Diocese of Jamshedpur
Vol. 45 No. 7 Private Circulation Only July-2015
Pope Francis the
Great Reformer
Holy
Spirit has been active since the conception of the Church and the Lord has
always been guiding the Church through the Vicar of Christ. Now, more than
ever, the Vicar of Christ, His Holiness Pope Francis, stands as a shining light
that shows way to the stumbling human race.
By the end of
the first year of his Pontificate, every famous magazine hailed him as a great
reformer, model leader. Vanity Fair
declared saying that “the first hundred days have already placed him in the
category of world leaders who make history”. At Christmas he was Person of the
Year in Time magazine as well as in
the Times of London. He was the
subject of long articles in Rolling Stone
and the New Yorker. He topped the
list of Fortune magazine’s list of
world’s greatest leaders. Forbes
named him the fourth most powerful person in the world. Prospect magazine rated him as the fifth among the world’s top
thinkers alongside economists and philosophers such as Amartya Sen. The Economist said that the Havard Business
School should study Francis alongside IBM’s Lou Gerstner and Apple’s Steve Jobs
as an example of “turnaround CEOs” who breathe new life into dying
organizations, describing him as “the man who has rebranded RC Global in barely
a year”. The British Guardian decided
Francis was now “the world’s loudest and clearest voice against the status quo”
and the Financial Times said that he
was “the leading global symbol of compassion and humility”.
Time named Francis
its Person of the Year for pulling the papacy out of the palace and into the
streets and for balancing judgment and mercy. It said that Francis won hearts
and headlines with his common touch and rejection of luxury. It also suggested
that he had changed everything even when he had changed no doctrine. It said
that Francis was a maker PR operator. What drew people to Francis was that he
was completely himself, acting in total freedom and honesty, indifferent to the
headlines. As the Financial Times noted,
Francis “has a sincerity and authenticity that no world leader can match.”
In all his life
Francis has always been sincere and authentic. After the election as Pope he
chose the name Francis in honor of Saint Francis of Assisi. When he spoke to
the faithful in St Peter’s square he bowed his head and asked for the blessing
of the people. Then refusing to travel in limousine, he traveled in bus to Santa Marta and instead
of living in the papal palace he decided to live in two room apartment in Santa
Marta. That is the simplicity, humility and authenticity of Francis. Francis
spends a very long time among the people, kissing and embracing and shaking
hands, especially the sick and the disabled persons.
Less than a
month after his election he created a council of eight cardinal archbishops
(C8) from across the world to advise him in the governance of the universal
Church and to plan the reform of the Roman Curia. The cardinals are from India,
Germany, the Congo, the United States, Australia, Honduras, and Italy. They
meet once in every two months. Oswald Gracious from Mumbai is also in the C8.
Francis created
19 new cardinals (16 electors). This reflected the future direction he wants
for the college: to increase the voice of poor countries, correct the
Eurocentric imbalance in the college and reduce the number of curial cardinals.
The newly created cardinals were mostly from the poor countries. At the
consistory he told the cardinals to renounce being princes of the Church, to
shun a “worldly mentality” of rivalry, jealousy, and factions, as well as
“gossip, cliques, favouritism and preferences.” A cardinal, he said, “enters
the Church of Rome, not a royal court.””Jesus, he said, came not to teach good
manners but “to show us the only way out of the quicksand of sin, and this way
is mercy.” He said they should “oppose arrogance with meekness” and use “the
language of the Gospel: yes when we mean yes; no when we mean no.”
Just after the
consistory, the first major overhaul of the Curia was announced: a new
Secretariat for the Economy, headed by the Australian cardinal, George Pell, in
turn accountable to a new Council for the Economy made up of professional laity
experts as well as bishops with financial experience. A month later, in July
2014, cardinal Pell announced a series of reforms to the so-called Vatican
Bank.
Pope Francis
appointed Cardinal Pietro Parolin as the secretary of State, a sixty year old
Italian career diplomat who is the antithesis of his predecessors. Where
Cardinals Sodano and Bertone were driven in limousines, Parolin prefers to walk
alone, a humble and evangelically minded reformer in the mold of Francis.
