“Give thanks to the
Lord for he is good, his faithful love lasts forever” (Ps 107:1). This same
thanksgiving spiritual aspiration of the Psalmist is arising in our hearts like
sweet smelling incense and ascending to heaven after the successful completion
of the Golden Jubilee Concluding Functions.
The final mega common
historic celebration of the Golden Jubilee with a Cardinal, many Archbishops,
Bishops, Provincials of Religious Congregations, Priests of Jamshedpur Diocese
and from other Dioceses, Religious Brothers and Sisters and thousands of the
faithful from all corners of the Diocese, was impressive and joyful both
spiritually and externally. Everyone deserves our gratitude. In a very special
way I would like to thank the Church dignitaries: His Eminence Telesphore
Cardinal P. Toppo of Ranchi, Archbishop William D’Souza of Patna, Archbishop
Thomas D’Souza of Kolkata, Bishop Paul Lakra of Gumla, Bishop Kurien Valiakandathil of Bhagalpur, Bishop Anjelus
Kujur of Purnea, Bishop Victor Henry Thakur of Bettiah, Bishop Julius Marandi
of Dumka and Bishop Elect Anand Jojo of Hazaribag. I am grateful to Fr. E.
Abraham, the Director of XLRI and Fr. George Cheradayil, S.J., the Superior and
Dean of XLRI for welcoming the Church Dignitaries with opened arms and
graciously hosting them in XLRI.
Yesu
Krist Mahotsav was a moment of intimacy and union with
God the Father and with Jesus Christ our
(Welcome Dance)
(Prayer Dance)
(People honored for their dedicated service in the diocese)
(Praise and worship)
Savior through Faith Sharing, Honoring the Persons who made significant contribution in
evangelization and faith-formation, Praise
and Worship conducted by Fr. Binoy and Team, Benediction by H.E. Cardinal Telesphore P. Toppo and finally
through Multi Media presentation of
the diocese prepared by Mr. Dhruv Bonnerjee and his team and presented by Fr.
Joseph Surin and his team. The credit of Yesu
Krist Mahotsav goes to Fr. George Anthony, Sr. Sudha, SJT and their team.
Eight thousand faithful coming from all corners of the Diocese, under a large
white canopy and a huge shamiyana,
experienced union of minds and hearts as belonging to “one Lord, one faith, one
baptism and one God” (Eph. 4:5). People expressed their experiences of this
moment in different words, like: wonderful,
beautiful, prayerful, devotional, grace-filled, meaningful, well-attended,
well-disciplined, unique, etc. Fr. Augustine Ezhakunnel and his team,
responsible for the venue, stage, sound system, canopy and shamiyana did marvelous job. Three Cheers Fr. Augustine and your
team!
The Holy Eucharistic,
Celebrated by H. E. Telesphore Cardinal P. Toppo and concelebrated by eight
Archbishops and Bishops and two hundred priests and participated by fourteen
thousand faithful, was another solemn, unique and memorable spiritual occasion
of praising and thanking God.
The third event, Civic
Function and Cultural Programme brought much jubilation to the people. The
presence of His Excellency, Dr. Syed Ahmed, the Governor of Jharkhand made the
occasion more ceremonial and acclaimed.
(Bishop Felix welcomes
the Governor on his arrival)
The children from the
city and the rural parishes presented dances, which were rhythmic, beautiful
and superb. Loud applaud to the stage performers and Three Cheers to Mrs. Jayanti Dutt and the cultural committee!
(Variety entertainments)
(Releasing of Souvenir)
(His Excellency Sayed Ahmad address the people)
Fr. Halan Bodra and his
staff accommodated all the priests and Sisters at the Catholic Charities. May
the Lord bless their generosity! Under the Chairmanship of Mr. Ronnie D’Costa,
Peter Bonnerjee with his expertise prepared an attractive Golden Jubilee
Souvenir. They were able to raise a large sum of money with the Souvenir for
the Jubilee expenses. Sincere thanks to you both! Fr. C.R. Prabhu and his Team
worked for almost one year to get money for “Golden Jubilee Scholarship Fund”.
The target sum is still to be realized, but the sum collected is sufficient to
give scholarships to 75 students per year. Congratulations to the members of
the “Golden Jubilee Scholarship Fund”. We thank also all those who made generous
financial contribution for the realization of the Jubilee Concluding event. May
the Lord reward you hundred fold!
We salute the Food
Committee Chairman, Fr. David Vincent and his members. They cooked round the
clock on both days. On the first day the food was cooked for 3000 people, but
4500 people came to eat. On the second day, as informed to the Food Committee
food was cooked for 10,000 people, but almost 14,500 people turned up to eat.
