Diocese of Jamshedpur
Vol. 46 No. 1 Private
Circulation Only January–
2016
Dear
Brothers and Sisters in Jesus Christ,
I wish you all a very Happy and Blessed New Year.
Many
thoughts pop up as I think about our diocese. And whenever I do so, first of
all I thank God the Almighty, Our Lord Jesus Christ and Holy Spirit, for it is
through their blessings, encouragement and planning our Catholic Diocese of
Jamshedpur came into existence and step by step progressed; and is now
established in spreading the message and proof of love, peace and justice. God
sent enthusiastic missionaries Like Fr. Augustus Stockman, S. J., Fr. John
Deny, Fr. John Bodra, Fr. Edward Nash, Fr. Megaoulli, S. J., Fr. Bimdham in to
our diocese. Inspirited by the love of God they promulgated the Word of the
Lord with great zeal and catered the spiritual,
social, educational and financial needs of the diocese. The service that they
have rendered to our diocese is invaluable. Even the religious sisters and
catechists are commendable who were there to help them. At the beginning there were just 6 parishes
and now it has increased to 35. Likewise the numbers of Catholics, priests, and
religious sisters, educational and other institutions have increased with the
course of time. We are grateful to God for His fatherly providence and
guidance.
While thanking the Lord for the blessings and the progress
that diocese experience, we must keep in mind that Jamshedpur Diocese is made
up of 5 districts and one block from the 6th district. These
districts are: West and East Singhbhum, Saraikela- Kharsawan, Dhanbad and
Purulia; along with Bokaro district’s Chandankyari block. There are various
languages spoken in the Diocese: - Hindi, Ho, Munda, Bangla, Santhali, English
etc. As the diocese is rich in minerals like iron, coal, copper, uranium, etc.,
there are many industries and factories and people from far reaches of India
come here in search of livelihood. This is the reason that rich-poor,
literate-illiterate and different people belonging to different religions,
languages and class live here.
Apart from the diversity of region, culture and languages,
the main aim of the diocese is proclaiming the Lord Jesus and spreading His
message. This is our sole purpose as we are sent out by the Lord Himself.
Better propagation and preaching of the Gospel remain our main priority
even when we venture into avenues of the Social Service, Health and Education;
in fact, they are the visible expression of carrying out the Lord’s Message of
Love. Sometimes, it is true that the means of reaching out and expressing the
Love of Christ become the end in themselves. And we put the energy and time on
the things which are just the opposite to our priority.
The preaching of gospel is not the monopoly of priests,
religious sisters or catechists; every baptized is called to carry out this
Divine Mandate.
This year Pope Francis announced an Extraordinary Jubilee, a
Holy Year of Mercy, to highlight the Catholic Church's "mission to be a
witness of mercy”. I request all of you to take this as an opportunity to be
another Christ, to be merciful as Our Father is merciful and make an effort to
fulfill the wish of Pope Francis.
I am grateful to God the Almighty for the brotherhood, love
and respect that the clergy and religious share among themselves in our
diocese. It indeed is praiseworthy. To keep up the same, we must partake in the
various meetings held in the diocese, religious and secular, and uphold the
brotherhood of love and respect.
It is my earnest request to all of you to form Small
Christian Communities and have regular prayers, along with the adoration of the
Blessed Sacrament. Every family should gather together for the evening prayers,
Rosary and Bible reading; a family that prays together stays together. Lord
will surely bless you and your family.
Dear brothers and sisters, let’s make this year 2016, a year
of spiritual progress. I wish every one of you a very Grace-filled New Year;
May God Bless You All.
Your friend in Lord
Bishop Felix Toppo, S. J.
St. Mary’s English High school, Bistupur
“To
live in the hearts of those we leave behind is not to die
“The management, staff and students of St. Mary’s school awoke in the morning
of the 30th November to the shocking news of the sudden demise of
dear colleague, friend and teacher Mr. Inderjit our game sir. A Spell of gloom engulfed the school campus
as the students and staff struggled to come to terms with this great loss. A
memorial service was organized on the 5th of December, for our
beloved Sir. We pray for our departed dear Sir. May his soul Rest In Peace.
