family connection. Their faces became alive as the data came 8
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dancing off the page. Chronological time had disappeared, and they were one in mind and spirit with someone they knew, yet whom they never had met in the flesh. He or she was family. Many scholars, writers and historians have gone through manuscripts, documents, commentaries, while others have
This year, we are connecting with 1,400 years of history and it is an opportunity to draw from the spiritual and historical wells of Columban’s life and traditions. written about Saint Columban. What are we left with? Here is the invitation to make the connection! This year, we are connecting with 1,400 years of history and it is an opportunity to draw from the spiritual and historical wells
of Columban’s life and traditions to log into his inspiration, values, encouragement, sacred trust and determination as a missionary disciple and follower of Christ. It is not just a connection with one person, but with a period of Celtic monastic history that has influenced and laid the foundation for much we celebrate and live today as missionaries. We are proud to speak of Columban and there are many things from his life and times that we cherish. He is the father of modern day Europe. In the words of the French statesman, Robert Schuman, one of the founding fathers of European unity, who in cooperation with Jean Monnet drew up the internationally renowned Schuman Plan, which he published on May 9, 1950, the date now regarded as the birth of the European Union, Saint Columban “is the patron saint of those who seek to construct a United Europe.” WWW.COLUMBAN.ORG
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As a missionary monk, Columban did not stand idly by and support the status quo, but rather took the prophetic option of speaking out. While his monastic foundations were on the outskirts of towns and villages, this did not prevent him from getting involved in the political upheavals of the day. His ability to dialogue with the authorities of his time without compromising the Gospel message is both an inspiration and challenge for church ministers today. He did not stand idly by when the Gospel had to be preached and lifestyles challenged. He dialogued openly with the Pope and did not resist the opportunity to advise him on issues, and even though his opinion was not asked for, he expressed it anyway. Neither did he leave the French Bishops off the hook: he challenged their lifestyle and their commitment to be of Christ rather than promote their own interest and power status. Communion with the whole Church was at the center of all his dealing with the local Church and the Papacy. While he argued for diversity in liturgical feasts, especially that of Easter, he believed there was no compromise when it came to communion. For Columban, the Church’s communion was celebrated in the diversity of cultures, be it Celtic, Roman or Frankish and in the gathering around the Eucharist table. Columban gives us an understanding of the sacrament of reconciliation and individual confession. It was he who introduced into the Celtic monasteries in Europe individual confession and private penance, which was adapted later by the whole church. Previously, sins were confessed in public and in front of WWW.COLUMBAN.ORG
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the whole community. The father Abbot took the place of Christ; clothed in the role of the servant and master, stooped down to embrace the penitent monk and in the name of Christ forgave him his sins. On the feast of St. Columban in Northern Italy there is a tradition of blessing motorcycles, cars, and trucks to ask the saint protection for safe driving. It has its origin the image of Columban as a pilgrim, who journeyed over dangerous lands that eventually brought him to Bobbio. In 2002, Columban was officially declared by the Vatican patron of motorcycles, thanks to Rev. John Oliver, an Anglican bishop and biker, who suggested it initially. In the words of a Harley
It is not just a connection with one person, but with a period of Celtic monastic history that has influenced and laid the foundation for much we celebrate and live today as missionaries. Davison biker, “If Columban were alive today I imagine him riding a Harley Fat Boy. It’s got a 1,584cc pushrod V-twin engine; six gears, massive torque, has no saddlebags and ideal for itinerant monks flying those twisty roads in Europe.” Columban and his monks paved the way for many forms of meditation and contemplative prayer that are practiced by people both Christian and non-Christian. Today, we hear much about Mindfulness, Focusing as a Prayer Practice, Centering Prayer and Leccio Divino, all of which were regularly practiced in monastic communities in the 6th century.
These forms of prayer found their origin in the Desert Fathers as early as the 3rd and 4th centuries and are no other than the prayer of Jesus Himself. Columban was Christ-like in his prayer and presents us with a way of praying, that of keeping vigil. He invites us to sit at the feet of the Master, to “take care to be silent, empty the mind,” watch and stay, listen to the silence, engulf oneself in the cloud of nothingness and there encounter our God. Pilgrims going to Bobbio for the feast of Saint Columban will get a crust of bread to bring back home with them. This bread is blessed at the offertory during the Eucharist celebration and is distributed after the ceremony. It is a sign of communion with all who are gathered around the table of the Lord. It is a communion that extends far beyond the little town of Bobbio into the homes of people throughout the world who sit down at their kitchen table to talk about life as they share in the common meal of daily bread or rice. Our American visitors pilgrimage in search of their ancestor’s connected them with their family story, lost in centuries of history and yet so much a part of whom they are today. Our Columban story makes us who we are. It is therefore poetic justice that we celebrate the 1,400 years since his death. We enshrine all the goodness of this pilgrim for Christ and we draw from his wellsprings of life: as a missionary; contemplative in the dark clouds of nothingness; prophet in reading the sign of the times; disciple, healer, reconciler, teacher and builder of living communities, in whose footsteps we dare to follow. CM Columban Fr. Derry Healy lives and works in Ireland.