Pope Francis has
become the most accessible of modern popes, almost always to be found at lunchtime
in the Santa Marta restaurant, where he has his own table set aside, but stands
in the queue with his tray like everyone else. Visitors report that he comes
out of the Santa Marta to greet them personally.
Pope Francis has
campaigned against “spiritual worldliness” and Vatican extravaganza. For
example, Pope Francis was furious at a VIP banquet for 150 businessmen and
journalists on the veranda of the Vatican Prefecture for Economic Affairs
during the April 27, 2014, ceremony to canonize John XXIII and John Paul II,
which reportedly cost its sponsors $25,000.
Addressing a
group of Catholic doctors he linked abortion with throwaway culture, saying
that “each child who is unborn, but is unjustly condemned to be aborted, bears
the face of Jesus Christ...who even before he was born, and then as soon as he
was born, experienced the rejection of the world”.
The radicalism
of Pope Francis comes from his willingness to go to the essentials, to look
back to the Gospel; despite his powerful intellect, his political mind, and his
theological sophistication, his belief is primitive, undiluted: God is
sovereign, the devil is active, we must discern and choose. Francis sees the
devil not as a myth or theological proposition but a daily reality, the “prince
of this world” who hates holiness and tempts through riches, power and pride to
persuade us to look to our own resources, not God’s.
Pope Francis
believes in the power of prayer to perform “diplomacy of the impossible”. Thus
on September 8 2013, Francis knelt before an icon of Our Lady in St. Peter’s
Square while leading a three hour peace prayer vigil for Syria, accompanied by
tens of thousands of people and begged God to bring to an end the barbaric,
heartrending carnage in that country. (cf. The Great Reformer by Austin
Ivereigh, 2014 (pp.368 -391)
Let us not be
mere observers or admirers of our beloved Pope. But let us heed to the
inspirations of the Holy Spirit and translate it into our life. Let us also be
humble and courageous, modern but humane.
+Felix Toppo, S.J.
Bishop of Jamshedpur
POPE
FRANCIS’ NEW ENCYCLICAL ON CLIMATE CHANGE
Pope Francis’
new Encyclical on Climate Change, Laudato
Si, was published on June 18, 2015 in Rome. He is the first Pope
ever to publish an Encyclical Letter on this topic of Climate Change and
Environment Protection. This Encyclical, comprising of 6 Chapters with 246 Articles, expresses a
sense of distress at the dangerous situation which is developing, stresses the
importance and urgency of finding a solution and urges world leaders to take
responsible decisions. It develops a spirituality for our times to
respond to this crisis. Pope Francis seeks to bring ethics and morality
into the discussion on climate change and a sense of responsibility
towards future generations in our use of the riches of nature. It challenges
world leaders to care particularly for the poor and not to let economics be the
deciding factor for policies.
This encyclical letter also explores
the relationship between care for creation, integral human development and
concern for the poor. The timing of the encyclical is significant: 2015 is
a critical year for humanity. In July, nations will gather for the Third
International Conference on Financing for Development in Addis Ababa. In
September, the U.N. General Assembly should agree on a new set of sustainable
development goals running until 2030. In December, the Climate Change
Conference in Paris will receive the plans and commitments of each Government
to slow or reduce global warming.
All the Episcopal Conferences are
directed by the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace to take appropriate
steps to make available this important Encyclical Letter of the Holy Father to
the faithful, to fellow believers and to all people of good will, who care for
our Planet and are concerned about the future of human kind. This important
document will also be made accessible to the Media, to the Academic world and
to the Civil authorities for serious reflection and common effort to protect
the Environment and Ecology. The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India will, in
due course of time, come out with various programmes to
address the concerns raised by the Holy Father in this Encyclical.