The
joy of giving or the festival of philanthropy
as it is known is celebrated all over in the month of October. In our school,
it was celebrated with great enthusiasm from 10th to 18th December. The school had
various plans to help those in need .The teachers, parents and students joined
hands together and contributed clothes, stationeries bags etc. The collected
gifts and stationeries were given to children of the nearby village. We thank
Fr. David Vincent for giving us this wonder full opportunity to experience the
real JOY IN GIVING. The school is
strengthened by the good will and generosity of our parents and sponsors. The
Christmas prelude was beautifully presented with a combination of dance & skit.
The singing of carols added to the gaiety of the season. The candle light
glittered colourfully in the hands of our audience that adorned the stage. The
whole programme was enchanting and enriching as it was the combination of
CAROLS’ and splendid dance performance embedded in the programme with smiles so
gay we lavished wishes for Christmas and New Year. (Sr. Mariam)
St.
Charles Seminary, Nagpur
Greetings
from St. Charles Seminary. We are glad to inform you that we the students of
fourth year theology successfully completed our theological studies. We were
only twenty two deacons in our batch, in which 14 of us were awarded with B.T.
H. certificate and 8 were given the certificate of Diploma. Congratulations to
all.
St.
Charles Seminary gave farewell to the deacons on 11th December, on
this occasion we were told as one of the best batch in the seminary. Before we
left the seminary, we were given a good opportunity to visit Agra on 13th
December and could see many historical places, like-Taj-Mahal, Red-Fort and
Cathedral of Agra. We had quick Delhi Darshan, where we could enjoy the Metro
and could see India- Gate, Lotus Temple etc. Our quick Delhi Darshan came to an
end on 17th December. And all the Deacons left for their respective
Dioceses and congregations on 20th December, preparing themselves
for their priestly Ordination. (Dn. George )
St.
Xavier’s English School & Junior College, Chaibasa
We
had our first preliminary exams for the classes X and XII in the month of
November which started on 23rd November and ended on 4th
December. Our school celebrated its 2nd Kids Day on 30th
November. The students of L.K.G and U.K.G just dazzled us with their
mesmerizing performance. The day was a smashing hit and the kids stole
everyone’s heart away.
We
had our Annual Day celebration on 7th December. This year we had a
field event and the students from Std. I to XI presented beautiful programs
which filled the audience with wonder. Now, we are back to our studies and are
preparing for the upcoming exams.
Little
Flower Convent, Telco
The
CRI meeting was held in Little Flower School on 8th November
2015. We were happy to welcome around 45
religious and priests for the meeting. Sr. Florence welcomed the gathering
while the President of CRI, Rev. Fr. Kuruvilla, S.J., introduced the resource
person Rev.Fr. Xavier, S.J., who
enlightened the gathering on our Holy Father's encyclical "Laudato
Si", a document which was instrumental in touching the conscience of
several people and nations to accept the inconvenient truth of climate change,
and urged its readers to live in dignity and live with responsibility.
A
solemn Graduation Ceremony was held on 12th December 2015 for 135 students of
Class-X of Little Flower School. Sr.
Doris D’Souza, A.C., Ph.D, Professor
of Business Ethics & Sustainability, X.L.R.I., Jamshedpur, the Chief Guest
at the ceremony, advised the students and audience on the wonderful thought of
‘faith’ – faith in yourself and faith in God.
A
team of three students of Little Flower School participated in the English
Language Quiz held in Ranchi in December 2015, and walked away with the first
prize. The students of LFS also participated in the Taekwondo competition held
in December and brought laurels to the school, winning several gold, silver and
bronze medals at various levels of the competition.
The
concert of the Upper KG students is scheduled in December each year, and is an
event much looked forward to because it carries the theme of Christmas. This year the little ones enthralled their
parents with their performance at the skit, song and dance items. Their act was put up for the school students
at the Annual Christmas celebration too. It got the staff and students into the
Christmas mood and they couldn’t help but join the dance and song by the little
ones. The excitement reached its peak with the arrival of Santa Claus, who
carried sweets for all the students.