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The Europe to Which St. Columban Went Reforming the Church in France By Fr. Frank Hoare
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t. Columban labored in Europe from 590 A.D. to his death in 615 A.D. During that time he had struggles with the Papacy, with bishops and with kings and queens over the date for celebrating Easter and orthodox Christian faith. The background to these controversies will help to clarify these issues.
The Roman Empire St. Peter and St. Paul were both martyred in pagan Rome. But by the fourth century the Empire supported the Church. In fact, the Church and Empire became synonymous. This was the beginning of Christendom: European states which made Christianity the state religion and where secular leaders defended the Church and upheld the rules of Christianity. But the Christian emperors at times acted as theologians, judging what was orthodox Christianity (to be 10
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upheld) and what was heretical (to be persecuted). Emperors sometimes put severe pressure on bishops and Popes, to the detriment of the Church. Some bishops also began to live as secular princes and this gravely distorted the Gospel. By the early fifth century A.D. the Empire was collapsing, and Rome was sacked by pagan German tribes. Many Christians, like St. Augustine, felt that the end of the world was near. The Christian Emperor moved first to Ravenna and later to Constantinople in the east and ruled his smaller empire from there.
The Merovingian Dynasty What is now France was, at that time, full of forests with wild animals and dangerous outlaws. Roman law and order had collapsed when the barbarian tribes poured in. Many Roman towns and cities were destroyed
and even the Roman roads, which facilitated travel, fell into disrepair. People traveled by river where possible. About the year 500 A.D., Clovis united the tribes under himself in what is now France, and he was baptized. Clovis’ successors, members of the Merovingian dynasty, were a mixture of pious devotion and extreme violence and passion. By Columban’s time there, most of France was roughly divided into Neustria in the west, Austrasia in the north east and Burgundy to the south. In Columban’s time, the people were a mixture of Christians, some nominal and some fervent, and pagan tribes. Some saintly bishops administered their towns and tried to provide welfare for the poor. The educated people spoke Latin, the indigenous Gauls spoke their language, and the Germanic tribes spoke Frankish. WWW.COLUMBAN.ORG
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Columban was given permission by King Gunthram to build monasteries in Annegray, Luxeil and Fontaine, close to where the three kingdoms came together. Many monasteries of Columban rule were later founded in the three kingdoms. The monks preached the Gospel and deepened and reformed the Christianity of the people. Queen Brunhilde, of Austrasia, was prominent in a forty years’ war between Neustria and Austrasia which resulted in much death and destruction. She is blamed for having Columban and his Irish monks expelled from Luxeil in 599 A.D. The monks needed the patronage of the secular rulers, but continued protection was very uncertain.
The Papacy and Heresies in Christendom A priest named Arius taught that Jesus, the Word of God, was not equal to God the Father. The Council of Nicea in 325 A.D. condemned this Arian heresy and proclaimed that Jesus, God the Son, was equal to and of the same being as God the Father. The Council of Chalcedon in 451 A.D. condemned the Monophysite heresy which claimed that Jesus only appeared to be human, and the Council asserted that Jesus was true man as well as true God. Around 550 A.D., when Columban was a boy in Ireland, Pope Vigilius and his successor, Pope Pelagius, were put under great pressure by Emperor Justinian to side with the Monophysites. They resisted but then gave in. Many bishops in the West then refused to accept these Popes until they returned to orthodox teaching. Some bishops continued to view them and their successors with suspicion at the time Columban arrived in Milan in 612 A.D. The Lombards were a Germanic tribe that settled in northern Italy. They were a fierce people who took the land of the earlier inhabitants WWW.COLUMBAN.ORG
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and forced them to work for them. Columban, on finding that the king and the Lombards were Arians, preached some strong sermons defending the orthodox belief in the Trinity during the eighteen months he spent there. Some bishops were still accusing the reigning Pope Boniface IV of being sympathetic to the Monophysite heresy. The Arian king and his Catholic queen asked Columban to appeal to the Pope to unite the people in one faith. Columban should have avoided this controversy because much of what he knew about it was only hearsay. But he wrote an elaborate letter to the Pope challenging him to give clear witness to orthodox Christian faith and to call a council to clear his name against the accusations made against him.
The Easter Controversy Controversy arose early between Jewish and Gentile Christians about the date for celebrating Easter. Later, the Church in the East and West celebrated the Resurrection on different dates. For a time Rome and the West, including Britain and Ireland, observed an 84 year cycle with Easter falling between March 25 and April 21. The Irish continued to cling to this computation as something ancient which was introduced to them with the faith. Rome changed the way of calculating Easter a couple of times. Gaul followed the reformed Roman cycle, but Columban continued to follow the Irish computation of Easter. So the monks in Columban’s monasteries often celebrated Easter a week before the rest of the Christians in Europe.
Columban and the Bishops Kings had some laymen, their followers, appointed bishops in exchange for money. Many bishops at that time were also the rulers of the cities where they lived. Some of these
king’s appointees had little interest in spiritual responsibilities but were renowned for hunting, feasting, lust and avarice. Given this situation and because he came from Ireland where abbots were more important than bishops, Columban was not impressed when a council of bishops, some of whom were unworthy men, summoned him to their meeting to answer accusations against him. These included celebrating Easter on a different date. Columban refused to attend but sent a strong letter defending his position and urging them to attend to their duties and to leave him and his communities in peace.
