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‘Mission Prayer’ – The light of Jesus by Blessed John Henry Newman
Dear Jesus, help me to spread your fragrance everywhere I go. Flood my soul with Your Spirit and Life. Penetrate and possess my whole being so utterly that my life may be a radiance of Yours. Shine through me and be so in me that every soul I come in contact with may feel Your presence in my soul. Let them look up and see no longer me but only Jesus! Stay with me and then I shall begin to shine as You shine, so to shine as to be a light to others. The light, O Jesus, will be all from You; none of it will be mine. It will be You, shining on others through me. Let me thus praise You in the way which You love best, by shining on those around me. Let me preach You without preaching, not by my words but by my example, by the catching force, the sympathetic influence of what I do, the evident fullness of the love my heart bears for You. Amen.
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Advocate Spring 2016 Volume 56 No. 1 ST JOSEPH’S ADVOCATE Published by: Editor: Printed in Ireland by:
Mill Hill Missionaries Fr. Jim O’Connell. Modern Printers, Kilkenny.
CONTENTS Editorial 2 In the Land of Kom, Camroon 4 God’s Mercy - Hymn 7 Message from General Superior 8 Mill Hill Celebrating 150 Years 10 Novena to St. Joseph details 15 Nine Day Novena to St. Joseph 16
Mill Hill Jubilees 2016 My Former Students Outdoor Stations of the Cross A Fantastic Choir Pandipieri Health Programme ‘Painted Butterflies’ - Book Obituaries
18 21 24 26 28 31 32
Front Cover:
. Fr. Philip O’Halloran and Sr. Margaret Tambasi (right) with some of
Inside Front Cover:
. Mission Prayer
Back Cover:
. Photo: Daniel Foley
Photo Credits:
. F. Eppink, J. Boerkamp, B. Fox, F. Hannaway, Sr. N. McGrath
the group at the Mill Hill Formation Centre in Luanda, Kenya.
MISSION OFFERINGS All Postal Orders and Cheques to be sent direct to us at Mill Hill Missionaries, Waterford Road, Kilkenny. All Bank Giros to be sent direct to Bank of Ireland, Parliament St., Kilkenny A/c No. 10914412. Sort Code: 906064 Mill Hill Missionaries St. Joseph’s Waterford Road, Kilkenny. Tel: (056) 7721482 Office: millhillkilkenny@eircom.net www.millhillmissionaries.com
Mill Hill Missionaries 50 Orwell Park Rathgar, Dublin 6 Tel: (01) 4127700 E.mail: josephmhm@eircom.net
St Mary’s Parish 25 Marquis Street Belfast BT1 1JJ Tel: 04890 320482
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F R O M T H E E D I TO R a model for missionary work. He wrote of St. Joseph being ‘the first missionary’ when he took the Child Jesus and his mother Mary into the land of Egypt. The official seal of our Missionary Society shows St. Fr. Jim O’Connell,mhm Joseph leading Mary with her Readers of St. Joseph’s AdvoChild on that first ‘mission’ to a foreign cate know us as the Mill Hill Mission- land. aries. The name goes right back to 1866 ‘The Person and Mission when Fr. Herbert Vaughan (later Cardiof St. Joseph’ nal Archbishop of Westminster) founded our Missionary Society in a place called In 1989 St. John Paul II issued a docMill Hill, located in North West Lonument ‘On the Person and Mission of St. don. But our official title is ‘St. Joseph’s Joseph in the life of Christ and the Missionary Society’. Church.’ He stressed that the example of St. Joseph featured in a big way in those early days, with the College for St. Joseph encourages us to a “renewed the students in Mill Hill being called commitment to Evangelisation in the after him and a very large statue of St. world. He serves as a model for the enJoseph stood (still stands) on a high tire Christian community, whatever the tower that can be seen for miles around condition and duties of its members.” Pope Benedict spoke about St. Joseph that area of North London. As students we were told that the view as an example and model of love of from the tower was breath-taking. Un- Jesus and Mary, stressing the help and fortunately, we were not allowed to protection he offers to us in our daily climb to the top because the stairs were lives, especially with the problems we no longer safe. But we were very aware encounter: “If discouragement overthat the 12 feet high statue of St. Joseph whelms you, think of the faith of reigned over the College itself and also Joseph. If anxiety has its grip on you, think of the hope of Joseph. If exasperdominated the landscape. ation or hatred seizes you, think of the This of course reflected Herbert Vaughan’s devotion to St. Joseph and love of Joseph, who was the first man to the fact that he looked to him as the pa- set eyes on the human face of God in the tron and protector of his new Mission- person of the infant conceived by the ary Society in 1866. He also saw him as Holy Spirit in the womb of the Virgin Mary. Let us praise and thank Christ for
Celebrating 150 years of Missionary Work with St. Joseph as Patron and Protector
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having drawn so close to us, and for giving us Joseph as an example and model of love for him.”
St. Joseph patron and protector Pope Francis has continued to speak about St. Joseph in the manner of his predecessors. His inaugural Mass was celebrated on the Feast of St. Joseph, at which he stressed that “Saint Joseph exercised his role as ‘protector’ of Jesus and Mary by hearing God’s voice and being guided by God’s will in his daily life. He did this with fidelity, goodness and tenderness, as a strong and courageous man, a working man, yet in his heart we see great tenderness …” Thus the recent Popes have been calling us back to what Herbert Vaughan
did in his day, when he presented St. Joseph as the patron and protector of his missionaries and as an example for people in ordinary daily living. In 2016, as the Mill Hill Missionaries celebrate 150 years of Missionary Service, we renew our devotion to St. Joseph and seek his powerful intercession to help us in our commitment to missionary work in today’s world. The Novena to St. Joseph gives us a good opportunity to reflect and pray in gratitude for what has been and also to pray for the new developments that are taking place as we now have over 70 Mill Hill priests and 150 students from Africa and Asia. Our Missionary work continues with the guidance of the Spirit and St. Joseph remains our model and example, our patron and protector.
