St Joseph's Advocate Ireland

St. Joseph’s

Advocate Mill Hill Missionaries

Spring 2019

Mother and child, Turda Mission, Philippines Spring 2019

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Advocate

Spring 2019

Volume 59 No. 1

ST. JOSEPH’S ADVOCATE

Published by: Editor: Printed in Ireland by:

Mill Hill Missionaries Fr. Jim O’Connell Modern Printers, Kilkenny

CONTENTS From the Editor 2 God writes straight 4 Mill Hill students 2018 7 World Meeting of Families 8 Mission News in brief 11 ‘I swear I saw the Face of God’ 13 Novena to St. Joseph 15

In the Nuba Mountains Mill Hill Jubilees 2019 Mary Mother of Jesus The Call to Mission purified ‘Roadside Schooling’ - Pakistan Shocking News from Cameroon Obituary List

19 20 22 25 28 30 32

Photos credits: Anthony Emeka, Bernard Fox, Michael Corcoran, Fons Eppink, Donal Harney, Edson Paguntalan, Jimmy Lindero., Daniel Foley.

MISSION OFFERINGS

All Postal Orders and Cheques to be sent direct to us at St. Joseph’s Advocate, Mill Hill Missionaries, 50 Orwell Park, Rathgar, Dublin D06 C535.

Bank Giros to be sent directly to our Bank account.

Details of the a/c available from our office: 01 412 7707

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Spring is in the air - preparing to build.

Spring 2019

St. Joseph’s Advocate Mill Hill Missionaries 50 Orwell Park Rathgar, Dublin D06 C535 Tel: (01) 412 7707 Spring 2019

Email: organisingmhm@gmail.com Website: www.millhillmissionaries.co.uk

St. Mary’s Parish 25 Marquis Street Belfast BT1 1JJ Tel: 04890 320482 1

From the

when couples experience many joys, and, of course, sorrows too.

Editor

He encouraged the couples to express their love for each other and went on to share a memory of an experience that he had when he was six years old and saw his father and mother hug each other in their kitchen. This touched him deeply; he has never forgotten it.

Fr. Jim O’Connell, mhm

During his visit to Dublin in August, Pope Francis met a group of around 350 young couples in the ProCathedral. Some of them were already married while others were engaged.

Before he began his talk to them, a couple who had been married 54 years gave a brief testimony. The husband, Vincent, said ‘Marriage is not easy and family life has many challenges, but it is very worthwhile. Just keep working at it.’ His wife, Theresa, said simply ‘Our faith in Jesus and our prayers helped us through the difficult times.’ Then they sat down and Pope Francis began to speak to the gathering. After a few sentences, he moved away from his written text and turning to Vincent and Teresa, he addressed them by name and asked ‘did you quarrel a lot?’ There was laughter and the answer seemed to be ‘yes, we did’. The Pope responded ‘that is good; a marriage without quarrels is pretty boring’.

Then returning to the young couples he gave them advice (or as he called it a secret) along the lines: quarrel if 2

you must, disagree about things, even fallout about things, plates can even fly! However, the secret is to make up before the day is over. If you do not do so, it will develop into a cold war that can go on for the days and nights to follow and be very damaging as resentment builds up. Yes, fight all you have to but make up before the night. He then added, ‘to make up, you may not need to talk; a caress is enough’.

Here we have the Pope’s advice to these young couples who are starting out on their journey together. When a quarrel takes place, there is no need to make a big speech. Just use simple phrases to start the process of being reconciled: I am sorry; I did not mean to hurt you; I said too much; I did not mean it that way. The other person can use similar short expressions: I forgive you; I understand; we can put it behind us and move on. This will start the process of reconciliation, healing and forgiveness, which may take some time. However, it is part of the journey together in life and love Spring 2019

Being able to say ‘I am sorry’ or ‘I forgive you’ or ‘I love you’ opens the door to healing and more healthy friendship within marriage, family life and all good human relationships.

There is an unbreakable bond between love and forgiveness. In the ‘Our Father’, we pray ‘Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us’. An English expression puts it simply: ‘Unforgiving, unforgiven’. A proverb reminds us that ‘those who refuse to forgive, break the bridge over which they themselves must cross’.

Left to ourselves we cannot manage forgiveness, but can do so with God’s grace.

love for us, revealed in his passion and death: ‘Greater love than this no one has than to lay down his life for his friends’. The comforting and consoling words of Jesus can open the door to forgiveness for all of us; they will help us to experience forgiveness ourselves and extend forgiveness to others.

As you will see on pages 15-18, we have revised/updated the Novena to St. Joseph. We have copies of the Novena available if any of your friends or a prayer group might like to avail of them.

During Lent, and especially during Holy Week, we can turn to Jesus on the cross and contemplate his words: ‘Father, forgive them’.

We can also focus on his words to the man beside him (who was a criminal by his own admission): ‘this day you will be with me in Paradise’. His forgiveness is born out of his infinite Spring 2019

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God Can and Does Write Straight with Crooked Lines

by Fr. John Akain, mhm (On November 10, 2018, the University of Maynooth conferred Fr. John Akain, mhm, with a Doctorate degree in philosophy. Fr. John is a Mill Hill priest from Cameroon. Here he gives us a short account of his fascinating, personal story.)

I was born into a polygamous non-Christian family in the village of Bafmeng, in the North West Province of Cameroon. My father, Pa Raymond Lah (RIP) had three wives. To my mother, Mama Helen Nekou, we are six of us and I am third. To my father (with three wives) we are sixteen of us and I am the seventh child.

Though not the first in birth in the family, I was the first to receive baptism and to go to secondary school. ‘God can and does write straight with crooked lines.’ He calls to clean and to claim.

The wonder of God’s Grace My parents, though not baptised at the time I began my priestly formation, remain the first mediators of my vocation. They not only gave birth to me, but generously instilled in me the wealth of love, gratitude, endurance, respect, generosity, trustworthiness in life and the need to work hard. They taught me how to be a ‘person’. In a sense, they manured the ground for the seed of vocation sown in me by God. An exemplary Mill Hill Missionary, Fr James Nielen (RIP) who worked in our 4

who was still in formation, I got Fr Doyle’s address and wrote to him. With great efficiency, he replied to my letter, invited me for a ‘Live-in’ experience in December 2003. Then, in August 2004, he invited me again for another ‘Live-in’ during which I was accepted to begin formation in Bamenda, Cameroon, in September 2004. My first rector, who was a tremendous influence in my life, was also an Irish Mill Hill Missionary, Fr Anthony Murphy.