Columban’s Influence on Europe Thousands of Christian martyrs sacrificed their lives throughout the Roman Empire until Emperor Constantine legalized Christianity in 313 A.D. After that Christians no longer had to witness to their faith with their blood. Zealous Christians then became monks, cutting themselves off from worldly pleasures and temptation. Monks went to the deserts of Egypt and other wild, lonely places. Gradually monasticism, known as green martyrdom, spread to Greece and onto France where St. Martin of Tours and St. John Cassian praised this lifestyle in their writings. St. Patrick introduced monasticism into Ireland where it spread widely and rapidly. There were about 200 monasteries in Gaul when Columban arrived in 590 A.D., but 50 years after his death this had increased to almost 600. Most of these were founded by monks from Columban’s monasteries and followed his rule. Columban and his monks thus reformed the Church in France and in surrounding countries. CM Columban Fr. Frank Hoare lives and works in Fiji.
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Hidden Christians The 150th Anniversary of an Astounding Discovery By Fr. Barry Cairns
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e have the same heart as you!” One hundred fifty years ago, a venerable Japanese woman whispered these words to French missionary Father Bernard Petitjean in a newlybuilt church in Nagasaki on March, 17, 1865. And that momentous phrase introduced a unique chapter in the history of the Church, announcing as it did the existence of hidden Japanese Christians after more than two centuries underground. Here is the background. St. Francis Xavier had arrived in Japan as the first Christian missionary to Japan in 1549. He and the other missionaries who followed him had great success. In a remarkable period of growth, as many as 300,000 Japanese were baptized and the church was growing at the pace of 5,000 to 6,000 converts a year. At the peak of this “Christian era,” the 40,000 strong population of Nagasaki was almost totally Christian. But a radical change arrived with striking suddenness on January 27, 1614. On that day, having consolidated his power, strongman Tokugawa Ieyasu published a decree stating, “Japan is the country of both the Shinto gods and Buddhism. Christianity, as their enemy, is a danger to the nation. It is to be eradicated.” The process of pressuring Japanese Christians into complying with this decree was set in motion. Twenty-five years later, the last priests were expelled or executed. The remaining Japanese Christians were on their own, without priests. This situation lasted for 226 years. During all that time, despite a cruel and thorough persecution, thousands remained faithful to Jesus Christ. 12
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How did they manage to do that? As the last of the missionaries prepared for arrest or banishment, they prepared their congregations. Confraternities were founded and groups encouraged to come together for prayer and mutual encouragement in the faith. The Jesuit missionaries, for example, founded the Confraternity of Mary, the Franciscans the Confraternity of the Cord, and the Dominicans the Confraternity of the Rosary. All had set prayers and practices; all were based on Jesus’ words, “Where two or three are gathered in my name, there I am in their midst.” (Matthew 18:20) In each of these secret communities, four leaders were chosen. There was the overall leader, “chokata,” who was the custodian of the Church calendar with its liturgical seasons and feast days. The other leaders were the baptizer, “mizukata” - literally water person; the catechist, the “oshiekata” — teaching person, and the notifier —“kikikata.” This last person informed the members of the small group when and where their secret prayer meetings were to be held. These underground communities held and passed on various concrete objects to remind them of their faith. For example, a Buddha statue would have a false back that contained a crucifix. A statue of Kannon, the Buddhist goddess of mercy who was often depicted with a child in her arms, was used to remind them of the Virgin Mary. I have personally seen polished metal mirrors with crosses traced on their shiny side. Because this side would face the wall, the cross would remain hidden. Sometimes a simple round object — such as a
round stone — would be used as a symbol of the Blessed Virgin Mary; the Japanese word for round, “marui,” is similar to Maria. One family I know treasures a small stone that had been found on a beach by one of their ancestors. There is a hole going through the stone, and on the reverse side, three natural indentations. It was the family’s “Trinity stone.” Notice boards forbidding Christianity and offering rewards for betraying Christians to the authorities were posted throughout the country. In the initial stages of the persecution, apprehended Christians were tortured and, if they did not recant, were crucified, beheaded or burned alive. Few recanted in the face of this violence. On the contrary, they looked forward to going to “paradiso.” So a more insidious torture was devised to induce a verbal denial of Christ. This torture was called the “ana-tsurushi.” A suspected Christian was hung upside down over a pit. The body was tightly bound to slow the blood circulation; a small cut was made in the head, and so death would come slowly. One young girl endured fourteen agonizing days. Others, including both foreign and Japanese priests, shrank from the excruciating pain and gave at least verbal recantation. There are documented records of 4,045 martyrs who did not give in. During these centuries of persecution, Japan was closed (even more closed than today’s North Korea) to outsiders. Under pain of death, no Japanese was allowed to travel overseas, and no foreigner was allowed to enter. Rare exceptions were Dutch merchants WWW.COLUMBAN.ORG