(Sr. Hilda)
Diaconate Ordination
On 10th of December, Bros. Alfred Balmuchu and Sushil
Dungdung were raised to the Order of Diaconate by our Bishop Felix Toppo, S.J,
in the presence of many priests, religious, sisters, parents of the ordinandi
and the a large number of faithful in St. Joseph’s Cathedral at Golmuri.
Bishop prayed over the newly ordained deacons and besought God’s
blessings on them for their future ministry. A small felicitation programme was
arranged soon after the mass.
Conclusion of the Year of Consecrated
Life and Annual get-together
Conclusion of Year of Consecrated Life and Annual
get-together was held on 17 December 2015 at the Bishop’s House, Golmuri. This
event was unique and historical in its own way because of the huge number of
people that were enlisted and attended the programme. Around 227 people
actively participated in the Annual Get-together and the Conclusion of the Year
of Consecrated Life.
The provincial of Ranchi, Fr. Joseph Marianus Kujur, S. J.
presented his thoughts on the life and up-liftment of the tribals. Bishop Felix
Toppo, S.J., briefly explained the “Misericordiae Vultus” the apostolic letter of
Pope Francis. On this occasion Pope
Francis’s birthday was remembered and wished for his long and healthy
life. Shortly after this everyone
enjoyed a delicious meal. At the end,
for making this Year of Consecrated Life more memorable one, each one was
presented with a memento. Everyone is equally credited for the success of this
event, hearty thanks to everyone.
Inauguration of the Year of
Mercy
It indeed was a remarkable day for the whole of Catholic Church and
in a special way, for Jamshedpur Diocese, as it marked the inauguration of the
Year of Mercy.
On 13th of December, 2015, Bishop Felix Toppo, S.J,
invoking the name of God, welcomed the faithful to join him in procession from
the St. Joseph’s School ground to the main door of the Cathedral with prayers
and praising. He, then, solemnly opened the door, symbolizing the opening of
the Year of Mercy. He exhorted the faithful to ‘Be Merciful as your Heavenly
Father is Merciful’ (Mt. 6:39). Frs. Camille Hembrom and Pradeep Marandi left
no stones un-turned to make this event a memorable one. Balloons, with Jubilee Symbol
and quotations from the Bible, were distributed to all the faithful.
The First Christmas
Celebration of the Dominicans, in Infant Jesus’ Church, Jadugora.
The celebration of Christmas is a moment of great Joy and Peace for whole of Humanity. Jesus the prince of peace takes birth in the cold wintry night to share peace and joy among those who seek it. Infant Jesus Church Jadugora was filled with the same peace and joy as it started to celebrate the glorious event of the birth of Jesus. Though the Parish has few families yet their enthusiasm to celebrate the birth of Jesus was enthralling. Since the parish was established just 3months ago a lot of cleaning and renovation was required to get the place ready before Christmas, and the families rendered their helping hand not only physically and financially but also spiritually. On 16, 17 Dec.2015 the priests along with the parishioners went to house to house, announcing the birth of Jesus Singing Carols and reciting prayers. A day before the Christmas vigil, a penitential rite was organised by the Parish Priest Rev. Fr. Peter Fernandes OP at 18 hours. Fr. Peter Fernandes gave a short talk on repentance and reminded people about the rite of confession, soon after which blessed sacrament was exposed and priests of the community sat to hear confessions, which was then concluded with holy mass.
The
Christmas vigil began at 11pm with Carol singing followed by holy mass at 12am.
After the Holy Mass cake and tea were served for all, followed by Cultural adivasi
dance, which went on till 4am in the morning. All whether big or small danced
on the tune and shared the joy of Christmas with each other. Christmas morning
was celebrated with the children of the village surrounding the Parish. Fr.