Then after my preparatory year and three years of philosophical studies, I was recommended for Temporary Oath. Again, it was another eminent Irish Mill Hill Missionary, Fr Maurice McGill, who accepted me into the Congregation as a temporary member in 2008. In August of the same year,

I was sent to Nairobi, Kenya, for my theological studies and my first rector there too was an Irish Mill Hill priest, Fr Liam Cummins.

While I was studying with Mill Hill, my mother and father were baptised and married in Church.

‘Coming to Ireland like a homecoming’ After my priestly ordination on 26 April 2014 in my home parish, St Gabriel’s Parish Bafmeng, I was appointed to further studies in philosophy at the Pontifical University, St Patrick’s College, Maynooth, in Ireland.

Given my encounters with Irish Missionaries, coming to Ireland was

Fr. John on his Ordiation day

parish for several years, watered this seed. Although he left the parish when I was still preparing for baptism, his holiness of life, his caring, gentle and generous heart towards people, left a lasting mark on me. When I began to feel the call to the priesthood, my only desire was to be like Fr Nielen. As such, I had very little trouble finding out which congregation to join: Mill Hill was the one. All I needed to do was to get in touch with the then Vocations Director, Fr Gerald Doyle - an Irish Mill Hill priest.

Fr. John (on left) spent two years in Loyoro, Northern Uganda

Through Fr Emmanuel Mbeh, mhm, Spring 2019

Spring 2019

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Mill Hill Students in Africa and Asia, 2018

like a homecoming. Indeed, I have enjoyed my four years in Ireland, feeling completely at home with my elder Mill Hill brothers and mentors in the Irish Region. This made my studies a joy.

Beginning my studies in Maynooth in 2014, I have just completed this year 2018 with a Doctorate degree in philosophy. While fully engaged in my studies, the purpose for which I was sent to Ireland, I have also been privileged to reach out to the people of God here in Ireland in a variety of apostolates: parish ministry, hospital and prison ministries, family apostolates and charismatic prayer groups. I have been to Cork, Cavan, Kerry, Knock, Clare, and many other places.

Fr. John with Archbishop Eamon Martin

Iloilo, Philippines:

(Students from Philippines, Malaysia, Pakistan):

Karunapuram, India:

(Students from various Indian States):

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Bamenda, Cameroon:

(Students all from Cameroon):

31

Luanda, Kenya:

(Students from Kenya and Uganda):

9

Hyderabad, India:

(Students from various Indian States):

17

Pargi, India:

(Students from various Indian States):

17

Nairobi, Kenya:

(Students from. Cameroon, Congo, Uganda, Malaysia, Kenya, India, Philippines):

43

Pune, India:

(Students from Cameroon, Uganda, Kenya, India, Philippines):

21

Total number of students:

26 8

203

• In the later stages of formation, it is important that students have experience of countries and cultures different from their own; there is a two-year Mission Experience Programme to cater for this.

• Your continued prayerful and financial support for our students is greatly appreciated.

I pray that like Mary in her ‘Holy Yes’ I may in my ‘humble yes’ lovingly serve God in his people in generosity and gratitude giving unreservedly and receiving undeservedly.

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(Students from Congo, Kenya, Uganda):

140 studying philosophy and theology and 63 in the earlier stages

Now as I round off my stay in Ireland and take up a new appointment in Uganda, my heart pours out in gratitude to all I have met either in class or in pastoral settings and above all, to God who brought them to me and me to them.

{Shortly after Fr. John wrote this article and left for Uganda, we got the very sad news that Fr. Cosmas Omboto Ondari was shot dead in Cameroon. See the article on page 30. Fr. Cosmas was from Kenya where he was ordained priest in March 2017 – less than two years ago.}

Jinja, Uganda:

Fr. John with Fr. Michael Mullaney, President of Maynooth Spring 2019

Mill Hill priests and students with Sisters at a seminar in Nairobi, Kenya Spring 2019

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World Meeting of Families: 22-26 August 2018 Fr. Bernard Fox, mhm

Fr Bernard Fox (centre) with his cousins at Phoenix Park Papal Mass [In the editorial, we reflected on some of what Pope Francis said to the gathering of young couples in the Pro Cathedral.

Here Fr. Bernard Fox, mhm, reflects on Saturday evening’s ‘Festival of Families’ in Croke Park and the ‘Papal Mass’ in the Phoenix Park on Sunday.]

Festival of Families – Croke Park The theme of the 2018 World Meeting of Families in Dublin was “The Gospel of the Family: Joy for the World.” I managed to attend five of the key presentations at the RDS, and on Saturday evening, I went to the Festival of Families at Croke Park Stadium where over 80,000

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celebrated with music, Irish dancing and the testimonies of families from Ireland, Iraq, Canada, South Africa, and India. We had entertainment contributions from Daniel O’Donnell, Andrea Bocelli, Nathan Carter, Sean Keane, the Riverdance troupe, The Priests, and several other wellknown entertainers. The ‘Choir of Ages’ (made up of grandparents and grandchildren) and the ‘High Hopes Choir’ (made up of homeless people) performed with David Brophy as choirmaster.

Pope Francis arrived just after 7pm after spending 90 minutes with survivors of church abuse and got a Spring 2019

rousing welcome! He delighted the crowds by doing a longer than usual tour of the pitch in a golf buggy, stopping to shake hands and kiss and bless the occasional fortunate person.

The selection of themes throughout the night echoed the priorities in Pope Francis’s ministry: homelessness, migrants and refugees, and care for our “common home”, planet Earth. As in each of his speeches, Pope Francis mentioned the troubled question of clerical and church sexual, physical and moral abuse. He mentioned the suffering of the women who worked in the Magdalene Laundries, the hurt felt by women separated from their children in the Mother-andChild homes, illegal adoptions, the physical and psychological abuse in some schools and care homes. There was a strong feeling that the damage

done by those church authorities who covered up abuse was even worse than the hurt caused by the perpetrators. These were painful things to hear but many felt that they needed to be said - and said by the Pope.

The Papal Mass – Phoenix Park On Sunday, I headed off in the rain for Mass in the Phoenix Park. I arrived around 12pm and despite the rain and wind there was a wonderfully positive, upbeat atmosphere among the pilgrims. They chatted and ate, often sharing their food with those around them. A great roar went up when the Pope mobile entered the park and Pope Francis began to move among the people.

Pope Francis began Mass in quite a surprising way: the penitential rite was taken, at times word for word, from

Pope Francis being greeted at the airport by Simon Coveney and his family Spring 2019

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The Church in South Sudan what the survivors of abuse had asked him to say at this Eucharist. Equally surprisingly, the crowd applauded after each prayer for forgiveness!

There was a real feeling that the boil was being lanced and that the wound was being brought into the open for healing. This Mass concluded a wonderful ‘World Meeting of Families’ that brought families together from over 100 countries. I am grateful to Pope Francis that he did not look the other way or play down an issue that is perhaps the single greatest crisis facing our Church at this time.

purification to which the Spirit of the Risen Christ is calling us.