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“Where two or three are gathered in my name, there I am in their midst.” (Matthew 18:20) who were allowed to land not on the sacred soil of Japan proper, but only on an artificial island in Nagasaki harbor known as Dejima. Through these traders, rumors of the existence of Christian communities and their continued persecution found their way all the way to Rome. The Popes showed a consistent concern and frequently asked Missionaries of the Paris Foreign Mission Society to attempt entry into Japan. All failed, and some were killed. In 1853 Commodore Matthew Perry with four U.S. Navy ships steamed into Edo (Tokyo) Bay with a letter from President Millard Fillmore to Tokugawa Ieyasu’s successor, the Tokugawa Shogun. The U.S. was requesting friendship and trade. One year later, through the persistence of the U.S. Consul, Townsend Harris, a treaty was concluded. Britain, France and Russia also signed treaties. But the WWW.COLUMBAN.ORG
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doors of the country were not exactly thrown open; the foreigners were to be confined to concession areas in Yokohama, Nagasaki, and Hakodate. The terms of the treaties allowed these countries to set up chaplaincies within these concessions. No Japanese was to enter. Persecution was still alive. The priests who were chaplains to the French built churches in Yokohama and Nagasaki. Each was topped by a large cross and a sign in Japanese proclaiming “Tenshudo” or “temple of the Lord of Heaven.” The Church they built at Nagasaki still stands prominently on Oura hill. This was where the Christian midwife Elizabeth Tsuru told Fr. Petitjean, “We have the same heart as you.” The astounded priest was asked a further question, “Do you have a statue of Mary?” Shown the statue, they were delighted to see the infant Jesus in Mary’s arms. Other questions
followed to determine if this man was a genuine successor of the “bataren” or fathers of their ancestors’ era. “Do you honor the great chief in Rome? Do you marry?” They had already visited a Protestant church where the minister introduced his wife; they never returned! Elizabeth Tsuru revealed to Fr. Petitjean that there were 1,300 underground Christians in the neighboring village of Urakami. She also explained some of their customs. “A few days ago, we entered ‘the sad season’ (Lent–remember, it was mid-March.). We celebrate the birth of Jesus on the 25th day of the cold month.” In the succeeding months, almost 20,000 hidden Christians had declared themselves in Nagasaki and the outlying islands of Goto, Amakusa, and Madara. When news of this reached the central government, persecution March/April 2015
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was intensified. Missionary priests visited the communities in secret. As the numbers multiplied, the priests trained lay helpers to instruct and support the communities. At this time Japan was in political turmoil. The Tokugawa family who had ruled for 250 years lived in Edo (now Tokyo). The Emperor, a powerless figurehead, lived in distant Kyoto. In 1867, the Tokugawa Shogun was deposed, and the Emperor was restored. The powers behind this imperial restoration were the powerful families and trading houses. These were ultranationalist in outlook and used the 14
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Shinto religion as their instrument. At first they even demoted Buddhism and declared Shinto to be the state religion. The law was, “to be a true Japanese citizen in loyalty to the divine Emperor, you must follow the way of the gods, Shinto.” Notice boards banning Christianity were again posted in every village. There was a renewal of executions and exile. In January 1870, 2,810 Christians from Nagasaki, men, women and children, were forcibly loaded onto boats and exiled to 21 distant areas of Japan. The American, British and French consuls protested. “We earnestly
remonstrate against the treatment of Christians.” The appeal was ignored. In December, 1871, a large delegation of Japanese officials, led by former Minister of the Right (Prime Minister) Iwakura set out on a tour of the U.S. and Europe to conclude treaties and promote commerce. The international press had featured the persecutions in detail. In the United States they were received rather coldly. In Britain, France and Belgium, the reception was even more frigid. In Brussels, as the Japanese delegation’s carriages passed, the streets were lined with people demanding liberation of Christians. Iwakura cabled his government: “this delegation will end in failure if the persecution of the Christians continues.” On February, 1873 the persecution of Christians officially ended. The anti-Christian notice boards were taken down, and exiles still alive were repatriated. Of course, it takes more than a government decree to change the attitudes of minor officials and the general public. Especially during the Pacific war, discrimination against Christians was rampant, but that has eased. Today, despite the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, which had its epicenter near the Catholic neighborhood of Urakami, the churches in Nagasaki, the Goto, Amakusa and Madara Islands are vibrant with faith. CM Columban Father Barry Cairns lives and works in Yokohama. In the 1960s he was pastor at Sakitsu on Amakusa Island where the community was largely descended from the hidden Christians. He collected many articles used by the hidden Christians and started a small museum there, visited by many pilgrims and tourists to this day.
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Faith & Works Come Together When You Support Columban Missionaries
“What good is it my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister has nothing to wear and has no food for the day, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, keep warm and eat well,’ but you do not give them the necessities of the body, what good is it? So also faith of itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” (James 2:14-17)
Give Prayer is as vital for the spread of the Gospel as rain is for the growing of things. Financial sacrifice is the inseparable compliment to prayer and is all the more effective when accepted generously and offered in union with the suffering Christ.
Receive Your sacrifices mean so such to those whom we serve. You can be sure that God will never be outdone in His generosity towards you, your family and loved ones.