Smart fellows rushed early to eat. Many people did not cooperate with the
security personnel and the volunteers. As a result about a thousand people did
not get food on time as they had to leave to catch the train. I apologize to those who did not get the
lunch. Nevertheless, this incident teaches us that we are human beings and we
make mistakes and often led by our deep rooted selfish attitudes.
One of the important
features of this Golden Jubilee Concluding Functions was that the laity played
a major role in successfully organizing and executing the entire event under
the leadership of Fr. C.R. Prabhu, the Vicar General of the Diocese. Fr. Prabhu, of course, was the prime mover
and had innumerable meetings with core-committee members in order to organize,
guide and to support them. Nevertheless, the laity’s contribution will be
written in golden letters for the future generation to imitate them.
We, the people of
Jamshedpur Diocese, have celebrated the Golden Jubilee of the Diocese. We have expressed our deep felt gratitude to
God for his blessings and graces and have endeavored to march towards “The
Fullness of Life”. Let us now march towards the Diamond Jubilee with the same
spirit of gratitude and zeal to sanctify ourselves and to evangelize others.
Let us sing with Mary,
the Mother of Lord Jesus Christ, “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord
and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour” (Lk 1:46-47).
ST. JOHN MARY VIANNEY, DHOWATAND
The Mega Ploy Clinic
jointly conducted with the help of Indian Medical Association (IMA), Dhanbad
Branch, at our School, on the occasion of Gandhi Jayanthi Day (2nd
October, 2012), from 10:00 am to 12 noon, went off well. We thank Dr. S.K.
Karan, Dr. (Mrs.) Sangeeta Karan, Dr. U.L. Vishwakarma, Dr. Anand Ranjan, Dr.
(Major) Chandan Kumar, Dr. Mrs. Nupur Chandan, Dr. Nilesh Kumar, Dr. A.K.
Singh, Dr. Anand Modi, Dr. B.K. Dubey, Dr. B.K. Sinha and Dr. A.K. Singh, IMA,
Jharkhand, who so willingly and generously availed of their time and energy at
the Clinic. About 250 people benefited by it. Dr. B.K. Dubey, a part-time Eye
Specialist of Nirmala was deputed by Fr. Bipin Pani. We thank Fr. Bipin Pani
for his help and support. (Fr. Vijay Bhat)
SISTERS OF ST. JOSEPH OF THE APPARITION, MOSABONI
This
was the voice of people for Srs. Roselima Lakra and Satyawati Ekka of Sisters
of St. Joseph of the Apparition, Mosaboni on 7th October, 2012 as they
pronounced their final commitment in the society during the solemn Eucharist
Celebration presided over by Rt. Rev. Bishop Felix Toppo, S.J. The liturgy was
coloured with beautiful dances and devotional singing. The day was witnessed by
a large number of people. At the end of Mass all their well wishers gave them
hugs wishing them God’s blessings. ST. JOSEPH’S CHUCH, ANANDPUR
St.
Joseph’s Church Charbandia had a very unique way of celebration to mark the Golden
Jubilee of the Diocese as well as the inaugural of the Year of Faith on 14th
October, 2012. Rt. Rev. Felix Toppo,
hoisted the flag and released the pigeons to begin the celebration of the
parish.
The Solemn Eucharist celebration was colored by
beautiful singing and dances. A large crowd participated in the Eucharistic
celebration to thank the Lord for the 50 years of long journey of faith. To
mark the day variety cultural programme was staged by different units of the
parish. At the end of the programme all the parish family shared and enjoyed
the delicious meal together. Congratulations to Parish Priest Frs. Raphael
Monterio, Elvius Dungdung, Pascal Minj, St. Ann’s Sisters and the laity.
ST. JOSEPH’S CATHEDRAL, GOLMURI
On 14th October, the
parishioners celebrated “Naya Khani”, the feast of first crop together with the
inauguration of “The Year of Faith” at 7.30 am with solemn Eucharistic
Celebration led by 6 priests in the presence of a huge congregation. After the Mass,
all had tea and snacks and proceeded for the cultural programme at St. Joseph’s
Welfare Centre hall. The stage performers scintillated traditional dances of
Jharkhand. Fr. Camille Hembrom thanked all for the lively presentation and
participation.
On Sunday the 14th October,
from 7.00am to 1.30pm St. Joseph’s Welfare Centre under the guidance of Fr.