The Pope’s humility, courage and sincerity during his 32 hours in Ireland were obvious to all fair-minded people. In asking for forgiveness for the past crimes of abuse perpetrated by church people and promising action against the abusers and those involved in cover-up, let us hope that we, members of the Church of Jesus Christ, can keep faith and embrace the needed conversion and

“As one of the fruits of this celebration of family life, may you go back to your homes and become a source of encouragement to others, to share with them Jesus’ “words of eternal life”. For your families are both a privileged place for, and an important means of, spreading those words as “Good News” for everyone.”

Pope Francis, WMOF2018 Final Mass in Phoenix Park.

Crowd reacts to Pope Francis in Dublin for world Meeting of Families 10

In the hours leading up to the Mass, the wind blew and the rain fell but the assembled people stood their ground.

When the Mass began the wind fell, some of the clouds moved on too.

For me there is something here about the call to stand our ground in today’s turbulent world, admitting our failings but sticking with St Paul’s confident promise that “nothing can separate us from the love of God as revealed in Jesus Christ”.

Mill Hill Mission

News in Brief

South Sudanese of all faiths, including Muslims and followers of traditional religion, looked to the Church for leadership during troubled times. The Mill Hill Missionaries first came to Sudan in 1937 and worked in the Diocese of Malakal. Presently they are working in the Archdiocese of Juba - reaching out to the many people who had to flee Malakal due to the violence and insecurity.”

The great divide in Malaysia Fr. Fons Eppink, mhm, wrote, “One is always aware of the divide between West Malaysia and East Malaysia (Sarawak) where our Mill Hill Missionaries are based.

There is a constant radical drive by the authorities of West Malaysia to Islamise the State of Sarawak.

Our missionaries working in rural settings have a pastoral outreach to the ‘Longhouses’ of the tribal Iban people. A ‘Longhouse’ can have over fifty families living together under one roof in adjoining rooms.

Visiting the people often involves journeying upriver by boat for hours and even sleeping overnight on the banks of the river.

The presence of our Mill Hill Missionaries is much appreciated. They have mastered the local Iban language and they reach out to the strong Chinese community in learning the Mandarin language. The mission work now continues with a new generation of Mill Hill Missionaries from Africa and Asia.”

Riverdance performance in Croke Park for festival of families Spring 2019

Fr. Michael Corcoran, Mill Hill General Superior, wrote, “The Church in South Sudan has a unique credibility and moral authority. Throughout the civil war (1983-2005), the Church was the only institution that remained. During that time, there was no government, no civil society, no Aid Agencies and no UN presence. Wherever there were people, the Church was present and, unlike the Aid Organisations, it had no evacuation option. Church personnel remained, suffered, lived and died with their flock. The Church provided many of the services, which one would expect from a government – health, education, food and water, local peace and reconciliation, mediation, even security, to the extent that the presence of Church personnel often moderated the violence.

Spring 2018

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A Visit to China On a visit to China, Fr. Michael Corcoran was able to witness firsthand the state of the Church in China today. Pope Francis is following an inclusive approach to China. That is, he wants no one excluded - the faithful of both the official and unofficial church communities. It is what is reasonable, what is right and what is good for the whole of humanity that will win. The Church in China has some freedom, albeit not complete freedom. If the Church were to give up the present freedom, she may not gain more, but might end up losing all her freedom.

Those Michael met on the ground felt strongly that we are called to share the Gospel in China within the context of inconsistencies, paradoxes and

contradictions. Despite the emotional stress on foreign missionaries, working ‘underground’ as priests and the continuous self-censoring with everyone you deal with, one has to admire their courage and commitment.

The Mill Hill Missionaries up to a few years ago had two missionaries working as teachers while at the same time having an apostolate to the people they encountered.

Fr. Michael met Bishop Gan of the Diocese of Guangzhou, who was only allowed out of China on two occasions.

His uncle, an eighty-eight year old Bishop, is being monitored day and night.

Mill Hill’s Changing Face Fr. Michael Corcoran wrote, “On a visit to Karamoja in Northern Uganda, I experienced the changing face of our own missionaries. Our new crop of Mill Hill Missionaries are coming from the well-established and flourishing churches in Africa and Asia once served

by Mill Hill Missionaries coming from Europe and North America. These young missionaries from different continents continue the missionary journey witnessing across the huge spectrum of human diversity to the beauty and the power of the Good News of Jesus Christ. To those who are deeply divided, our missionaries offer the hope

of reconciliation. To those degraded by grinding poverty, our missionaries are signs of God’s special option to be present among them and help them. To those blinded by their own wealth, we offer the joy of sharing. To those who exploit the weak and plunder the planet, we say enough is enough. We will tolerate no more.”

“In that Moment, I swear, I Saw the Face of God” A newspaper photographer was in Ecuador in 1987 covering the earthquake that devastated many areas of the country. In the midst of the catastrophe, he witnessed something that touched him deeply. There was a line of people at a food distribution point. While the line was long, it was moving briskly. In the line, at the very end, stood a young girl about twelve years of age. She waited patiently as those at the front of the line received a little rice, some canned food or fruit. Slowly but surely, she was getting closer to the front of that line, closer to the food. From time to time, she would glance across the street. She did not notice the growing concern on the faces of those distributing the food. The food was running out. Their anxiety began to show, but she did not notice. Her attention seemed always to focus on three children under the trees across the street.

Finally, she stepped forward to get her food. However, the only thing left was a lonely banana. The workers were almost ashamed to tell her that was all that remained. She did not seem to mind. Quietly she took the banana and ran across the street where the three small children waited - perhaps her two sisters and a brother. Very deliberately, she peeled the banana and carefully divided it into three equal parts. Placing the precious food into the eager hands of the three younger ones, she then sat down and licked the inside of the banana peel. With these words, the photographer described his reaction: “In that moment, I swear, I saw the face of God.” Children in Quito, Equador, with Sr. Nuala Doherty, fmsj.

Fr. Michael Corcoran with young members who work in Kotido, Northern Uganda.

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Spring 2019

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‘To See the Face of God’ ‘To see the face of God’ is a very ancient and interesting phrase that occurs many times in the Bible. The psalmist prayed that he would see the face of God: “Come, my heart says, seek his face; your face, Lord, do I seek. Do not hide your face from me.” (Psalm 26:8-9) “Let the light of your face shine on us, O Lord.” (Psalm 4) We find the phrase used by Pope Benedict XVI, when he describes his book ‘Jesus of Nazareth’ as his “personal search for the face of the Lord.”

The photographer’s story reminds us that the presence of God is all around us in the most ordinary experiences; ‘Where charity and love are found, God is present there’.