Enrich By helping bring Christ to others you will find your own faith immensely enriched. For more information on how you can partner with us or to make a gift on line, contact us at: Columban Fathers Toll Free: 877-299-1920 www.columban.org
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Pastoral Visitation in Seoul From Fiji to South Korea By Fr. Frank Hoare
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spent a few days in Seoul while waiting for a visa for Myanmar. I met a Fijian lay missionary, Losena Biau, there and arranged with her to visit some elderly Koreans a couple of days later. On the way to the apartment block we called into a shop run by parish volunteers and collected three bottles of juice. Losena had phoned ahead to let our intended hosts know that we were coming. Nevertheless the first lady we called on was not at home. Losena hung the plastic bag with a bottle of juice on the door knob, and we moved on. We had a fast ride by elevator to the next apartment on the list. A 93 year old granny invited us in. After taking off our shoes we went through a narrow corridor/kitchenette into a small room with a TV showing a Korean drama. In front of the TV was a thin mattress with rolled up blankets on which granny sat to chat with us. Otherwise the room was unfurnished.
A room in Korea is heated from under the floor, so Losena and I squatted comfortably at the side of the mattress. Granny apologized for not being able to serve us tea and snacks as she had hurt her knee in a recent fall. We asked about her age and about her family, and Losena interpreted for me. The two of them laughed at some of her replies while Losena held her hand or rubbed her injured knee. Granny is a Catholic, and we had to prevent her kneeling for my blessing. She insisted on accompanying us out of the apartment to the elevator as we left. She warned Losena not to bring any juice or food when she next visited. We then came to Pedro and Sylvia’s apartment. They are a married couple who suffer from cerebral palsy. Their hands are twisted, and speech is difficult for them. Losena could understand Pedro’s Korean, but only Pedro could understand Sylvia’s sounds. Sylvia sat on the bed while the three of us squatted on the warm floor.
A caretaker stood in the background and quickly brought cups of warm orange juice and cakes for us. We chatted, swapping many questions to and fro with much laughter. Pedro asked me to guess Sylvia’s age. I cautiously said 35 years. Pedro was proud to tell me that Sylvia is 56 years old, and that he is one year older. Sylvia stood and while miming carrying a child in her arms made sounds which Pedro interpreted for us. She said that God is holding them in His embrace and that is why they still look young. Pedro asked how one could express in simple words one’s love for God. Panguri, their chihuahua dog, was curled up in front of Losena enjoying having her head stroked. When I tried to stroke her she snarled at me. Obviously we hadn’t been properly introduced. I heard that she is 15 years old. “She is a halmoni (granny),” said I, pointing at her. “Father knows Korean,” enthused Pedro and he added in English, “Very good.” We celebrated with a high fives. Meanwhile Panguri lay on her back and did a vigorous exhibition of cycling in the air to show her appreciation. As we left, there were warm hugs and gifts exchanged by all with promises to pray for each other. CM Columban Fr. Frank Hoare lives and works in Fiji.
Losena and Maria, Fijian lay missionaries in South Korea
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WWW.COLUMBAN.ORG
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The Red Lacquered Gate The early days of the Columban Fathers and the courage and faith of its founder, Fr. Edward Galvin
Fr. Edward “Ned� Galvin was born in Ireland in 1882, the oldest in a family of seven children. After he was ordained to the Catholic priesthood, he realized that there were more priests in his native land then parishes. So Ned Galvin immigrated to the United States and turned a struggling church in Brooklyn into a thriving parish. But Father Galvin had a secret desire to do missionary work. He was especially attracted to China and had read all the books on the subject his local library could provide. Finally, his wish was granted, and he set out with a group of dedicated helpers on a mission to the Far East.
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William E. Barrett created this colorful, dramatic portrait of an unusual man whose strong Catholic faith helped him survive the horrors and heartbreak of his demanding mission to China.
Order your copy today! Call 888-795-4274, visit your local bookstore or order online at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com and Xlibris.com in paperback, hardback and eBook formats.