The Logo in this picture combines the names ‘Mill Hill Missionaries’ and ‘St. Joseph’s Missionary Society.’ It presents Mary with the Child Jesus and Joseph with the staff as the protector of Jesus and Mary. In faint print in the picture you can also read the Mill Hill Motto in Latin and in English: ‘Amare et Servire’ ‘To love and to serve’ 3
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IN THE LAND OF KOM, CAMEROON
Fr. Gerald with Fr. Abner (left) and Fr. Cyprian from Fundong Parish who had just been ordained, celebrating with some people from Fondong parish.
Gerald is celebrating his Silver Jubilee this year. He spent twenty years in Cameroon, living and working in 8 different missions and institutions in the Archdiocese of Bamenda. In this article he describes how he ventured into the Land of Kom and soon found himself back there in Fundong Parish, where he spent some time.
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EFLECTING on the past 25 years, the following words of Pope Francis give me an incentive to expound a little on some of my experiences: “Jesus teaches us another way: Go out. Go out and share your testimony, go out and interact with your brothers, go out and share, go out and ask. Become the Word in body as well as spirit.” (Pope Francis) During my time as Vocations promoter in Cameroon I embarked on a venture in
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Kom land which would later account for a considerable part of my time in Cameroon. At the end of November 2003 I accompanied Fr Michael Yuh PP and Sr. Electa, a Franciscan Sister to a remote pastoral zone in Fundong parish. The purpose of the journey was to fulfil the normal pastoral visitation and to officially open and bless two outreach Health Clinics in Ilung and Achain. These mission stations were situated approximately 40 kms from the main mission.
An excerpt from a letter I wrote home for Christmas 2003 “The scenery on route to Ilung and Achain was absolutely breath taking. High mountains, deep valleys and waterfalls as far as the eye could see. That’s the good bit! I have never travelled on such bad roads for a long time. There has been no road construction, not to mention, road maintenance for years. Some stretches of the road were footpaths,
which had been converted into something resembling a road. It appeared that the road surfaces were dried up river beds. In some places huge boulders were sticking up waiting to catch the axel of our four wheel drive vehicle. Forceful driving was required to climb and negotiate the difficult and rocky patches. I didn’t think it was possible to drive on such atrocious roads. However I was an occasional traveller visiting the area. The local population encounters this reality all year round. You could excuse the inhabitants of Achain and Ilung areas for feeling that they have been abandoned and forgotten about by the outside world and the local authorities. The setting up and staffing of Health Clinics will go some way to alleviate the sufferings of the local population. Despite their harsh existence, people are happy and appreciate the efforts that are been made to help them. The local people also made their own contributions in getting these projects off the ground.
Fr. Dominic, first Parish Priest of Ilung parish, visiting a school in Ilung. 5
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Now, there are resident health workers to treat the sick and maternity services to facilitate the safe delivery of infants. It’s not so long ago, since seriously ill patients were carried on stretchers 60 kms to the Catholic Mission Hospital in Njinikom for medical attention. Sometimes it was too late, particularly in the case of pregnant women and young children. More medical equipment is needed, but things will be built up slowly. My friends in Ireland may consider at some stage to be of assistance in future to assist these people. When I finish my present job in Vocations promotion, I would like to minister in this area. However that’s put on the long finger for now….. “
Back in the Land of Kom In July 2004 I did go back to Kom Land, to Fundong parish, along with Fr Abner Dimo from the Philippines and Fr Christopher Hancock from Wales as part of a Mill Hill Missionary team. As well as the main centre Fundong the parish had 30 mission stations, many situated in remote areas such as the ones described in the excerpt above. An advanced driving qualification would be a bonus for tackling the road infrastructure. I was no longer sitting in my perch but I was behind the wheel of the four wheel drive vehicle. However, some of these missions could be reached only on foot and on arrival all the home comforts such as electricity and running water were non-existent. The kerosene lamp became a very important piece of equipment. It was my light. Babies are born, families share their stories and meals, children do their homework and prepare 6
for exams, parish pastoral councils and small Christian communities hold their meetings with the help of this simple lamp. The Liturgy of Light during the Easter Vigil comes to life when lamps are lit from the Paschal Candle and the Christian community proceed into church for the Proclamation of the Exsultet. Aspiring Cameroonian candidates came to Fundong parish to be orientated in the Mill Hill Missionary way of life before being accepted for Formation in Bamenda. Later, some of our theology students from Nairobi, Kenya, did their two years mission pastoral experience in the parish. Fundong parish was divided in July 2011 and St Therese Quasi Parish Ilung was created with Fr Dominic Nyachoti MHM from Kenya as its pioneer Parish Priest. Fr. Tiberius Vuni from Uganda is Parish Priest in Fonfuka. Mill Hill’s presence and its commitment to minister and live among the people of Kom continues with the new generation of Mill Hill priests from Kenya and Uganda.
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As a reminder that we are celebrating “A Holy Year of Mercy” we reprint the following hymn.
“There’s a wideness in God’s mercy.........” by Fr. F. W. Faber (Composer of “Faith Of Our Fathers”)
There's a wideness in God's mercy like the wideness of the sea: There's a kindness in his justice, which is more than liberty. There is no place where earth's sorrows are more felt than up in heaven. There is no place where earth's failings have such kind judgements given. For the love of God is broader than the measure of man's mind, And the heart of the eternal is most wonderfully kind. But we make his love too narrow by false limits of our own: And we magnify his strictness with a zeal he will not own: If our love were but more simple, we should take him at his word, And our lives would be all sunshine in the sweetness of Our Lord. 7
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Message from our General Superior Fr. Michael Corcoran, mhm AST JUNE the Mill Hill Missionaries gathered at Chigwell, England for the 18th General Chapter of the Society. Mill Hill Missionaries from all parts of our Mill Hill world came together to raise, reflect upon, discuss, and make decisions upon the issues that will give our Mill Hill Society direction and life for the next five years leading us to a renewed dedication to our missionary calling of loving service to those in greatest need.