We can ‘see the face of God’ in many precious moments of daily life. Such moments can be joyful and happy or they may be dark and lonely times.

Children in Quito, Equador, One can discover God in an act with Sr. Nuala Doherty, fmsj. of kindness or in a hug from somebody. We can be aware of God in times of prayer and worship, or discover that God is present in an experience of hospitality, or in the support of family and friends that helps one to cope with the loss of a loved one.

God can be present in that ‘something’ that helps a person to keep going when things are difficult. When someone says: “I got strength from somewhere. I could not have coped without it,” there is a touch of God’s presence here in the person’s life. Spiritual writers tell us this is often the way it is; this is God’s way of coming to us. For most people there are no great shining lights and visions, but just a gentle touch of God that awakens our hearts to his abiding presence in the ordinary events and experiences of life.

“May God let his face shine on you and be gracious to you.

May God uncover his face to you and bring you peace.”

(Numbers: 6:24-26) [This Reflection comes from Fr. Jim O’Connell’s book ‘A life to Live: Awakening to God’s Abiding Presence’ – published by Columba Press, 2014.]

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Spring 2019

NOVENA TO ST. JOSEPH MARCH 11 - MARCH 19 In addition to the nine day Novena of Masses, a Mass will be offered each day in March for the intentions of all our subscibers and benefactors.

Please join the Novena by reading the short reflections for each day, and saying the Novena Prayer to St. Joseph.

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. And 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.

Pause to call to mind your special intentions ...

St. Joseph, Pray for us.

Add: Our father..., Hail Mary..., Glory be to the Father..., Amen.

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DAY 1 JOSEPH - THE PROTECTOR/GUARDIAN

DAY 4 JOSEPH - MODEL OF HOPE AND LOVE

When Fr. 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 missionaries.

He wanted them to be in the care of this great saint. Joseph would look after them as he looked after Mary and Jesus in the ‘flight to Egypt’ and at all other times. He took Mary and their new born child to Egypt to protect the infant Jesus from Herod. Joseph was the ‘guardian of the redeemer’ (Saint John Paul II) on that ‘missionary journey’ to a foreign land and fulfilled his role as guardian or protector of Jesus and Mary for the rest of his life.

Joseph is an example of one who lived with a deep awareness of God’s Spirit in his heart and life, always noticing and responding to the movements of the Spirit. This was the ground of his hope and the source of his boundless love for Mary and Jesus.

‘Joseph took the child and his Mother and left for Egypt’. (Mt. 2:14)

Pope Francis sees St. Joseph as a protector to whom we can turn when we are struggling to cope with suffering or heartbroken with grief or weighed down with distress and loneliness.

May St. Joseph be our protector on our journey through life.

DAY 2 JOSEPH - A JUST MAN

‘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. Joseph did not know who was the father of the child. He only knew that the child was not his. We can imagine how devastated he was when he discovered that the love of his life was pregnant before they came to live together. What was he to do? In the culture of the time he had no choice but to divorce Mary. It must have been heart-breaking for him but he was not going to make a fuss.

Even before he received the Angel’s message that Mary was pregnant through the Holy Spirit, he had decided to act in a caring way. He was going to act quietly and thus save her publicity and disgrace. He was a caring, honourable man, a just man, a man of God. May St. Joseph help us to put our problems before God and trust in Him.

DAY 3 JOSEPH - A MAN OF FAITH

‘An angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph and said …’ (Mt. 1:20)

“If discouragement overwhelms you, think of the faith of Joseph.” (Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI) Joseph lived his life in the light of faith, always drawing strength and courage from his openness to God. He was a good listener. His heart was in the right place to discern God’s Will. We see this when Joseph had decided to divorce Mary quietly, but then received the Angel’s message that Mary ‘had conceived what was in her by the Holy Spirit’. He responded with the ‘obedience of faith’ (St. John Paul II) and took Mary to his home as his wife. “St. Joseph exercised his role by hearing God’s voice and being guided by God’s will in his daily life. He did this with faith and fidelity, with goodness and tenderness, as a strong and courageous man.” (Pope Francis) May Joseph lead us to a deeper faith and trust in God.

(Jesus said) ‘Do not let your hearts be troubled, trust in God and trust in me’ (Jn. 14:1)

“If anxiety has its grip on you, think of the hope of Joseph. If exasperation or hatred seizes you, think of the love of Joseph, who was the first man to set eyes on the human face of God in the person of the infant conceived by the Holy Spirit in the womb of the Virgin Mary. Let us praise and thank Christ for having drawn so close to us, and for giving us Joseph as an example and model of love.” (Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI) Through the intercession of St. Joseph may we grow in faith, hope and love.

DAY 5 JOSEPH – A CARING, LOVING FATHER

“Where did that man (Jesus) get all this wisdom?” (Mt.13:54)

“We can now see that Joseph must have played a decisive role in the formation of the youthful Jesus and his message. A key pointer in this area is the question of the contemporaries of Jesus: “Where did that man (Jesus) get all this wisdom?” (Mt.13:54) Traditionally, Christians would be inclined to answer: “Well, Jesus was divine, so he knew everything.” But that is not a good answer, for St. Paul warns us that Jesus never took advantage of his divine nature, and had to learn the same lessons as all of us. The answer must be: he learnt it at home, from his parents Joseph and Mary.

It is good to realize that all that Jesus knew about fatherly love that is so central to his message, he had learnt from Joseph, whom he admired and loved so dearly. In that he followed the example of his mother Mary, who must have loved Joseph beyond measure.” (Hans Burgman, mhm) May St. Joseph help us to know and experience God as a loving and merciful Father.

DAY 6 JOSEPH - THE WORKER

“Isn’t he the carpenter’s son?’ (Mt. 13:55)

In 1955 pope Pius XII chose May 1st as a special day to remember St. Joseph the worker.

He described him as the patron of all working people. Joseph was dedicated to his work as a carpenter and Jesus, the carpenter’s son, would have learned the skills of his craft. In the words of Pope Francis: “Saint Joseph appears as a strong and courageous man, a working man, yet in his heart we see great tenderness and a capacity for concern, for compassion, for genuine openness to others, for love. Joseph exercised his role as teacher of Jesus: “Discreetly and humbly, but with an unfailing presence and utter fidelity. From the time of his betrothal to Mary until the finding of the twelve-year-old Jesus in the Temple of Jerusalem and then back in Nazareth, he is there at every moment with loving care.”

Joseph probably knew the hardship of unemployment when there was little or no work for himself and Jesus.

St. Joseph help us to be committed to our work and help those who cannot find work.