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March 13, 2003, 2012 North 100th Street Omaha, Nebraska 68134 DEAR FRIENDS, I began this on February 3, the feast of Saint Ansgar. Who? Saint Ansgar, a bishop born in France at the beginning of the ninth century. In 826, he began his missionary efforts in Denmark later going to Sweden, and it seems those peoples were not very receptive to his efforts. It is said that “he endured many difficulties in his work of evangelization but his spirit never failed.” He died in 865. You never heard of him? Well, I wouldn’t have either except that he has appeared in my prayer’ book (the Divine Office or the Breviary) every February for many years. His feast may be celebrated in Denmark, Sweden and possibly in Hamburg, Germany where he at some stage became bishop — I don’t know. However, his feast in the universal church is not very important and is called “optional.” So why am I writing about him? He was a missionary, that’s why, and so am I. This year I opted to read the lesson given for his feast and found it was from The Decree of the Second Vatican Council on the Missionary Activity of the Church (nos 23-24) I was struck in a special way by what was said about missionaries, some of which I want to share with you: Every disciple of Christ has the obligation to do his part in spreading the faith. Yet Christ the Lord always calls whomever he chooses from the number of his disciples ‘to be with him and to be sent by him’ to preach to the nations. Therefore ... Christ inspires the missionary vocation in the hearts of individuals. At the same time he raises up in the church certain groups which take as their special task that duty of preaching the gospel which weighs upon the whole church. For there are certain priests, religious and lay people who are prepared to undertake mission work in their own countries or abroad and who are endowed with appropriate natural dispositions, character and talents. These souls are marked with a special vocation, Sent by legitimate authority, they go faithfully and obediently to those who are far from Christ. They are set apart for the work to which they have been called as ministers of the gospel so that the offering of the gentiles may become acceptable, being sanctified by the Holy Spirit. (Rom. 15:16) Yet a man must so respond to God’s call so that, without consulting flesh and blood, he can devote himself totally to the work of the gospel. This response, however, can be made only when the Holy Spirit gives him inspiration and strength. For he who is sent enters upon the life of Him who ‘emptied himself taking the nature of a slave.’ (Phil 2:7) Therefore, he must stand by his vocation for a lifetime, and renounce himself and all those whom he consider as his own instead becoming ‘all things to all men.’ (1 Cor. 9:22) …In 1955 I was sent by the Church through the Columban Fathers as a missionary to the people of the Philippines. Although the vast majority of Filipinos (about 80%) were baptized Catholics, only a small percentage were evangelized in any real sense. I don’t know precisely how I was chosen by the Church to be a missionary and as such sent to evangelize Filipinos, but I have always had the firmest conviction that I was, and doing so has been the warp and woof of my life both as a priest and as a man. Seven years ago I came down with colon cancer in Hong Kong where I had in the previous year gone to continue to help in the evangelization of Filipinos forced by economic necessity to go abroad in search of a livelihood. Cancer is scary enough that I wondered if my life as missionary among them had been aborted, but after an operation and chemotherapy in Omaha, was happy to learn that there was no sign of cancer, and I was free to return to my work of both evangelizing and being evangelized by Filipinos, for that indeed had been happening for a long, long time.
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Within a year, however, new cancer appeared in the lungs, and I began five years of chemotherapy in Hong Kong, during which time I was able to stay on as a very happy and productive missionary. That was true until July 2002 when I was vacationing in the U.S.A., and my lung cancer suddenly began to grow new cells at the bones at the base of my spine. In that condition I could not return to Hong Kong, but had to return to Omaha for radiation and a new chemotherapy. Meanwhile, I reached my 75th birthday while the chemo sapped my strength, and Filipinos wondered by phone and letters when I was “coming home.” My body and my doctor told me that at the very least it would not be very soon, yet I remained optimistic that I would indeed return. After all, I was a missionary who had to stand by my vocation for a lifetime; as a priest and as a man I knew no other life, nor did I want any other. Then about two months ago, my latest chemo was shown to be no longer effective, and the cancer was growing again. Since then I have been treated orally with a new one [treatment] which the literature suggests is resorted to when “everything else fails!” I am not particularly frightened by that news, but it does sadden me. Am I still a missionary when I can no longer be with those with whom my whole life has been spent? Can I be a missionary when I am scarcely able to leave my brother’s house, where I have been recuperating and awaiting a return of health that would permit me to be back among them? I can now put more time into prayer and reflection on God’s word, but I don’t know that I pray any better than before. I have more time to remember with great joy the many hundreds who have called me Father, whose love has sustained me for such a long time. I have always believed that a priest must be a man of prayer if he is to be worth anything at all, a missionary perhaps more than others. The time I had expected to put in face to face I can no longer give. Yet, as their father whose heart they know they own, I must continue to give that time even during the long lonely hours of each day, and not forgetting the many others, non-Filipinos, who have also been so much a part of my life, who have loved me more than I deserve and who also call me Father. As poor as my prayer may be, I have come to realize that for now it’s the only way I have of being missionary, and I promise to follow that way as long as I still have breath within me. Perhaps I can apply to myself what I have preached to elderly and others, that this time may be the most productive of any other time in a long missionary career. May it be so. Pray for me. Thank you Saint Ansgar, wherever you may be. Yesterday the doctor told me I should have another C-scan to see whether the present chemo is producing the desired effect, to bring the cancer under control. My blood tests have been good, but I am losing weight, and I am also frequently sick to my stomach with lots of vomiting. Not so promising, but God continues to look after me. I am sending this especially to the many who have written me but have heard nothing from me for a long time. Forgive me. I really have been unable to do what I am doing now because physically it has been too painful. You are worth it, but I can’t promise to be able to do it again. Depend on my prayers — and my love. Columban Fr. Jim McCaslin P.S. Latest cat scan shows spread in lungs and liver and pancreas. My future seems to be in the past. Ed. Note: Columban Fr. Jim McCaslin died on September 16, 2003. We hope his words may be an inspiration to all who suffer.
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How the Light Gets In The Gift of Forgiveness By Sr. Redempta Twomey
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he catechetical program was going well. Every week the ten participants faithfully turned up to the mission church to be instructed in the faith. They came from diverse backgrounds and had had little contact with Christianity but were interested in learning about Christ. All went well until the priest introduced the topic of forgiveness. Full stop. The centrality of forgiveness in the life and teaching of Jesus was almost incomprehensible. They had a code of family honor, a definite unbreakable obligation to enact vengeance on anyone who injured them or their kin. It beggared belief that they would be expected to walk away from such a situation, that they would actually forgive the perpetrator.