CATHOLIC
CHARITIES / SJVK/VIKAS BHARATI
CCJ/SVK
conducted their 2-days Annual evaluation on 5-6 of June 2015 at their Centre at
Sundernagar. Frs. Prabhu, Alwin and their entire staff – 60 of them -with the
help of an expert external team went through a process of critical evaluation
and analysis of every program and activity CCJ/SJVK had during 2014- 2015. Our Vicar General Fr. David Vincent was the
Chief Guest and he inaugurated the process by lighting the traditional lamp and
chanting of the mantras. Fr. Augustine
Ezhakunnel SJ of XITE, Ms Dilith Castleton of Tata Steel,, Dr. Tapas of Manas
and several other experts guided the deliberations. Fr. David the Chief Guest
also released the Annual Reports of CCJ/SJVK on the occasion. Everyone expressed
great satisfaction at what was achieved in these two days.
Model
Farms
: Samekit Jan Vikas Kendra in
collaboration with the International Rice Research Institute, (IRRI)Govt. of
India, Delhi is working on setting up 6 Model
Rice Farms- 3 in Singhbhum West and 3 in Seraikela-Kharswan. IRRI is providing us with Drought-Resistant
paddy seeds. Fr. Alwin is spending a lot
of his time in villages in organizing trainings for the farmers in several
villages. He already conducted 6 such
farmers’ training camps. CCJ-SJVK is also promoting new forms Lac cultivation as
part of Livelihood Promotion.
Sr.
Veronica HC
who has been working in CCJ-SJVK for nearly 8 years is leaving us by the end of
this month. At the beginning she was
taking care of Women’s Desk. When she
realized that Vikas Bharti urgently needed someone, she stepped in; later on
she also helped out in the Teasurer’s
Office. She was a precious person, involved in all the programmes of
CCJ/SJVK and Vikas Bharti. She developed hundreds of self-help groups,
amalgamated them into 12 Women’s Cooperatives for Income Generating Activities
and finally brought them under one federation. Sr. Veronica is leaving the
green forests of Jharkhand and moving to the deserts of Rajasthan. We thank her
immensely for her generous life of service. We wish her well as she takes up
her new assignment in Rajasthan. We thank
the Holy Cross Congregation for making her available to us. In her place, Sr. Deepti HC has already taken
charge. We welcome her wholeheartedly.
(Fr. C. R.
Prabhu)
Fr. Sameer Soreng lost his beloved Father Emil Soreng
on 11th of June, 2015 due to old age and high blood pressure. He was
83 years old. Fr Sameer was fortunate enough to be at his side at the time of
his death. Frs. Tobias Kujur, Junas Purty, Bipin Barla, Alwin, and Michael
represented the diocese at the burial and expressed our solidarity. May his
soul rest in Peace!
First Vows - A ‘YES’ to the LORD
June 13, 2015
was a remarkable day for the sisters of Sacred Heart as six of their candidates,
Divya Kerketta, Preeti Rani Nayak, Esther Nayak, Juli Suna, Santwana Paik and
Manjusha Minj received their first vows in Golmuri at Cathedral parish in the
presence of His Excellency Most. Rev. Cardinal Telesphore Toppo and Most. Rev.
Charles Soreng. His Eminence presided over the Holy Eucharist. The candidates
submitted their vows in the presence of the church authorities with full devotion
and dedication. Various religious nuns, priests and laity witnessed the
celebration. In the previous day a short ceremony was conducted for the
blessing of the new Religious sarees by Rev. Fr. David Vincent, the Vicar
General. The sarees thereafter were
given to the candidates by their Superior General, Sr. Roshni SSH. The
candidates performed entrance dance and welcomed the Cardinal by the tribal
custom. Bible procession and anjali to Holy Species added grace to the
ceremony. Most. Rev. Charles Soreng preached the homily in which he insisted on
the importance of religious life and congratulated the candidates for their
dedication.
Congratulation and
All the best to all the newly professed.
The
Feast of St. Antony of Padaua
June 12, 2015
was blessed with showers of blessings as the feast of St. Antony was
magnificently celebrated at Cathedral parish in Golmuri. The saint has a
special place in the heart of commoners, as he performs miracles in the life of
the people. The devotees took out a grand procession with the statue of St.