DAY 7 JOSEPH - THE FAMILY MAN

Mary said: ‘See how worried your father and I have been, looking for you’ (Lk. 2:48)

Some of the Saints were convinced that `the discovery of Joseph` is a personal journey to Nazareth, to meet Joseph in the intimacy of the Holy Family. We can be sure that he held the baby Jesus in his arms and sat him on his lap; that he often carried Him as a child. St. Francis de Sales found the thought of this closeness fascinating: “I find nothing sweeter to my imagination than to see the child Jesus in the arms of this great Saint, calling him daddy.”

In the Nuba Mountains, Sudan Fr Peter Major, mhm,

(Fr. Peter describes how Christians and Muslims lived together in harmony when he served in the Nuba Mountains some years ago)

With Joseph everything is so simple and yet so profound, so ordinary and yet so special.

He is a person we can feel at home with. He was the village carpenter, the family man who worked for his living. He was profoundly loved by God and experienced that love and lived it and shared it, especially in the home at Nazareth with Jesus and Mary.

May St. Joseph help us to discover God’s closeness in the ups and downs of family life.

DAY 8 JOSEPH - PATRON OF A HAPPY DEATH

‘At death life is changed, not ended’

In the Autumn Issue of St. Joseph’s Advocate, we usually have a photo of a stained glass window that depicts St. Joseph on his deathbed. The text at the base of the window reads: ‘Saint Joseph, Patron of a Happy Death, pray for us.’ Jesus is holding Joseph’s hand and blessing him, while Mary is praying and grieving close by. Just gazing at the window can bring comfort when we have to turn our thoughts to death or perhaps find ourselves grieving the loss of a loved one. The same gentle, loving Jesus is with each of us all through life and at the hour of our death. We draw great comfort from his promise: ‘I am the Resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live; everyone who believes in me will never die.’ (Jn. 11:25-26). The preface of the Mass for the dead reminds us: ‘At death life is changed, not ended.’

St. Joseph obtain for us the grace of entering eternal life in the company of Jesus and Mary.

DAY 9 JOSEPH - LOVING SERVICE

‘To love and to serve’

‘To love and to serve’ is the motto that was chosen by Herbert Vaughan in 1866 for St. Joseph’s Missionary Society of Mill Hill. He pointed to the example of Joseph’s life of loving service and wanted his future missionaries ‘To love and to Serve.’ He saw in Joseph a model for missionary life. Later as Cardinal Archbishop of Westminster, he wrote: “Of old it was said to the needy and suffering people in the kingdom of Egypt: ‘Go to Joseph, and do all that he shall say to you.’ (Gen. 41:55). The same is now said to all needy and suffering people: ‘Go to Joseph.’ What was truly said of the first Joseph in the Old Testament as to his goodness and love is verified much more perfectly in the second Joseph – St. Joseph”. In 2016 the Mill Hill Missionaries celebrated 150 years of missionary service. Our mission continues now with around 100 young missionary priests from Africa and Asia and nearly 200 students preparing for the missionary priesthood.

We celebrate the Feast of St. Joseph (March 19) with gratitude for the past and hope for the future.

Fr. Peter celebrating Easter Vigil with Sudanese Christians

A Comboni Sister, Angelina Nyakuru, who served as head nurse at the Catholic Church sponsored Mother of Mercy Hospital in Gidel told me that when she first arrived in the Nuba Mountains in Sudan, she was confused.

“Everyone dressed the same.

Sometimes I saw women wear head coverings and I thought they were Muslims, but then I saw them in church receiving the Sacraments.

They were Christians. I soon realised Spring 2018

that Christians and Muslims live together in harmony. At Christmas, the Muslims come to celebrate with the Christians. In addition, we go to their celebrations. It is peculiar to this place. There is peaceful coexistence between Christians and Muslims, as well as with those who practice traditional religions. Muslim parents usually do not object if their children want to become Christian. In fact, when they receive the Sacraments, their parents accompany them to the church to support them.”

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MILL HILL

JUBILEES 2019 Celebrating Diamond Jubilee – 60 years Fr Kevin O’Rourke, from Carrigallen, Co. Leitrim, was ordained a St Joseph’s Missionary, in Mill Hill, London, in 1959; he was one of five Carrigallen men ordained that year for dioceses and missions. After work in the Mill Hill Mission Office in Freshford, Kevin was appointed to Kisumu, Kenya, in 1961. He worked in country parishes among the Luo people. After a Kiswahili language course in neighbouring Tanzania, Kevin was appointed to Seminary work back in Kenya. Students applied from Tanzania to study there. The Kenyan students and their families welcomed them and Leitrim people helped to cover the cost of travel. Twelve became priests.

Kevin was appointed to Vocations work in Ireland. Then came the call for help in Sudan.

While waiting for his Visa, he studied in New York - at Maryknoll and Albany State University. His visa for Sudan came in 1979 and Kevin went to work in Malakal Diocese, in Owechi, where Fr Harry Tansey had worked for years. When the troubles began again, his bishop sent Kevin to bring relief. After some years, his visa ran out, and he was sent to Rome to study Arabic and Islam. Thanks to Egypt, his visa came to work for Sudanese refugees who had been welcomed there. Bishop Egidio asked him to take over the Sudanese Refugee Centre in Alexandria. He replaced Fr Lagassy, ofm, a relative of St Terese of Liseux. Thousands of families and students were cared for. Seven of the students were ordained the first Sudanese Franciscans. They took over the Refugee Centre after 10 years. After a counselling course at St Anselms in Margate, Kent, his visa came for Sudan again in 2003; he went to work with refugees in Khartoum and in Darfur.

Finally, in 2009, it was time to come home to work part-time in his native Leitrim. Kevin thanks God for the work and all who helped him.

Celebrating Golden Jubilee – 50 years

His next appointment was to the USA in 1990; he spent twenty years there. He served for five years as Chaplain to Jacobi City Hospital in the Bronx; seven years as Assistant Pastor in Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish, Shrub Oak, NY; six years as Administrator of our Mill Hill House in Hartsdale, NY, and two years as Bursar for Mill Hill in the North American Region.

In January 2011, he found himself back in Scotland, in St Joseph’s House, Cardonald; this is the base for Mill Hill operations in Scotland. From there, in cooperation with fellow Mill Hill Members, he travels throughout Scotland fundraising for our missionary projects overseas. The Mill Hill priests also assist the local church with Masses, which is greatly appreciated at this time. St. Joseph’s, Cardonald, is a very active house with lots of programmes going on. All of these ministries, he finds, provide him with a very happy way in which to end his missionary career.

Celebrating Golden Jubilee – 50 years Fr. Tom McGrath is from Labasheeda, County Clare. Four months after his ordiantion, Tom set out for Kenya, where he was to spend 36 years. He worked in various parishes for 32 years and was teaching in St. Peter’s Seminary, Mukumu, for 4 years.