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Weeks of discussion followed. No way could they take this on. The priest told them the story of the prodigal son. (Lk. Ch. 15) After a period of silence one man was heard to say, ruefully, “If only that were true. If only we could believe in such a Father…” Forgiveness is at the heart of our Christian life. It is the great healing medicine that unbinds age-old resentments and the bitterness that tethers us. Only through forgiving others the wounds they inflict on us can we be healed. Fr. Ronald Rolheiser wrote: “We all arrive at mid-life wounded and not having exactly the life of which we dreamed. There’s disappointment and anger inside everyone of us and unless we find it in ourselves to forgive, we will die bitter,
unready for the heavenly banquet.” We are all, in a real sense, coauthors of our own story. We cannot control the external events of our life, we can only write our part in the story as best we can. We will never write the perfect biography; there are flaws and fissures in every life. But, in the words of the singer-songwriter, Leonard Cohen, we should “Ring the bells that still can ring, Forget your perfect offering, There’s a crack in everything. That’s how the light gets in.” (Anthem) By accepting our “cracks” we can live authentically, remove our masks and meet people with openness and honesty. When we forgive ourselves our past mistakes and ask forgiveness WWW.COLUMBAN.ORG
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malicious gossip our heart grows cold, silent screams of rage at the unfairness rise up and threaten to drown the gentle voice that urges patience. Unless we go deeper than these wounded, bleeding feelings we are on a downward slope. The really good news is that “nothing is impossible to God” whose Spirit lives and moves in us and gives us the strength and the grace to truly forgive even the worst offence against us. Just now, in the grip of resentment, this looks and feels impossible, but when we hold on and trust our forgiving Father we will taste something of his reckless forgiveness. (Lk 15) In his old age the writer, Morris West, said that the only word we need in our spiritual vocabulary is “gratitude.” Here is a key to unlocking forgiveness in our heart. When we feel the bile rise up, the fists clench, the cursing words trying to take over, we must immediately swing our thoughts to thanking God for one good happening in our life today. The face of a child. The warmth of the sun, the of those we injured, the shackles fall from us, our spirits are lighter, our long caged energy is released. This is the true life our Lord promised us. But, forgiveness is not easy. We can understand the shock of that group who balked at the seeming impossibility of what the Lord asks of His followers. How many of us, who profess to be Christian, who are faithful in our religious observance are able to forgive with out a struggle? Old feuds are passed down the generations; the injury done me in my twenties still hooks me thirty years on; the anger of my best friend threatens the fabric of our relationship and I cannot move on. When we have been wronged, treated unjustly or been the victim of WWW.COLUMBAN.ORG
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blessing of rain. The delicious apple. The fact that we can think, can walk, can praise. Think of one thing, then another, and soon we will find praise and peace taking over. And gradually, the very real hurts we experience will heal. We will forgive ourselves and forgive others. Not overnight, not instantly, but the deep joy of forgiveness lies in wait. Last year in a tragic mining accident in Turkey a rescuer told of a note found clenched in the fist of a dead miner. As he faced death the man scribbled these poignant words: “Please give me your blessings son.” This is what we all long for in the end, the healing blessing of forgiveness, love which holds and heals, and the peace that allows us to let go of old bitterness and live in the freedom of the Spirit. There is joy in heaven when we forgive. And there is joy too in our hearts. So, let us not wait until the end, forgiveness is a gift we share today. CM Columban Sr. Redempta Twomey lives and works in Ireland.
By accepting our “cracks” we can live authentically, remove our masks and meet people with openness and honesty.
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The Gong Opening Our Minds By Fr. Warren Kinne
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atholic religious houses as well as those of other religions use bells or gongs to announce significant moments during the day. This can be a call for prayer or an invitation to eat or time to rise from sleep. There is a Chinese gong at the door of the dining room in our Essendon (Australia) house. I first saw it fifty years ago on my initial visit to Essendon as a student. Our particular gong summons us to dinner with its lovely resonant sound. An older resident of the house assures me that it was there when he first arrived in 1950. Our gong has lots of Chinese characters stamped around its outside edge. I never took much notice of it before, but now that we have some Chinese friends staying with us in the house, it occurred to me to ask Dong Yiling: “What is written there?” Even though I do know some Chinese and can pick out a character to two I cannot make head or tail of the whole inscription on the gong. I picked up the gong and struggled outside to get some photographs of it to allow Dong Yiling time to mull over the inscriptions. God knows what it weighs, but I am at the limits of my ability to carry it without risk of dropping it on my toes. An older resident of the house suggested that a missionary returning from China prior to World War II might have brought it back in his sea trunk. In those days most travelled by sea and luggage weight was not an issue. Of course, the gong could
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have been sold to the Columbans in a local market in Melbourne but that seems unlikely! There are a lot of Chinese artifacts in Australia and despite historical hostility from the majority Anglo-Irish population, the Chinese presence in Australia has been significant over many years. Even my great-grandfather was Chinese born. Perhaps too the gong is a fake! But I doubt it. What we do know is that it is made of bronze or something like bronze and has the most delicious sound. Also, thanks to Dong Yiling, we more or less know what the stamped characters around the outside of the gong tell us. Below is what Dong Yiling wrote: “Si Jian Temple.” “Si Jian” could be just a name for the temple, but literally it could also mean: be prepared in time of peace and live frugally. From right to left, downwards, it says that the gong was set up respectfully by a female abbot/nun, whose Dharma name was Miao Dao, along with her two disciples Yue Xiang and Yue Kui. The gong was made in 1902, during the third month on the lunar calendar. The left column seems to name the smithy that forged the gong however
it could be interpreted in two ways: “Made by Yi Xing Sheng” or “Proudly made by Yi Xing.” The right column talks about where the gong was made. We are uncertain of the second character but we guessed that all together it reads: “Bei Ti Cheng Qiao” which literally means the city bridge of a place called Bei Ti. All this leaves us in a state of wonder rather than certainty. Yet the gong for me is symbolic of something very Chinese. It is an invitation to greater appreciation of the cultural wealth of the Chinese people. We cannot but enjoy the sound of this gong. I love to give it a bang. We are fascinated and curious about its origin, about which we do know a little. Nevertheless there is a lot we don’t know about it. But the gong invites us to more than a meal. It opens my mind to discovering more about the vast cultural wealth that shapes China. CM Columban Fr. Warren Kinne lives and works in China.