Antony from Vallankanni grotto to the Cathedral. Rev. Fr. Camille Hembrom presided
over the Mass and Fr Edwin Coelho gave a wonderful sermon. The church bedecked
with colourful flowers added beauty to the celebration. People showed their
gratitude and piety to the saint by offering thanks giving Mass for all the
favours received from God through the saint. The choir brought forth a
prayerful atmosphere during the celebration. The feast was celebrated in various
parishes across Jamshedpur with lots of enthusiasm and excitement. The feast
remained a memorable one as usual. Congratulations to all who worked hard for
the wonderful and meaningful celebration. Fr. Maria Charles
St.
Joseph’s parish, Anandpur: First Holy Communion
7th
June 2015: It was a joyous day for the Parishioners of St.
Joseph’s Church, Charbandia as they celebrated two great events; the First Holy
Communion and the Solemnity of Body and Blood of Christ. On this auspicious day
157 children received the First Holy Communion. The Eucharist Celebration was
presided over by Fr. Maria Charles and assisted by Fr. Valerian Lobo, the parish
priest. In his homily, Fr. Maria Charles emphasized the importance of the Holy
Eucharist: Holy Communion is the center of our life, though we cannot see it through our eyes, it is the very Body and
Blood of Christ. The celestial choir, with their wonderful singing made the
Eucharistic celebration very heavenly. A large number of people were present to
witness this occasion.
The preparation
of the children took almost two weeks. They were divided in different groups;
four catechists, a priest and a nun prepared the children for this event. On
the previous day of the celebration, Sacrament of Reconciliation was arranged
not only for the children but also for the parents of the children. Six priests
were present for the confession. At the
end Fr. Valerian Lobo thanked all for their support and service. The choir
wished all the best for a new life to those who received the Lord for the first
time. The celebration ended with distribution of snacks
Fr. Valerian
Lobo
St. Joseph's school
Bilai Pahari
St. Joseph's school Bilai Pahari has been shifted
to the new school building as Fr. Edward Saldanha took over as the Principal on
15th June. Access to the new School has been made easy as it has a short cut
way to come to school through the convent campus. It has more than 400 students
in the school. Everything has been shifted to the new campus. The new School is
spacious and clean with facilities of clean drinking water, toilets, cycle shed and a big
playground.
Fr. George Manna and Fr. Edward Saldanha are
on their toes to reach St. Joseph's school to new heights.
ST. FRANCIS DE SALES SCHOOL, SERAIKELLA
St. Francis De Sales school has received its ICSE
affiliation on 8th Jan 2015. The principal, Fr. Shiju and Fr. Joseph are on a
transfer and the new manager Fr. Muthuswamy and Fr. Anthony the new principal
have already taken charge of the school. The new school building and the science
lab have become functional and the school has a new look. The DSFS sisters have
withdrawn from Seraikella after completing five years of contract. Two sisters
from ASMI Sini will be the new sisters collaborators in Seraikella. We thank Rev.
Fr. Shiju, Fr. Joseph, Sr. Litty, Sr. Josemi and Sr. Sushila for their
dedicated service for the last several years in Seraikella. We wish the new
administrative team all the best. ( Fr. Shijumon)
Youth
Seminar
A one day youth seminar was organized for the Jamshedpur
Youth in St. Mary's School, Bistupur on Sunday, 7th June. Over 100 youth from
the town parishes participated in the seminar. Fr. Raju Crasta, the resource
person for the day, inspired them with his lively presentation to think
differently and dream big while believing in themselves. He later presided over
the Eucharist while Fr. Jilson, the preacher stressed on the importance of the
Eucharist in the life of a Catholic. The afternoon session was taken by Mrs.
Mary, who shared in details on the dangers of HIV/AIDS and means of prevention.
The day had its worth for the participants. Sincere thanks to Fr. David and Sr.
Miriam, SJT for their help and support.
(Fr. Dileep Marandi)
St.