He had six years back in Ireland (1975-1981) after which he returned to Kenya. During his time in Ireland, he spent his first year on the staff of St. Joseph’s College, Freshford. Then in 1976, he was assigned to the Vocations/Mission Promotion team. In his own words: “I travelled the length and breadth of Ireland and enjoyed warm hospitality wherever I went.”

In 1981, Tom returned to Kenya and again ministered in different parishes until 1998, when he moved to the parish of Luanda beside the Mill Hill House of Basic Formation.

He says, “Besides caring for the pastoral needs of the people in Luanda, I was privileged to accompany many of our young East African students as they took their first steps in discerning their missionary vocation. The Franciscan Missionary sisters of St. Joseph came to help rehabilitate street children, assist women and people with special needs.”

Tom left Luanda and Kenya in September 2011, and says, “When I returned to Ireland in 2011, I started helping our parish priest, Fr. John Kelly, in my home parish in Labasheeda, Co. Clare. Sadly, Fr. Kelly passed away in October 2013. At the request of the Bishop, I have continued to serve the pastoral needs of the people of Labasheeda. Being involved in the Irish church today is more challenging than anything I have encountered in Africa.

Mission is here at home.

Fr. Matt Grier is a native of Gortletteragh, Co. Leitrim. After ordination in 1969, he was appointed to Uganda, where he served for ten years - two years in parish work and eight years as chaplain and member of staff in Tororo College. These were difficult years for all, Ugandans and ex-patriates alike, as they coincided with the reign of Idi Amin. In 1980, he moved to Scotland, where, for 20

five years, he served as Tutor Chaplain to Mill Hill students in Lochwinnoch. After that, he returned to Ireland where he studied Sacred Scripture and Theology in Trinity College.

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Mary the Mother of Jesus

By Fr. Ronald Rolheiser

‘Mary always apeared to the poor’ Mosaic in Knock Basilica, depicting the Apparition, 1879

An expression says ‘Roman Catholics tend to adore Mary while Protestants and Evangelicals tend to ignore Mary’. Neither is ideal. Mary, the Mother of Jesus, has, in effect, two histories within the Christian tradition. We have the Mary of Scripture and we have the Mary of Devotions, and both offer something special for our Christian journey.

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Mary of Devotions The Mary of Devotions is the more well known, though mostly within Roman Catholic circles. This is the Mary invoked in the rosary, the Mary of popular shrines, the Sorrowful Mother of our litanies. This is the Mother with the soft heart through whom we can get the ear of God. She is the Mary of purity and chastity, the Mother who understands human suffering, the Mother who can soften the hearts of murderers and the Mother we can always turn to.

This Mary is pre-eminently the Mother of the poor. Fr. Karl Rahner once pointed out that when you look at all the apparitions of Mary that have been officially approved by the church you will notice that she has always appeared to the poor. She has appeared to illiterate peasants, a group of children or just one child; those without social standing (We can just think of the group of people that she appeared to in Knock in 1879). She has never appeared to a theologian in his study, to a pope, or to a millionaire banker. She has always been the person to whom the poor look.

Marian devotion is a mysticism of the poor.

But Marian devotion and piety can also run the risk of theological sloppiness and unhealthy sentimentality. In our devotions, we have sometimes tended to elevate Mary to divine status (which is simply wrong) and we have far too often encrusted her in so much piety that she, the Mary of Devotions, Spring 2019

cannot possibly be the same person who wrote the Magnificat. The Mary of Devotions is often so enshrined in piety, over-simplicity, and asexuality that she needs to be protected from this kind of thing. However, the fact remains that the Mary of Devotions offers us a lot for our spiritual journey.

Mary of Scripture Much more ignored is the Mary of Scripture and the role the various Gospels assign to her. In the Synoptic Gospels, Mary is presented as a model of discipleship. More simply, she is shown to us as the one person who gets it right from the beginning. However, that is not immediately evident. On the surface, the opposite sometimes seems to be the case.

For example, on a couple of occasions as Jesus is speaking to a crowd, he is interrupted; he is told that his mother and his family (mother, brothers and sisters) are outside wanting to speak to him. His response: “Who are my mother and who are my brothers and sisters? It’s those who hear the word of God and keep it.”

In saying this, Jesus is not distancing his mother from himself and his message, in fact, the opposite is true. Before this incident is recorded in the Gospels, the evangelists have been very careful to point out that Mary was the first person to hear the Word of God and keep it. What happens here is that Jesus singles out his mother first for her faith, not for her biology. In the Synoptic Gospels, Mary is the paradigm for discipleship. She is the first to hear the Word of God and keep it.

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Stained glass window, Mill Hill chapel, Dublin

“However, the fact remains that the Mary of Devotions offers us a lot for our spiritual journey” 23

The call to Mission Purified with Time

In John’s Gospel John’s Gospel gives her a somewhat different role. Here she is presented as the mother of humanity, the mother of the church and the mother of each of us: ‘Mother behold your son’ and ‘son behold your mother’.

Interestingly, John never gives us Mary’s name, in his Gospel she is always referred to as “the Mother of Jesus”. And in this role she does two things: Firstly, she gives voice to human need, as she does at the wedding feast of Cana when she tells her son (who is always divine in John’s Gospel) “they have no wine”. In John’s Gospel, this is not just a conversation between Mary and Jesus; but also a conversation between the Mother of Humanity and God.

By Fr. Anthony Emeka, mhm (Fr. Anthony is a young Nigerian priest, who joined Mill Hill when his family lived in Cameroon.)

Fr. Anthony (right) visiting a family Crucifixion window, St. Patrick's parish church, Kilkenny

Secondly, as universal mother and our mother, she stands in helplessness under human pain and within human pain when she stands under the cross. In this, she shows herself as universal mother and our mother but also as an example of how injustice must be handled, namely, by standing within it in a way that does not replicate its hatred and violence to give it back in kind.

Mary offers us a wonderful example.

Our Lady of Medjugorje shrine at the foot of Croagh Patrick 24

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My mother used to fry two eggs for my dad on Saturdays and serve it with fried chips.

The rest of the family only got fried chips.

However, my father normally would leave about a quarter of the egg for my little brother. Depending on the mood of little brother, you could be lucky to get less than a quarter of that. Eggs were very special.

Then as a little boy who went for morning Masses nearly every day, I could get the smell of fried eggs every morning coming from the parish priest’s house. I thought this is what I would want to do, become a priest and get eggs served every morning.

I could also drive my own car!

Later when I was aspiring to become a Mill Hill Missionary, it was all very exciting. I could not wait to be admitted. I remember my answer to Fr. Pascal Nsah’s question Spring 2019

as to why I wanted to become a missionary priest; I said I felt the call to leave home and family and serve God in other lands. (I did not mention fried eggs or the car!!)