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The Joy of Forgiveness
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his year as we commemorate the 1400th anniversary of the death of the Irish monk and missionary, St. Columban, we might well ask the question, “What can we learn from looking back at his life?� I would like to share my own response to that question, which I think has special relevance during this season of Lent. Around the year 590, when Columban set out from Ireland on his journey to mainland Europe, he was accompanied by twelve other monks who accepted him as their spiritual leader and guide. Among them was a gifted young man called Gall. During the next twenty years these pilgrims for Christ founded several monasteries across Europe. In response to the large number of vocations, as well as to hostility by civil and religious leaders who found the Irish pilgrims uncompromising in their preaching, Columban did not stay long in any one place. However, each time that he moved, some of
FROM THE DIRECTOR By Fr. Tim Mulroy his Irish companions stayed behind. Gall, however, followed him faithfully from one place to another for twenty years. Eventually, when the day came for Columban and Gall to go their separate ways, their parting was not an amicable one. The reason for their disagreement remains unclear. However, some historians think that it had to do with a refusal by Gall to follow his spiritual master. Perhaps, Gall had become tired of moving and pleaded with Columban to be allowed to remain behind. Whatever the reason, Columban was greatly upset
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After so many decades of companionship, their parting was bitter. and imposed a harsh punishment on Gall: though he could continue to live as a monk, from that day onwards he was forbidden to celebrate Mass. After so many decades of companionship, their parting was bitter. Soon afterwards, Columban crossed the Alps on foot and founded a monastery in the city of Bobbio in northern Italy. There, five years later, as he lay on his deathbed, his mind traveled back in time, remembering his many journeys, his various monasteries, and his travel companions. Calling one of the monks, he handed him his staff and commanded him to go back over the Alps and present it to Gall. By the time Gall received the staff, Columban had died. However, I imagine his immediate and joyful response to that precious gift from his close friend and spiritual master, Columban, was to celebrate Mass once again. All was forgiven! This story that recounts the pain of division as well as the joy of forgiveness is one reason why the legacy of Columban still speaks to us 1400 years after his death.
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Transform the Lives of Others…Enrich the World…Give Hope Columban Mission magazine is published eight times each year and tells the stories of our missionaries and the people they are called to serve. Columban missionaries live in solidarity with their people and, together, they move forward to improve their social, economic and spiritual lives, always with Our Savior as their guide and their eyes on God’s Kingdom. For a $10 donation or more, you or a friend or loved one can share in our baptismal call to mission and the Columban Father’s mission work around the world through Columban Mission magazine. To begin receiving your Columban Mission magazine or to provide a gift to a loved one, simply visit our website at www.columban.org, call our toll-free number 877-299-1920 or write to us at: Columban Mission Magazine Subscription Missionary Society of St. Columban P.O. Box 10 St. Columbans, NE 68056
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“Said Jesus to Simon, ‘do not be afraid, from now on you will be catching people.’”— Luke 5:10 Indeed, if you feel called to help with Jesus’ nets, do not be afraid to call us and discuss a life of mission service.
We invite you to join this new generation by becoming a Columban Father or Columban Sister. If you are interested in the missionary priesthood, write or call… Fr. Bill Morton National Vocation Director Columban Fathers St. Columbans, NE 68056 877-299-1920 Email: vocations@columban.org Website: www.columban.org
If you are interested in becoming a Columban Sister, write or call… Sister Virginia Mozo National Vocation Director Columban Sisters 2546 Lake Road Silver Creek, NY 14136 626-458-1869 Email: virginiamozo@yahoo.com Websites: www.columbansisters.org www.columbansistersusa.com
Japan + Korea + Peru + Hong Kong + Philippines + Pakistan + Chile + Fiji + Taiwan + North America
1/28/15 9:56 PM