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The Chapter delegates also chose a new General Council to lead the Society for the next five years. I was elected General Superior and bring to the role a wide experience of mission having spent over twenty years in East Africa, in particular Uganda. Fr. Des McGillicuddy also hails from Ireland and in recent weeks had to bring closure to his ministry in Brazil having been elected to the General Council. For the first time in our history as a Society we welcomed whole heartedly members from Africa and Asia onto the General Council. A clear shift from the origins of our Mill Hill Society. Fr. Andrew Mukulu from Uganda working as a missionary in Cameroon and Fr. Jimmy Lindero from The Philippines working as a missionary in Pakistan were 8
both elected to the General Council. We rejoice. In all our deliberations the Chapter used the message of Pope Francis ‘Joy to the World’ as our blueprint. The Pope has called us to ‘Wake up the world’. This call to wake up the world is not just about making news headlines. It is not like a message proclaimed anonymously for anyone to hear or ignore. It always involves encounter and personal contact alongside the people of our times in their own struggles in life especially those on the edge.
As Mill Hill Missionaries we have since our foundation endeavoured to journey with people Without wanting to boast I do believe that as Mill Hill Missionaries we have since our foundation in 1866 endeavoured to journey with people in their different situations in life all over the world. We have what it needs to rise to the challenges of our times. I was privileged to be able to go out to Africa as a missionary and work among the people in Uganda entrusted to my pastoral care. Not all of us can do that as we have families, commitments and roots in our home countries but that does not make us less missionary. Many people rooted in mission have never left their
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home countries and have been a tremendous support to those on mission. Our Mill Hill supporters in Ireland over so many years have been involved in mission right where you are through your prayers and monies raised for various projects - reaching out in partnership to peoples far from your shores needing your help. As part of the wider Mill Hill Family in Ireland you are continuing to act together in mission as God is calling all of us to be people in mission – wherever we are. Mission is not someone else’s job; it’s mine where we all connect locally and globally. As a Mill Hill Society we cherish the support and encouragement which we receive from you our Friends and Supporters as it enables us to make a difference in the lives of people. I, together with the members of the
General Council, ask for your prayers and blessing as we embark on the task of guiding our Mill Hill Society in these difficult and challenging times in our world. I assure you and your families of my own prayers and the prayers of our Mill Hill Members around the world. There will be a special Mass at Westminster Cathedral to celebrate 150 years of loving service of the Mill Hill Missionaries (1866-2016). This concelebrated Eucharist of Thanksgiving with Cardinal Vincent Nichols is to take place on the Solemnity of the Feast of St. Joseph, Saturday 19th March 2016 at 12.30 pm.Every Blessing, Fr. Michael Corcoran, MHM, General Superior [Fr. Michael is from Galmoy, Co. Kilkenny, and was Irish Regional before he became General Superior.]
In the centre, our new General Superior Fr. Michael Corcoran from Kilkenny, with his predecessor Fr. Tony Chantry from England on his left and another former General Superior, Fr. Jacques Hetsen from the Netherlands, on his right. 9
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N THE 28th February 1866, Fr. Herbert Vaughan sent a horse drawn cart from the Oblates of St. Charles House in Bayswater, Central London, to Holcombe House, Mill Hill, in North West London ‘with a few blankets, chairs and bedsteads for the night’. Fr. Vaughan himself accompanied by another priest and a student travelled the nine mile journey by cart
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later on in the day and arrived that night in a snowstorm. Fr. Vaughan wrote later, ‘We began in real poverty – six mugs, or rather college pudding basins for our tea, and borrowed a few chairs and plates. We started that night with reading at supper The Life of St. Joseph’. The beginnings were simple, but Fr. Vaughan had made preparations for the foundation of a ‘College for the Foreign Missions’. By the date of the official opening with a Mass, attended by Archbishop
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Manning, on 19th March 1866, the Feast of St. Joseph, Holcombe House, Mill Hill, on several acres of land, was bought and paid for. In a few years Holcombe House was too small and St. Joseph’s College was built on the Mill Field, adjacent to Holcombe House. Though not fully completed, the College was opened on 1st. March 1871; thirty-four students took up residence there. By then the first priest from the College for Foreign Missions had already been ordained; he was an Irishman - Cornelius Dowling from Ballyhooly, Fermoy, County Cork, was ordained in London on 27th December 1869. The first four missionaries, including Fr. Dowling, were sent to Baltimore, in Maryland, USA, in November 1871, where they ministered to the African Americans. The appointment of Fr. Herbert Vaughan as Bishop of Salford in 1872 meant that he was away from the College, but he continued to be the superior of the Missionary Society and it was never absent from his care; he sent an experienced priest from Salford, Canon Peter Benoit, to be the Rector of St. Joseph’s College, Mill Hill. The College prospered and became the headquarters of St. Joseph’s Society for Foreign Missions. By the turn of the century Mill Hill had apostolic schools or minor seminaries in England, the Netherlands and in the Tyrol. Missions were accepted in India (Madras), Borneo and among the Maoris in New Zealand; in the last decade of the nineteenth century missionaries were sent to East Africa (Uganda and Kenya). Bishop Vaughan became Archbishop of This is a photo of a painting by Sr. Janet, SND. It is in Mill Hill House, Nairobi, and depicts Cardinal Vaughan (top right) and various MHMs involved in Missionary work.
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St. Joseph’s College: Chapel and Tower with statue of St. Joseph near the front entrance. Sadly, the College had to be sold in 2006.
Westminster in 1892; he remained as Superior General of the Society until his death in St. Joseph’s College, Mill Hill, on 19th June 1903.