A year after I was admitted to Mill Hill, my family left Cameroon to settle back home in Nigeria. I was now all alone without family in Cameroon. As if that was not enough, less than 2 years later, I lost one of my two sisters who died suddenly. It was a big blow to me and I really started questioning the reality of my vocation. My sister’s death was a hard reality to accept and I needed to process it in my years in formation.

However, I continued and was ordained.

LIFE AS A MISSIONARY IN WITU

I am now doing a course in Dublin, having spent 7 years as a Mill Hill Missionary 25

in Witu, on the Coast of Kenya, with Fr. Adolf Pöll, mhm, who is an exceptionally selfless and generous missionary. In Witu, we took care of the normal parish ministry with Masses and the Sacraments but there were other very challenging aspects to our ministry. Since we had the only car (a pickup) in the area, we normally would expect to be called at any time of the night to provide transport to the hospital for a sick person or for a woman who was having problems giving birth. One such experience was of a woman who was giving birth at home, assisted by three local women, but she developed complications.

Immediately after I got the call at about 2:45am, I went for her. The three women sat with her in the back of the pickup.

Bringing her to Witu, we were referred to Lamu District hospital about 70km away on bad roads. As we came near Lamu, the women started banging the car asking me to stop. The woman had delivered but, sadly, the child was dead. We had to start the journey back with heavy hearts.

This was a very sad night. Indeed, there were many sad and frustrating nights when a sick person would die on the way and we would have to return with the corpse.

I often asked myself was this really what I expected when I told Fr. Pascal that I wanted to serve God in other lands!

A REIGN OF TERROR

In 2014, the security situation got much worse than it had been earlier; we were under the threats and attacks of the Alshabab terrorist group. Many were dying 26

all around us; at one point, our apostolate was reduced to carrying the dead to different mortuaries. I remember, when the threats became too much I left the parish for two days break, leaving Fr. Adolf alone in the parish. I remember returning to the parish and meeting some Christians in the Church. One of them asked me two questions I could not answer, “Father, why did you leave us when we needed you?

Was it because you could afford to pay for the bus?”

Two years later, Fr. Adolf was away for his home leave and I was there in the parish with Patrick Bongmoyong, one of our Mill Hill seminarians. One day after morning Mass, I found many missed calls on my phone. There had been another attack, this time in one of our outstations. The son of our catechist had been brutally murdered together with others. Immediately, I got on my motorbike with Patrick, and when we arrived, what I saw has never gone from my mind; the poor wife of the catechist sitting on the ground and next to her, the lifeless half beheaded body of her 15-year-old son. I remember her looking at me helplessly and saying just one word “Father” with her two hands directing me to her son’s corpse.

That was when I understood the words of St. Paul “Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; never be conceited.” (Rom 12:15-16)

Fr. Adolf leaving a terror scene in grief

That was when I knew where “leaving home and family to serve in other lands” could take me. That was when I understood that mission was not about having fried eggs or driving a car or having a good time. That was when I understood our Mill Hill motto “To love and to serve”.

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Fr. Anthony preparing to celebrate Mass in a home Spring 2019

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Sindh, Pakistan:

ROADSIDE SCHOOLING!

by Fr. Edson Paguntalan, mhm (Fr. Edson is a Mill Hill priest from the Philippines working in Sindh, Pakistan, with other Mill Hill priests - Fr. Denis Hartnett from Ballyhooly, County Cork, is one of the group) According to the recent Pakistan Education Statistics, 22.6 million Pakistani children are still out of school. This is roughly 44 per cent of children between the ages of five and 16. Moreover, a single teacher is running 21 percent of primary schools in the country while 14 percent have only one classroom. Many children in secluded villages have no access to education at all and have never even

seen a classroom. The 22.6 million statistic of children out of school is alarming enough, but I think the actual figure is much higher when you look at the situation on the ground. Education is not a priority and it is not seen as a vital tool in life. A lot of awareness raising is still needed to bring home the importance of education.

A roadside ‘business boy’ Recently, I visited one of our remote Christian villages at approximately 145 kilometers distance from the Mission Centre where we live. Just before reaching the village, I noticed a young boy sitting by the roadside

Fr. Edson with the roadside ‘business boy’ awaiting customers

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Fr. Edson joins companions on the road in Sindh, Pakistan

with his merchandise. When I stopped to approach him, I realized that he was selling some fruit and vegetables. He was ever so polite and at the same time very serious about his business and eagerly awaiting customers to buy what he was selling. He was an expert and a smart “business boy”.

When I inquired if he attended school, he immediately said “no, the school is far and we (the whole family) need to work extra hard for our daily meal”. I also found out that his other brother and sister were working with their parents in the fields as day labourers. Raju is just one of the many children who are out of school.

Learning a trade On the roadsides here in Sindh, small boys from age six working in auto, tailoring and carpentry shops are a regular sight. They start as helpers doing some cleaning, passing tools to the mechanic and any other assistance that they can provide in exchange for Spring 2019

some small amount of money at the end of the day. After a number of years of patiently observing and learning basic skills, they eventually open their own shops. They in turn will hire young boys to help them and these boys eventually will open their own small businesses.

This is the cycle of life for many and this is how they acquire skills. “Learning is also acquired outside the classroom,” as they say.

As we continue our tribal apostolate here in the southern part of Pakistan, together with the Presentation Sisters, our mission partners, we are involved in providing education at different levels. For quite a number of years now, the Presentation Sisters have been providing accessible education in different villages. Our parish also runs an adult literacy programme in different villages and organises non-formal education. It is you, our benefactors, who make all this possible by providing us with much needed funds. May God reward you all!

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Other Fatal Shootings and Background Information (The Editor)

SHOCKING NEWS FROM CAMEROON:

YOUNG MILL HILL MISSIONARY SHOT DEAD Fr. Richard Njoroge, mhm, wrote: “With heavy and broken hearts, the Mill Hill Missionaries in Cameroon confirm the death of our brother and fellow Mill Hill missionary priest from Kenya, Fr. Cosmas Omboto Ondari, who has been serving in St Martin of Tours Parish, Kembong, in the diocese of Mamfe. Fr. Cosmas was shot dead by the military. He was standing in front of the Church when soldiers passing at high speed in their military vehicle shot him at about 3pm, on Wednesday, November 21, 2018. He died on the spot and was moved to the Mamfe District Hospital Mortuary. Fr. Cosmos, in his early thirties, was ordained on Sunday March 26, 2017 in Kisii, Kenya, by Bishop Joseph Mairura Okemwa.