Mary’s English High School, Bistupur
For every Institution
its academic performance is the touch
stone. Considering this criterion we can proudly say that despite our admission
policies favoring the marginalized in the society the academic performance of
our students has been commendable, This batch of 2014-2015 has surprised all
the past batches. Std 12 has become
second city Topper and Std 10 as become first city Topper. The credit goes to
the hard working and dedicated staff members and efficient Principal Fr. David
Vincent. Congrats! After the summer
vacation the school welcomed Fr. Linus Kindo, The Vice Principal and wished him
all the best. The formation of the students council began with the election of
the class representatives on 19th June 2015. The class representatives were elected from
all the sections of the classes. This solemn occasion marked the embracing of
the new leaders on a year long mission to safe guard and protect the sanctity
of the school by enforcing rules and regulations and to be a shining example to
all the students.
(Sr. Mariam)
Thank
You & Farewell
1
|
Sr. Teresita
Mary AC
|
Sacred Heart
Convent, Bistupur
|
2
|
Sr. Sylvie AC
|
Carmel Jnr
College, Sonari
|
3
|
Sr. Kiran
Bandaria JMJ
|
Jeevanjyothi
Convent, Telco
|
4
|
Sr. Jyothi
Kisku JMJ
|
Jeevanjyothi Convent,
Telco
|
5
|
Sr. Pushpa
Jojo FC
|
Deepanjali
Convent, Siadih
|
6
|
Sr. Veronica
HC
|
Holy Cross
Convent, Parsudih
|
7
|
Sr. Vandana
SJT
|
St. Mary’s ,
Bistupur
|
8
|
Sr. Kanta SJT
|
St. Mary’s ,
Bistupur
|
9
|
Sr. Litty DSFS
|
DSFS Convent,
Seraikela
|
10
|
Sr. Josemi
DSFS
|
DSFS Convent,
Seraikela
|
11
|
Sr. Sushila
DSFS
|
DSFS Convent,
Seraikela
|
12
|
Fr. Shijumon
MSFS
|
St. Francis De
Sales School, Seraikela
|
13
|
Fr. Joseph
MSFS
|
St. Francis De
Sales School, Seraikela
|
In a special way,
we express our gratitude to JMJ sisters at Bhilai Pahari and DSFS sisters at
Seraikela as they have completed their service in Jamshedpur diocese. May God
bless you for your selfless service.
Welcome
and All the Best
1
|
Sr. Marie
Eugene
|
Sacred Heart Convent,
Bistupur
|
2
|
Sr. Sandra AC
|
Carmel
Convent, Dhanbad
|
3
|
Sr. Lini AC
|
Carmel Jnr
College, Sonari
|
4
|
Sr. Deepti HC
|
Holy Cross
Convent, Parsudih
|
4
|
Sr. Archana
Kujur JMJ
|
Jeevanjyothi
Convent, Telco
|
5
|
Sr. Seema Minj
SJT
|
St. Mary’s ,
Bistupur
|
6
|
Fr. Muthuswamy
MSFS
|
St. Francis De
Sales School, Seraikela
|
7
|
Fr. Antony
MSFS
|
St. Francis De
Sales School, Seraikela
|
8
|
Sr. Luisa
Joseph OSU
|
Catholic
Charities, Sundernagar
|
We also welcome
other religious who have come into our diocese from different religious
congregations and wish them all the best.
PLEASE
NOTE:
All the schools
in Jamshedpur diocese are requested to collect the Service Rules &
Conditions and the copy of the Diocesan Education Policy from the Bishop’s
House.
We request the
Local Superiors of each Religious Communities to send a fresh list of your
community members to the Curia Office at the earliest.