Developments for Mill Hill in Ireland Students from Ireland studied in Mill Hill colleges in England from the early days of the Society. The first foundation in Ireland was in a leased house in Ballytruckle, Waterford, from July 1917 to July 1919; the Rector was Fr. Herbert Doyle and the students studied Philosophy in St. John’s College. The permission to have a house was only for the duration of the First World War. However, in 1932, the Bishop of Ossory, Patrick Collier, gave permission to open 12
a school (minor seminary) in Freshford, Co. Kilkenny. Some 160 Mill Hill priests had their secondary schooling in St. Joseph’s College, Freshford. In 1958, through the good will of Archbishop John Charles McQuaid, the Society acquired Dartry House in Rathgar, Dublin. Dartry House was the residence of the students who studied Philosophy in University College Dublin or in the Miltown Institute.
1966 - The Centenary Year I was a student in St. Joseph’s College, Mill Hill, when the centenary of the Society was celebrated in 1966. There were special events to mark the occasion, including a Mass in Westminster Cathedral (built by the Society’s Founder, Car-
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dinal Herbert Vaughan). In many ways, the celebration of the centenary was the highpoint for the Society, with more than eight hundred of the twelve hundred priests and brothers working in eighteen overseas countries. There were students preparing for the priesthood in six European countries and in North America, and there were mission benefactors in all these countries. The talks which the then Superior General, Fr. Gerald Mahon, gave the students on the Second Vatican Council passed on the new insights of the Church on mission: the responsibility for preaching the Gospel belongs to the whole Church, the People of God; missionary societies are agents of the Church. In 1970, the Society held a Renewal Chapter to put the teachings of the Second Vatican Council into effect. The
leadership of the Society became more democratic, new ways of recruiting, training, and being missionaries were spoken about, and a proposal to accept Lay Associates to work alongside priests and brothers was accepted. As the thinking on mission was changing from the nineteen sixties onwards, there was a rapid decline in the number of candidates coming forward to join Missionary Societies and Congregations in the Western world. Mill Hill’s Minor Seminaries were closed; the third level Philosophy College in the Netherlands came to an end a year after the centenary of its opening. There were no more students in Dartry House by 2000… and sad to relate, St. Joseph’s College, Mill Hill, had to be sold in 2006. The new headquarters of the Society is in Maidenhead, 40 miles outside London.
Fr. Richard Njoroge, mhm, (in white cassock) with a group of Christians in Cameroon. 13
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A few weeks after my arrival in Cameroon in August 1973 I attended a meeting of the priests working in the southern section of the diocese of Bamenda; of the priests who attended, 29 were Europeans, 1 was American and three were Cameroonians. In July 2003, I preached a retreat to the clergy in the same areas; of the 77 who attended, 66 were Cameroonians. Big changes had taken place; the leaders were no longer missionaries from abroad but local Bishops. In 1988, the Society decided to accept candidates from the countries which they had helped to evangelise to be members of the Society. From 1995 until 2015,
over 70 priests who have been ordained as Mill Hill Missionaries are from Uganda, Kenya, Cameroon, India and the Philippines. As our Missionary Society celebrates 150 years since its humble beginnings in Mill Hill, we have over 150 students in Formation in Africa and Asia, and thus can look forward to an average of ten ordinations per year for the foreseeable future. The task of spreading the Gospel continues, thank God. And thank God too, that here in Ireland, we have many generous benefactors who continue to support the new generation of Mill Hill Missionaries now going out ‘to proclaim the Good News to the Nations’.
Fr. Brian Oswald, mhm, (back left) and Fr. Gerry Hastie, mhm, (front right) with some of our Indian Mill Hill students. 14
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Novena to St. Joseph Friday, March 11 - Saturday, March 19 Our Novena of Masses and Prayers commences on Friday March 11th. Please join us daily by reading the short reflections given on pages 16-17, and saying the Novena Prayer to St. Joseph. In addition to the nine day Novena of masses, a Mass will be offered each day in March for your intentions.
The Feast of St. Joseph is on March 19th. People living in the Kilkenny area are invited to join us each evening at 8pm for the Novena at: Mill Hill Missionaries, St. Joseph’s, Waterford Road, Kilkenny.
NOVENA PRAYER TO ST. JOSEPH Ever glorious St. Joseph, good and faithful servant, God was pleased to place his own family in your care. We thank you for being such a wonderful example of humility and faith, of prayerfulness and courage, in your ordinary daily life. Through your intercession, may God grant us the blessing of living continually in his presence, and responding to his love in our daily lives. When we have lived our days on earth, may God give us the great joy he gave you - that of entering eternal life in the company of Jesus and Mary. Most loving St. Joseph, accept our Novena prayers and obtain for us through your powerful intercession, the favours and graces we ask for in this Novena. Amen. 15
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NOVENA TO ST. JOSEPH BEGINS ON FRIDAY, 11th MARCH Each day, please read and contemplate the thought for the day, and then read the Novena Prayer (c/f leaflet - Prayer also given on p.15). Add: Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be...
March 11th Joseph took the child and his mother and left for Egypt. (Mt. 2:14) St. Joseph’s Missionary Society
When Cardinal Herbert Vaughan founded the Mill Hill Missionaries (St. Joseph’s Missionary Society) in 1866, he chose St. Joseph to be the patron and protector of his new Missionary Society. He also pointed to St. Joseph as a model for missionary life - steady, quiet work in an unusual faith situation, always close to Jesus and Mary, his mother.
March. 12th Joseph the just March. 13th
Joseph was a just man who always did what was right (Mt. 1:19). What a predicament Joseph was in when he discovered Mary was pregnant. He was a just man. God would show him. He trusted in God’s guidance to show him the way. When we are troubled and worried, may we too learn to trust in God. If you listen to me you will know what is right and just (Prov.2:9)
Joseph the listener
Joseph was one who listened. No spoken word is recorded of him. God’s word came to him in silence. Constant noise prevents us from listening and hearing. We ask Joseph to help us carve out a quiet time in our day to listen to God.
March 14th
The Angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph (Mt. 1:20).
Joseph man of vision
God spoke to him in dreams and visions, yet he was a very ordinary man. God speaks to each of us ordinary people. We ask Joseph to help us to be sensitive to God’s presence with us.