Peter Fernandes, the Parish Priest, called the Children from the Village and
organised some games. And at the end cakes and snacks were distributed to all.
Overall the first Christmas celebration of Infant Jesus Church, after
Dominicans have taken over was enriching. (Fr. Rocque Michael OP)
Christmas Mid-Night Mass, St.
Joseph’s Cathedral, Golmuri
Just as the angels announced birth of Christ, the celestial choir
at St. Joseph’s Cathedral welcomed the faithful to the Christmas mass with
Joyful Carols. The Eucharistic Celebration was presided over by His Lordship
Bishop Felix Toppo, S.J, accompanied by Frs. Camille Hembrom and K. M. Joseph,
S.J.
In his homely Bishop gave the message of Peace, love and Joy. The
Cathedral was completely packed with the faithful, compelling the late comers
to sit on the mattress on the floor. It was a very prayerful atmosphere as they
gave witness to the new born baby Jesus through their prayerful devotion. Soon
after the Eucharistic celebration, Bishop and the con-celebrants shared the joy and
happiness of Christmas by wishing the people a Merry Christmas.
On 25th St. Joseph’s Cathedral witnessed the simple
faith of the believers as they flocked in to have a glimpse of the baby Jesus
laying in the manger and to offer Him their respect. Jesuit Novices from Mango
were kind enough to be at the service of the people, assisting them and guiding
them at the Cathedral. Congratulations to Frs. Camille and David Vincent for
their marvellous arrangements.
The
Bishop’s Choir
24th
of December, 2015 will be marked in golden letters in the annals of history of
St. Joseph’s Cathedral Golmuri. Bishop Felix Toppo, S.J, assimilating the
message of Pope Francis on Youth, instructed the youth to be at the forefront
of Christmas celebrations. He gave special practices to the youth and prepared
them for the Mid-Night Christmas Carols and for the choir. All the faithful
listened to the Christmas Carols spell bound as if they were enchanted by the
angelic choir. Congratulations and special thanks to Bishop Felix for his
wonderful initiative and encouragement.
Birthday
Babies – January
Date
Name
04 Fr. Sameer Soreng
11 Fr. Felix Raju Crasta
21 Fr. Selva Raj
28 Fr. Gyan Prakash Topno
BISHOP’S
ENGAGEMENTS
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JANUARY 2016
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02
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Sat
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Return to JSR
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03
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Sun
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08.30 a.m.
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Priestly Ordination: Deacon Niral Deagam
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Budigora
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07
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Thus
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11.00 a.m.
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New House Blessing, Br. Vincent Minj
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Lalkhatanga
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06.00 p.m.
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Blessing New Block of SAC
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Ranchi
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10
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Sun
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Guests from Chek-Republic
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JSR
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13
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Wed
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Golden Jubilee by Celebration of three OSU
Nuns
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CKP
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14
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Thus
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09.30 a.m.
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Seminar by Fr. Derrick Snyed in Bishop House
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Golmuri
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15
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Fri
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09.15 a.m.
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Silver Jubilee of Sr. Nirmala Kerketta, DSA
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CBSA
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16
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Sat
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Priestly Ordination: Deacon Baldev Hembrom
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Dhanbad
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20-22
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Wed
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UCPI Convention
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Cochin
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The Call to the priesthood… Can you hear it?
The Diocese of Jamshedpur and Society of
Jesus, Jamshedpur province have programs such as vocation seminar and meetings
for prospective candidates for priesthood. The Vocation camp for the diocese
and Jesuit province of Jamshedpur will be held from 30th March to 3rd
April, 2016 at St. Joseph’s School, Bhilaipahari, Jamshedpur. 10th
and +2 students are invited to join the vocation camp. Contact to the Vocation
Offices for more informations at:
Fr. Linus Kindo
Bishop’s House
P.O. Golmuri
Jamshedpur-831003
Jharkhand
Phone No.: 09572752429
Fr. Niranjan, S.J.
Inigo Niwas, Candidate House
St. Xavier’s High School
W. Sighbhum-833201
Ph. No.: 09931207008