Those
who have contributed towards Nepal earthquake victims Fund
No.
|
Those who have contributed
above 750/-
|
No.
|
Those
who have contributed above 20,000/-
|
1.
|
Society Of The
Pious Disciples Of The Divine Master
|
1
|
Sacred Heart Convent, Sakchi
|
2.
|
St. Robert’s High School, Parsudih
|
2
|
Carmel College, Sonari
|
3.
|
Mr. Das, A.D. Construction, Bistupur
|
3
|
Carmel School, Digwadih
|
4.
|
Mr. Das, Gem Infrastructure, Bistupur
|
4
|
St. Joseph’s School Golmuri
|
5.
|
Assisi Sisters Of Snehabhavan, Sini
|
5
|
St. Mary’s Eng. High
School, Bistupur
|
6.
|
Miss Anita
|
6
|
St. Mary’s Hindi High
School, Bistupur
|
7.
|
St. Theresa’s School, Jhinkpani
|
7
|
St. Robert’s Church, Parsudih
|
8.
|
St. Xavier’s School, Balrampur
|
8
|
St. Xavier’s Eng. School, Chaibasa
|
9.
|
Mrs. Salomi Topno, Birsanagar zone no. 10
|
9
|
St. Joseph’s Convent High School, Mosabani
|
10.
|
Ursuline Convent, Chakradharpur
|
10
|
St. Xavier’s Girl’s Middle, High, Inter School, Chaibasa
|
11.
|
Jeevan Jyoti
Convent, Telco
|
11
|
St. Xavier’s Boys Middle School, Chaibasa
|
12.
|
Mother Theresa’s church, Siadih
|
12
|
SCJM Convent,
Baridih
|
13.
|
Jesu Marshal, Chandil
|
|
|
14.
|
Amar Jyoti School, Pardih, Mango
|
|
|
15.
|
Our Lady of Nativity Church, Sini
|
|
|
16.
|
Golmuri Youth
|
|
|
We thank you for the generous support. Those who are yet to submit the collection
please do so at the earliest.
BIRTHDAY WISHES
- JULY
Date
|
Name
|
13
|
Fr. Eugene Ekka
|
19
|
Fr. David Vincent
|
22
|
Fr. Cyril Fernades
|
24
|
Fr. John Ottaplakal
|
25
|
Fr. Jerome Pereira
Fr. James Quadros
|
26
|
Fr. Linus Kindo
|
30
|
Fr. Joy Paul K.
|
BISHOP’S ENGAGEMENTS- JULY, 2015
JULY, 2015
|
01
|
Wed
|
06.00 am
|
Eucharistic
Celebration at Pratiksha
|
Sundernagar
|
04.00 pm
|
Eucharistic celebration cum farewell & welcome
to the outgoing and incoming Rectors of SAC
|
Ranchi
|
02
|
Thurs
|
09.00 am
|
Meeting with Holy Spirit Provincial
|
JSR
|
03
|
Fri
|
05.00 pm
|
Cultural
Program at St Mary’s E School
|
Bistupur
|
04
|
Sat
|
05.00 pm
|
Benediction
for the Confirmees followed by Parish Council Meeting
|
Adra
|
05
|
Sun
|
07.00 am
|
Confirmation
and Pastoral Visitation
|
09
|
Thurs
|
08.30 am
|
Eucharistic
Celebration at SAC
|
Ranchi
|
10.30 am
|
Inaugural function at SAC
|
15
|
Wed
|
10.30 am
|
Mass
at Little Flower School
|
Telco
|
16
|
Thur
|
06.30 am
|
Carmel
Feast: Mass at Sacred Heart Convent
|
Bistupur
|
09.30 am
|
Diocesan
Governing Body Meeting
|
JSR
|
18
|
Sat
|
04.00 pm
|
Blessing
and Inauguration of SABS Convent
|
CKP
|
22
|
Wed
|
09.30 am
|
Meeting
of Secretaries of JH-Andamans RBC
|
Ranchi
|
03.00 pm
|
Bihar-
JH-Andamans RBC Joint Meeting
|
23
|
Thur
|
AM-PM
|
Meetings
with Staff and Students of St Albert’s College
|
Ranchi
|
24
|
Fri
|
09.00 pm
|
Governing
Board Meeting of CBCI-SME-NI
|
Ranchi
|
02.00 pm
|
Jharkhand-Andamans
Bishop’s Meeting at ABH
|