March 15th
Joseph went to David’s town Bethlehem, because he was of the house of David . (Lk. 2:4).
Though of the Royal family of David, Joseph was ordinary and faced Joseph many family problems such as Mary’s pregnancy, the threat to the life the family man of Jesus, exile, how to make ends meet. We ask Joseph to protect our families too - and strengthen us in love.
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March 16th
Every year the parents of Jesus went to Jerusalem for the Passover festival (Lk. 2:41). As husband and parent in the Holy Family, Joseph observed religious feasts; he went to the Synagogue on the Sabbath and prayed the Psalms at regular times during the day. We ask Joseph to help us to live prayerful lives, by spending quiet time in prayer each day, and taking part in the church’s liturgy.
Joseph man of prayer
March 17th
And Joseph named him Jesus (Mt. 1:25). Joseph taught Jesus his prayers, brought him to the Synagogue, introduced him to the Scriptures and taught him all the religious practices of a devout Jew. Strong family guidance, setting Christian standards of behaviour and worship, are badly needed in families and society today.
Joseph the teacher
Isn’t he the carpenter’s Son (Mt. 13:55).
March 18th Joseph the worker
March 19th - Saturday Feast of St. Joseph
Joseph taught Jesus his trade. Joseph loved his work and knew its dignity. He also knew what people suffer in times of hardship and unemployment. Work is not just a means of making money. It is a service to others, a sharing in the redemptive work of Jesus, a means of creating order and beauty and making the world a better place. We ask Joseph to help us appreciate the dignity of work and grant us meaningful employment.
To Love and to serve - Our Mill Hill Motto ‘To love and to serve’ is the motto that was chosen by Herbert Vaughan in 1866 for St. Joseph’s Missionary Society. He pointed to the example of St. Joseph’s life of loving service and wanted his future missionaries to love and to serve. In 2016 the Mill Hill Missionaries are celebrating 150 years of missionary service. And we are also very aware that mission continues as we now have over 70 Mill Hill priests and 150 students from Africa and Asia. So we celebrate the Feast of St. Joseph with gratitude for the past and hope for the future.
Please join us in our nine-day Novena to St Joseph, as we honour our powerful patron, asking his protection and guidance in all our needs. 17
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Mill Hill Jubilees - 2016 Fr. DONAL HARNEY – Golden Jubilee
Donal’s desire to become a priest started when he was a Mass server in his native parish of Claregalway, Co. Galway. Donal’s father came from Drum, Co. Roscommon, and was an agricultural instructor. While posted to Kinvara, Co. Galway, he met Donal’s mother. They settled in Claregalway where Donal was born and brought up. One day while his father was inspecting farm buildings he met Fr. Paddy Doyle, mhm, the vocations director for Mill Hill. Fr. Paddy came to see Donal and that is how Donal found himself in St. Joseph’s College, Freshford, in September 1955. Donal’s father (and family) had other postings: to Bantry, Co. Cork and after that to Sligo. Donal was ordained with his classmates Michael O’Brien and Michael Gill in the Parish Church in Freshford by Bishop Peter Birch on July 10, 1966. He celebrated his first Mass in Sligo. Donal was appointed to Uganda and still remembers the first words of the Bishop: “Father, we are very short of teachers here.” He then knew what his future would be. He found himself teaching in Mbale College in 1968 and two years later he was posted to Nagongera Seminary where he spent 16 years. Uganda was a pleasant country to work in. The people were friendly and the climate was favourable. But sadly the land was not peaceful for very long. Idi Amin seized power in January 1971 and that led to 8 long years of tension and unrest. It was a relief for Donal to get home in 1977. By this time his father had retired and the family were back in Galway, in Oranmore. His father was not in good health and he died the following spring of 1978. When Donal returned to Uganda the situation was getting worse. Idi Amin was overthrown in April 1979 but his legacy of unrest was to follow. Donal had to make a sad trip home again to Ireland in 1989 when his mother died in August of that year. Donal returned to Uganda. In 1994 he took up an appointment to a newly constructed secondary school in Mbikko parish just outside Jinja town. He did a sabbatical in 2004 and hoped to return to Uganda but it was not to be. After 38 years he sadly had to say goodbye to a country and people he had come to know and love. In 2005 he took up residence in our Mill Hill House in Kilkenny and went on the road doing mission promotion and fundraising. This took him to parishes all around the country: to Antrim, then to Waterford and to Sligo. Then it was on to Tipperary and East Galway, to Clare and Longford. Donal still resides in Kilkenny and gives thanks to the Lord for his life and for his family, friends and colleagues who have been such a support to him down the years. 18
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FR. MICHAEL O’BRIEN - Golden Jubilee When Fr. Michael wrote the details for this piece he commented: “I am writing this in the same week that the report that rashers and processed pork can be linked with cancer. I can think of no better creature to accompany me down memory lane than that humble and much maligned pig! Didn't our English Teacher at St Joseph's College, Freshford, entertain us for the Inter Cert with Charles Lamb's: ‘Dissertation on Roast Pig’?” Michael is the second youngest in a family of six from Crusheen in Co. Clare. He recalls this early memory of his Dad: “his ability, on Saturdays, to delegate various tasks to us 4 boys. The older brothers got jobs like mending fences; Martin and I usually heard: ‘Clean out the pig-sty and replace the straw bed’. Our one pig lived in a detached apartment, the front door opening on to a 2 acre field. This was the scene for our weekly Piggy Back Derby. We took turns to joy-ride the animal - much to the pig’s disapproval, who took off like a bucking bronco in an effort to dislodge the rider.” Michael was ordained in 1966 in Freshford Parish church and went on to spend three years on the staff of St. Joseph’s College, Freshford. His first overseas appointment was to Borneo where he spent eleven years. His first parish priest was Fr. Tom Connors from Kiltullagh, Co. Galway, who lost no time introducing Michael to succulent freshly speared wild boar, barbecued in the Longhouses of the newly baptised Sea-Dyaks. He says: “one