Henry Sequeira conducted a free heart, kidney and diabetes medical check up
camp at Sacred Heart Convent School, Bistupur. The 4 doctors and specialists
from BNH hospital examined near about 100 patients and had the blood check up,
ECG and ECO tests also. (Br. Jacob, DDS)
KUMADUBI, TALDANGA
WELL
DONE! It feels good to announce that Loyola School, Taldanga has crossed yet
another milestone. The month concluded with the HINDI ELOCUTION. Students from
class 6 to 12 participated. The judges who came from neighboring schools and
colleges praised the performance.
The
mood of the festivity was set when the Mahalaya(skit) was enacted during Assembly on
15th Oct. School is now closed for the Puja vacation.
The
Report Cards were distributed on the 6th of Oct. This year
computerized report cards have been introduced. Parents were highly impressed.
ST. MARY'S
ENGLISH HIGH SCHOOL, BISTUPUR
St. Mary’s English High School had its
small beginning in 1943. Initially, this
school was run by ardent lay Catholics supported by the Church. However, in 1980 the management of the school
was handed over to the Bishop of Jamshedpur under the Diocesan
Corporation. Over the years the school
(Time) has added many new chapters and facilities to improve the quality of
education. (to the history of this school). With the passage of time and
constant demand for admissions it has become mandatory for the institution to
grow according to the demands and needs of the students. The CBSE Board too
ensures that basic facilities must be provided for the overall growth of the
students.
In this context an acute shortage of a
multipurpose auditorium for the high school students has been experienced for
the last many years. The present
Principal, Fr. David Vincent in one of the press releases informed the parents
that there is a plan to put up an auditorium, a few classrooms and a bigger
library (e-library) as well as a reading room for the institution. The estimate for the new facilities is of
about 6 crores in order to construct this multipurpose building.
Tata Steel played a crucial role in the
construction of the present building (class rooms) in the year 1991 and we
received immense cooperation in this regard.
Gradually as the strength of the school increased, Tata Steel handed
over the JME School building to St. Mary’s in the year 2000, presently, it is
known as St. Mary’s English High School, Junior Block. It is known that under -
privileged children, poor children and children of the TATA STEEL workers get
preference in admission.
Towards the construction of the
multipurpose building, Tata Steel, whose corporate social responsibilities as
an Industry is well known and very much appreciated has agreed to give TWO
crores. The first installment of Rs.65 Lakhs has already been handed over to us.
The rest of the finance will be made available by our well wishers, the parents
and the Diocesan Corporation. School Principal Fr. David Vincent and the
Administration has expressed their
gratitude towards Tata Steel for its noble gesture and has also expressed their
hope that the school might be able to lean on Tata Steel for such projects in
future too. The school has also extended its obligation towards JUSCO, and Tata
Workers Union together with Tata Steel. (Fr. David Vincent)
KRUS VIR RALLY, CKP
Under the able
leadership of Sr. Michael Xess, OUS and team Krus Vir Rally was held at Carmel School Chakradharpur from 22-24
October, 2012. 750 Krus Vir Children,
from Chaibasa deanery along with 40 animators, actively took part in the Rally.
With various activities like Bible quiz, drama and action songs based on Bible
passages, they reflected on the theme: Krus
Vir, Message of Christ and Messenger.
It was a wonderful opportunity for the children to grow and be strengthened in
their faith. Bishop Felix Toppo, S.J. spend few hours with the Krus Vir Children on 23rd
October, 2012 and encouraged the children with his inspiring message to become
the Message and Messenger of Christ. Fr. Sanjay Kujur, C.Ss.R. was present all
three days to take care the spiritual needs of the Krus Vir children. Congratulations to Sr. Michael and Team! Thanks
to Carmel School for making available the place and faculties to realize the Krus Vir Rally of Chaibasa Deanery!
THOSE WHO HAVE GONE TO HEAVEN: R I P
Fr.
Gualbert Furtado died of lung cancer on September 24,
2012 at Bangalore. Gualbert was a
popular figure in Jamshedpur. His
month’s Mind Mass was celebrated in the Cathedral on Sunday 23rd.
Bishop Felix Toppo, S.J. was the Main celebrant of the Eucharistic celebration.
Several other priests joined and concelebrated in the Holy Mass. Around hundred
faithful too attended this Mass and prayed for the departed soul of Fr.
Gualbert. The seminarians from Pratiksha led the choir of Month’s Mind Mass
with very meaningful and devotional hymn.
Fr.
Cyrinus Topno, S.J.: The untimely death of Fr. Cyrinus
Topno, S.J. on 10th October, 2012 due to his brain hambrage has
shocked us much. He was a member of Jamshedpur Jesuit Society who was the
Director of Cendret, Bhubneshwar. His funeral was held at Jesu Bhavan on 12th
October, 2012, attended by large crowd.