Our Mill Hill student from Congo, Guylain Agbasoa, who was also in Kembong with Cosmas, managed to escape to the house when the military started shooting. A few minutes later when he came looking for Cosmas, whom he had left outside the church with a group of Christians, he was shocked to find Cosmas in a pool of blood by the door of the church. He called for a vehicle to take him to Mamfe hospital, but Cosmas was already dead. Guylain himself is now safe in Mamfe at the pastoral centre.

Bishop Andrew Nkea of Mamfe says he was “deeply shocked to see the lifeless body of Cosmas. I have some graphic photos of the mortal remains of our Cosmas in the mortuary. I cannot put them here! We are shocked and devastated beyond words. May Cosmas rest in eternal peace.”

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The death of Fr. Cosmas comes in the wake of other fatal shootings of church personnel. In July 2018, Fr. Alexander Sob Nougi, a diocesan priest, was shot dead on the Buea-Muyuka road in the South West Province. The priest was with two other people who escaped. In October, Gerard Anjiangwe, a diocesan seminarian, was killed following the morning Mass in the parish of Bamessing in the North West Province.

According to Bishop Michael Bibi, “A military van stopped at the entrance of the road leading to the Church. Some of the military alighted from the van and started shooting. The people, who were with Gerard, seeing the military coming, ran into the sacristy and locked the door, whereas Gerard was still outside. The military tried to open the Church door but did not succeed. They approached Gerard who was lying on the ground and shot him three times in the neck; he died instantly. His father is a catechist and Gerard was the only son of the family.”

Also in October, an American Baptist Missionary, Charles Trumann Wesco, was shot and killed by the military in Bambui in the North West Region.

The situation remains very tense in the towns and villages with so much violence and so many civilian casualties.

The father of Fr. Cyprian Taah (a Mill Hill priest) was one of the casualties; he Spring 2019

In happier times - Fr. Cosmas (2nd rt back row) with Mill Hill colleagues

was shot dead by the military. Houses have been burnt, including the family home of another Mill Hill priest, Fr Elvis Suuh Mbangsi from Fundong.

Background information

Since Cameroon got independence in 1960, ‘English-speaking’ Cameroonians have accused the French-speaking authorities of marginalising them. In recent years, there has been a push for independence in the two ‘Englishspeaking’ Provinces – South West and North West. This has led to the armed struggle between the forces of the Government and groups of ‘freedom fighters’ from the English-speaking population, which numbers around 8 million. The Bishops of SW and NW Provinces have urged the Government and the rebels to engage in talks, but President Biya (now 85, and 36 years in charge) has opted for a military solution. This has led to the violent clashes and so many deaths of innocent church personnel and civilians.

(Fr. Cosmas was baptised in Sengera Parish, Kisii, Kenya, by the late Fr. Denis Treacy, MHM) 31

Obituary List Most Sacred Heart of Jesus have mercy on the souls of: Bishop Laurence Forristal – retired Bishop of Ossory Bishop Christopher Jones - retired Bishop of Elphin.

Fr. Cosmas Omboto Ondari, MHM, who was shot dead in Cameroon

Members Sr. Rosarie Lawler, Sr. Martha Mason, Alice Audley, Elizabeth Blake, Monica Boland, Kitty Bradshaw, Kathleen Brady, Mary Brady, Mary C Brennan, G. Breslin, Anna Brioscu, Bridget Browne, Bridget Burke, Liz Butler, Margaret Cahalane, Agnes Callery, K. Carolan, Phyllis Carroll, Mary Caulfield, Mary B Clarke, Mary Clements, Sheila Condren, Paddy Condon, Patrick Connery, Anna Connolly, Anna Connelly, Katie Connolly, Rebecca Connolly, Margaret Corcorcan, Sarah Cribben, Bridie Daly, Monica Dalton, Margaret Delahunty, Eileen Devlin, Seamus Devlin, Berta Donnelly, Sheila Doyle, Charles Donachy, Ann Egan, Helen Feeney, Brigid Farrell, Kathleen Farrell, Norah Farrell, Elizabeth Fitzpatrick, Padraig Fitzsimons, Eileen Flaherty, Rita Flood, James Fogarty, Hannah Foley, Daniel Gallagher, Kathleen Gallagher, Mary Gardner, Sarah Gill, B. Gillen, Hughie Gillespie, Kathleen Griffin, Jane Guthrie, Mary Ellen Hayes, D. Hanley, Joe Harrold, Ellen Helferty, Mary Heron, Mary Hicks, Nora Hinchy, Nora Hyland, C. Ivory, Renee Jones.

Maria Kane, Eileen Keane, Patrick Keaney, Christy Keenan, Paddy Kelly, Frank Kelly, Gertie Kelly, Kathleen Kelly, Thomas Kelly, Patrick Kelly, Brigid Kennedy, Noel Kennedy, May Kenneally, Pat Kerrigan, Marie Kissane, Teresa Lavelle, Gerard Lee, Dympna Lilly, J J Lynch, Mary Martin, Mary McArdle, Annie P. McCann, Denis 32

Bernard McCarthy, Margaret McCarthy, Gerald McClure, Rose McCrory, Maureen McCrudden, Anne McEneaney, Fergal McGee, May McGrath, Edward McGuigan, Rose McNamee, Michael Mitchell, Bridie Moloney, Patrick J. Mooney, Lily Moran, John D. Moriarty, Billy Mullally, Nora Murray, Annie Murphy, Dermot Murphy, Elizabeth Murphy, Gertrude Murphy, Josephine McKenna, Mary McSweeney, Una Neary, Kathleen Noonan, Eileen Norris.

Ann Ormonde, Angela O’Brien, John O’Brien, Elizabeth O’Callaghan, Julianna O’Connor, Niall O’Donoghue, Hannah O’Donovan, Mary O’Driscoll, Rose O’Farrell, Chrissie O’Gorman, Michael O’Gorman, Breda O’Grady, Sarah O’Grady, Moira O’Loughlin, Dan O’Mahony, Bridget O’Neill, Bridget O’Rourke, Dympna and Francis O’Rourke, Attie O’Sullivan, Catherine O’Sullivan, Katty O’Sullivan, Maureen Phelan, Margaret Power, Mary Power, Maura Power, Richard Pugh, Thomas Purcell, Kathleen Quirke, Maureen Quirke, Patrick Reynolds, Mary Roche, Joseph Ross, Mary Catherine Ryan, Joan Ryan, Mabel Ryan, Mary Ryan, Rita Ryan, Kitty Seery, May Seery, Joan Sexton, Michael Scallon, Alphonsus Surpless, Bridget Tiedt, Peggy Twomey, Margaret Twomey, Betty Walsh, M J Walsh, Joan Walsh, John Walsh, May Ward, Marie Warren, Brigid Weir, Maureen Wheatley, Vincent Wynter..

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