of my deepest joys as a missionary was to witness the flowering of the Catholic Faith in East Malaysia. Where there were 2 struggling Dioceses in the nineteen sixties now there are 6 thriving ones: "This is the work of the Lord, a marvel in our eyes." (Psalm 117:23) All too soon Michael was forced to do some island hopping in the Far East to Antique in Central Philippines where he spent 32 eventful years (1980-2012) in the company of the fun-loving Filipinos – “no celebration, be it fiesta, baptism, marriage or funeral could be complete without the barbecued pig-consumed from the skin in!” Just 3 years ago he was recalled (‘kicking and screaming’ - as he says) from that Philippines. He now finds himself (with other Mill Hill colleagues) among the chaplains at Knock Shrine. He comments: “All of us agree that we are in the Forecourt of the New Jerusalem. The Gentle Merciful Lamb, His Holy Mother Mary and St Joseph invite us all to come and find rest. (Mt.11:28) We get bodily refreshment in St. Mary’s Hostel, run by the Daughters of Charity, and you've got to believe it: the Speciality of the House is succulent spare Ribs - the best west of Suez!” 19
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Mill Hill Jubilees - Continued FR. GERALD DOYLE - Silver Jubilee Gerald Doyle is from the parish of Freshford, Co Kilkenny - the second child in a family of five boys and four girls. His mother, Kathleen Fitzpatrick, hails from Carrigallen parish, Co Leitrim. One of the young boys in her class at Dumeela NS was the future Mill Hill Missionary Kevin O’Rourke. Before she moved to Kilkenny in 1963 to marry Gerald’s late father, James Doyle from Muckalee, the Mill Hill Fathers in Freshford, Co Kilkenny struck a chord with her. In fact the newly ordained Fr Kevin was appointed to Kilkenny in 1959 and Gerald’s mother visited him in St Joseph’s College, Uppercourt. Little did she know that a few years later she would move to Freshford and raise her family mostly alone after Gerald’s father’s untimely death in 1980. Gerald began his Primary School education in Clinstown NS (Conahy parish) in 1969 and completed it in Freshford NS. He proceeded to St Joseph’s College, Freshford, in 1978 for his secondary education. In 1983 he began his formation in Dublin and continued his theology studies in Mill Hill London in 1986. From 1988 to 1990 he did his two years Mission experience in Nyamagwa parish, Kisii Diocese, Kenya. He was ordained priest in Freshford on 10th August 1991 by Bishop Lawrence Forristal. Gerald was appointed to the Bamenda Highlands in the Archdiocese of Bamenda, Cameroon. Over the next twenty years he trekked and reached out to Christian communities in many remote areas amongst the Bafut, Akum and Bekom peoples. He was also assigned to be Vocations Director in Cameroon. Gerald has had a role in nurturing the missionary vocations of the 16 Mill Hill Cameroonian members ordained and was involved in the formation of Diocesan seminarians for the Bamenda Ecclesiastical Province. After a sabbatical year in 2012 he was appointed to Kilkenny to the fundraising and mission promotion ministry of Mill Hill in Ireland. He continues with this work while being Rector of the House in Kilkenny. We congratulate our Jubilarians as they celebrate many years of loving service in St. Joseph’s Missionary Society of Mill Hill. “Be missionaries of God’s love and tenderness and mercy.” (Pope Francis) 20
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BrotHer JoS was a member of the Mill Hill General Council for 10 years: 20002010. He is now the Society Financial Secretary. He visited Uganda in 2012 where he met some of his former students who are doing very well.
N 1973 I went out as a young 21 years old Mill Hill Missionary lay-brother to Nakuru diocese in Kenya. I worked with the Village Polytechnics (Rural Trade Schools) in various areas in the diocese.
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After some years I was asked to work with the ex-students from the polytechnics to help them set up their local private businesses. For many years I was 21
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able to be their advisor and keep them motivated till they could stand on their own feet.
Jos was asked by the late Bishop Joseph Willigers, mhm, to do something with technical education for the youth. I moved on to Uganda in 1987 and I was appointed to Jinja diocese which is situated on the shores of Lake Victoria. I was asked by the late Bishop Joseph Willigers, mhm, to do something with technical education for the youth in the diocese and to rehabilitate a trade school/village polytechnic for Jinja town and to set up a Development Office (project office) for the diocese. We started in several places in the diocese of Jinja.
John Vincent Okello On a return visit to Uganda a couple of years ago, I met John Vincent Okello who was a student at the Jinja polytechnic from 1993-1995. He is the founder as well as the managing director of St. Mugaga’s Construction Company and happily married. After he left the polytechnic he started his own little work group and contracting business with 12 people of which some were also ex-students of the polytechnic and who were the core group of the small building company. In 1999 he expanded his business and started doing big contracts in Busoga Province and beyond. He now has 276 employees and looks forward to expanding his company in the years ahead. 22
Eustace Kitembo At the MH Formation Centre in Jinja I met another former polytechnic student Eustace Kitimbo who was a student at the polytechnic from 1989-1991 and who has now a carpentry/furniture business and works from St. Ludigo’s Centre in Jinja where his workshop is situated. This centre was set up by Jinja Diocese to facilitate ex-students to start small scale businesses under supervision and with advice. He worked with this group till 2005. The group split up and he restarted with one of the group members and now had several employees - doing carpentry contracts in and around Jinja and Busoga Province.
In 2008 he also started a training organisation for people with disabilities In 2008 he also started a training organisation for people with disabilities. This organisation aims at improving the living conditions of people with disabilities through economic and vocational training skills and they operated from St. Ludigo’s Centre in Jinja. They have 11 students: 4 with disabilities are doing welding and metal fabrication; 3 deaf boys doing carpentry and joinery, and 4 girls (3 deaf and 1 disabled) learning other skills. The beneficiaries of Eustace Kitembo’s organisation to date total 295 and these include deaf, blind, lame and disabled.
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Robert Kigongo On March 19th 2012, I attended the opening of the Serenity Centre near Kampala - set up by the late Brendan Jordan, mhm, who died unexpectedly in 2013. Here I met another former student of mine, who had started a contracting firm (KIMECO) when he left Jinja polytechnic in 1990. At that time I was still development coordinator in Jinja Diocese and I gave Robert Kigongo several building contracts. His company also worked for private clients and other religious congregations/missions – even beyond Jinja Diocese. His small building group (most were ex-students from the
polytechnic) established themselves well and they were registered as a company as they expanded. I advised them at the time to get more organized and professional in dealing with clients and making proper estimates, project/contract planning, financial administration, etc. At present he employs 60 people. Despite a lot of competition in the trade he sees a good future as they embrace new technical methods of work and quality in service. I found it most interesting and encouraging to meet these former students and discover how well they have done since I last saw them.
Ko Klaver has met a friend - Jos Boerkamp is not so sure! 23
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N THE Autumn 2011 edition of the Advocate, I wrote an article on the closure of one of our parish communities in Brazil to make way for a new sea port. I mentioned how the community staged the annual Stations of the Cross. On 28th March 2015, the community
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gathered once again to walk the Stations of the Cross – this time, however, in a very different setting. I have been living in the bairro of Brisamar next door to our parish Church of Saint Francis of Assisi. Since July 2014, this bairro has been gripped
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by an armed struggle between two different factions of organized crime: the drug-traffickers and the militias. On the day of the Stations of the Cross, the drug-traffickers had the upper hand, though by the time I wrote this article the militia had taken complete control of Brisamar. The frequent shootings between the two factions certainly tried the nerves of ordinary residents. Many feared going on the street, even during the day. At night, streets were deserted, and shops and snack bars closed due to fear of getting caught up in a fire-fight. Brisamar gained the unenviable reputation of being a dangerous place to visit, let alone reside in. Some residents left the area altogether.
Our annual outdoor ‘Stations of the Cross’ It was in this setting that we ‘dared’ to stage our annual outdoor Stations of the Cross. The religious event, including an enactment of each station by the youth, began its journey in the Community of Saint Anthony in the neighbouring (relatively peaceful) bairro of Leandro. As the procession moved through the streets of this bairro, we were accompanied by the Municipal transit police. The same police, however, abruptly left the faithful to fend for themselves at the moment they crossed over into the (‘dangerous’) bairro of Brisamar. A little anxious, we continued our procession, passing in front of the parish Community of Saint Sebastian,
and then making our way up to the parish Church of Saint Francis. Thank God, the whole journey (about 2 hours) passed without incident. The armed drug-traffickers looked on, somewhat bemused but showing respect. At various points, the animator of the procession took the opportunity to proclaim the crucified Saviour’s great love for all God’s creatures and his message of peace.
Little one can do to influence events These days, with the bairro now under militia control, some Church evening-time activities in Brisamar (Masses and meetings) have had to be cancelled, also social programmes that involve visits to families. While, thankfully, no Community members have been killed by the militia, a few experienced forcible entry into their homes, while others were ordered to leave their homes altogether. Whenever possible, the two Catholic communities in the area (Saint Francis of Assisi and Saint Sebastian) continue to gather for prayer and celebration. The Community serves as a kind of refuge in the midst of the madness and danger, even if in practical terms, there is little it can do to influence events.
[Fr. Des was elected on to the Mill Hill General Council at the Chapter last June. He now resides at our headquarters in Maidenhead, England] 25
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Fr. Stan Bondoko, mhm, travelled with members of the Basankusu Catholic Youth Choir to the village of Waka - 50 miles along rough dirt tracks from Basankusu, in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Basankusu lies just above the Equator in the heart of Africa's dense rainforest.
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Two Mill Hill priests, Fr. Stan Bondoko (standing on the left) and Fr. John Kirwan, helping the choir with their preparations - or perhaps supervising!
Fr Stan, who is in charge of the orientation programme for candidates to Mill Hill Missionaries, regularly supports the diocese by celebrating Mass in Waka, which is a very difficult place to get to because of the poor condition of the roads through the rainforest. "We will probably get there in less than four hours," said Fr Stan. "Fortunately, the roads are dry at the moment - it's much more difficult with the tropical downpours we get at other times of the year." The choir will spend three days performing at churches in the Waka parish of Christ the King and surrounding villages. Amongst the choristers are some very capable youth leaders who hope to get young people to play a greater role in the life of the local church. Choir members will rely on the hospitality of parishioners for somewhere to eat and sleep. They sing in spontaneous harmony and have a large repertoire. 27
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MET SUSAN AWUOR one afternoon at her vegetable stall somewhere along Kisumu’s outer ring road; this lakeside town has a population of 450.000 people. Susan sits there behind veritable mounts of onions, tomatoes, kale and other vegetables.
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Her small business is booming: “I am so grateful for the help I have received from the support group of the Pandipieri Community Health Programme”, she tells me. 28
After the death of her husband she tested positive for HIV/AIDS some four years ago. Accepting her status was a difficult struggle, but she pulled through with the help of the staff and counsellors at Pandipieri. Ever since she began taking the required medicine she looks a picture of health again. A microcredit provided from a fund donated by Misean Cara (Ireland) helped her to set up her small business. She is now able not only to support her four children but also to pay her rent and make sure she herself eats well to sustain her recovery.
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The Programme and Sister Bernadette’s role The Programme in Pandipieri Catholic Centre was started in 1978 by Fr Hans Burgman, mhm. Sister Bernadette Nealon, who is a Franciscan Missionary of St. Joseph, is now the driving force and inspiration behind the Health Programme but she also plays a pivotal role in running the whole Centre these days. Besides the Community Health Programme, there is a programme for the rehabilitation of street children, a vocational training section, an art school, and there are many other programmes. I am somewhat familiar with the history and the original inspiration of Pandipieri Catholic Centre, as I served on the Board there some years ago. I went to see Bernadette and she fills me in on her experience of the period of extreme turbulence a few years ago when the whole Programme was in danger of collapse due to financial mismanagement and embezzlement by some of the employees. She herself clearly played a key role in the Centre succeeding to weather that tropical financial storm. Significantly pared down but with its tattered image brushed up and its financial backing largely restored Pandipieri Centre now thrives again serving an estimated 320,000 people living in ‘informal’ settlements around Kisumu. The HIV/AIDS department alone lists some 5000 registered patients, 800 of whom are children. Much is also being done to provide clean water and sanitation at community level.
A personal story/journey The story of Joseph Oloo Alaka is a good example of the personal struggles of so many Kenyans in these times of HIV/AIDS and of the healing that gospel inspired persons like Sr. Bernadette can bring. Born in 1974, Joseph joined Pandipieri Centre in the year 2000 as a watchman. At that time he already knew he had contracted the AIDS virus. But he found it impossible to tell his wife and hid his status from her. When she fell pregnant and was tested in an antenatal clinic the result showed that she too had been infected. She died in 2004. The combination of this tragic loss and his own deteriorating health condition finally brought him to his knees. He had to accept his HIV status and get treatment! When he got the treatment and counselling at Pandipieri Health Centre, his condition improved dramatically. In 2008 he married again, this time consciously choosing a woman who already knew her status was HIV positive. She died in 2010. Left with three children, one of whom also carries the virus, Joseph is now a member of staff of the Health Programme. Aware of his condition and arduous struggles, Sr. Bernadette spotted his potential and invited him to join the health programme to help staff and patients see the importance of breaking through the wall of shame, stigma and denial that comes with having AIDS. Joseph is currently involved in providing health education in schools and community groups. After some additional 29
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Sr. Bernadette is out and about - keeping an eye on the repair work being done on one of the buildings in Pandipieri that was damaged in a tropical storm.
training in Nairobi he also specialises in child counselling and child disclosure and doubles as awareness counsellor for married couples. He knows from experience how difficult it is for spouses to disclose their HIV status to each other! A picture of health, he is a human being transformed. He is where he is today because of Sr. Bernadette and the Health Programme. He reflects: “There is no sense in looking for guilt or origin when it comes to AIDS. What matters is that it can affect any one of us; you, your 30
best friend, your neighbour, your children. My message to all of you and especially to the youth is therefore to learn as much as possible about AIDS and to love responsibly. When we have contracted AIDS we are often rejected and left alone with our disease, our needs, our fears and suffering. Don’t desert us! We need and are entitled to as much care, compassion and understanding as everyone else.” Sister Bernadette and her team of helpers are working very hard to provide that care and compassion.
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Obituary List (Spring 2016 - up to and including 6/12/2015)
Most Sacred Heart of Jesus have mercy on the souls of: Fr. Lorenzo Bracken, MHM (Obituary in next Issue) Noreen Collins, sister of Fr. Jim O’Donoghue, MHM Monica O’Sullivan, sister of Fr. James Anthony Boyle, MHM Martin Murray, uncle of Fr. Pat Murray, MHM Kathleen (Kit) Holohan, mother of the late Fr. Liam Holohan, MHM Dennis Xavier Shea, brother in law of Fr. Des McGillicuddy, MHM Raymond Lah Akain, father of Fr. John Akain, MHM
Perpetual Members: Mick Killeen. Members: Sheila Bergin, Michael (Sonny) Boles, John Bolger, Raymond & John Joe Brophy, Kathleen Breslin Higgins, Mary Byrne, Nora Byrne, Philomena Byrne, Catherine Carolan, Mary Clancy, Nora Clancy, Lena Clarke, Nora (Nonie) Cloonan, Peter (Petie) Cloonan, Annie Comiskey, Noel Connelly, Paul Corrigan, Annie Coyle, Rita Curley, Teresa DeLap, Daphne Dillon, William Doyle, James Duggan, Philomena Fingleton, Maura Fitzgerald, Ethna Fleming, Seamus Gleeson, Vera Gleeson, James Goldrick, Mary Hennessy, Bernadette Hodgkinson, Rita Halit, Florence Hunt, Margaret Johnston, Peter Keane, Maura Kearney, Seamus Keating, Xavier Keenehan, Peter
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Keeney, Patrick Kelly, Brigid Killard, Hannie Leahy, Mary Leahy, Ann Loftus, Molly Lyons, Ann Melvin, Anastasia Mooney, Mary Moran, Peter Murphy, Bridie Murphy, Rita Murray, Mary McCarthy, Pat McCarthy, Ned McCullagh, Con McGill, Michael McGeown, Kathleen McGrath, Elizabeth McKinney, Brigid McLoughlin, Annie McManus, Bridie McNamee, Florence Neary, Gertrude Nicholls, Rita O’Gorman, Una O’Malley, Sabina McLoughlin, Bridie O’Sullivan, Tommy O’Sullivan, Theresa Phelan, Mary Randles, Edward Roles, Ann Ryan, Denis Ryan, Maura Ryan, Vera Sheehan, Michael Slevin, Eileen Steele, Patrick J Tobin, Ita Wilkinson.
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• • • • •
It keeps all our friends and supporters in touch with our missionary work. It also publishes articles of spiritual, church and general interest. It is published from our house in Kilkenny. There are three issues per year plus a Calendar at Christmas. It is sent to all our members. Membership is e10.00 per year, £7.00 for those in the sterling area, $12 for the U.S. Most members give generously to help our missionary work and we deeply appreciate their great support.
If you would like to become a member and receive the Advocate, please contact: Fr. Director, Mill Hill Missionaries, Waterford Road, Kilkenny. I enclose e10 for: (Please tick)
r New Membership r Renewal of Membership (If you have not renewed) Name . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Address: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....................................................... Perhaps you might interest a friend in becoming a member. All help for our missionary apostolate is deeply appreciated, and you share in the prayers and good works of our missionaries.
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Waiting patiently for Spring to arrive