Catholic Diocese of
Jamshedpur
Vol. 47 No. 10 Private Circulation Only October– 2017
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Jesus,
St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, a Religious of the Visitation Order
and an apostle of the Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus was born at
Lhautecour, France, 22 July, 1647.
Her parents, Claude Alacoque and
Philiberte Lamyn, were distinguished less for temporal possessions than for their virtue, which gave them an honourable position. From early
childhood Margaret showed intense love for the Blessed Sacrament, and preferred silence and prayer to childish
amusements. After her first communion at the age of nine,
she practised in secret severe corporal mortifications, until paralysis confined
her to bed for four years. At the end of this period, having made a vow to the Blessed Virgin to consecrate herself to religious life, she was instantly
restored to perfect health. The death of her father and the injustice of a relative plunged
the family in poverty and humiliation,
after which more than ever Margaret found consolation in the Blessed Sacrament, and Christ made her
sensible of His presence and protection. He usually appeared to her as the
Crucified or the Ecce Homo, and this did not surprise her, as she
thought others had the same Divine assistance. When Margaret was seventeen,
the family property was recovered, and
her mother besought her to establish herself in the world. Her filial
tenderness made her believe that the vow of childhood was not
binding, and that she could serve God at home
by penance and charity to the poor. Then, still bleeding from
her self-imposed austerities, she began to take part in
the pleasures of the world. One night upon her return from a ball, she had
a vision of Christ as He was during the
scourging, reproaching her for infidelity after He had given her so many proofs of His love. During her entire life
Margaret mourned over two faults committed at this time--the wearing of some
superfluous ornaments and a mask at the carnival to please her brothers.
On 25 May, 1671, she entered the Visitation Convent at Paray, where
she was subjected to many trials to prove her vocation, and in November, 1672,
pronounced her final vows. She had a delicate
constitution, but was gifted with intelligence and good judgement, and in
the cloister she chose for herself
what was most repugnant to her nature, making her life one of inconceivable
sufferings, which were often relieved or instantly cured by our Lord, Who acted as her
Director, appeared to her frequently and conversed with her,
confiding to her the mission to establish the devotion to His Sacred
Heart. These extraordinary occurrences drew upon her the adverse criticism of
the community, who treated her as a
visionary, and her superior commanded her to live the common life. But her obedience,
her humility, and invariable charity towards those who
persecuted her, finally prevailed, and her mission, accomplished in the
crucible of suffering, was recognized even by those who had shown her the most
bitter opposition.
Margaret Mary was inspired by Christ to establish the Holy
Hour and to pray lying prostrate with her face to the ground from
eleven till midnight on the eve of the first Friday of each month, to share in
the mortal sadness He endured when abandoned by His Apostlesin His Agony, and to receive Holy Communion on the first Friday
of every month. In the first great revelation, He made known to her His
ardent desire to be loved by men and His design of
manifesting His Heart with all Its
treasures of love and mercy, of
sanctification and salvation. He appointed the Friday
after the octave of the feast of Corpus Christi as the feast of the Sacred Heart; He called her "the Beloved
Disciple of the Sacred Heart", and the heiress of
all Its treasures. The love of the Sacred Heart was the fire which
consumed her, and devotion to the Sacred Heart is the refrain of all
her writings. In her last illness she refused all alleviation, repeating
frequently: "What have I in heaven and what do I desire on earth,
but Thee alone, O my God", and died on 17 October, 1690, pronouncing the Holy Name of Jesus.
The discussion of the mission and virtues of Margaret Mary
continued for years. All her actions, her revelations, her spiritual maxims, her
teachings regarding the devotion to the Sacred Heart, of which she was the
chief exponent as well as the apostle, were subjected to the most severe and
minute examination, and finally the Sacred Congregation of rites passed a
favorable vote on the heroic virtues of this servant
of God. In March, 1824, Leo XII pronounced her
Venerable, and on 18 September, 1864, Pius IX declared her Blessed. When her tomb was canonically
opened in July, 1830, two instantaneous cures took place. St. Margaret Mary
was canonized by Benedict XV in 1920. Her body rests under
the altar in the chapel at Paray, and many striking
favors have been obtained by pilgrims attracted thither
from all parts of the world. Her feast is celebrated on 16
October.
+ Felix Toppo, S.J
Bishop of Jamshedpur
Catholic Priest
Tom Uzhunnalil rescued from Islamic State captivity
Father Tom Uzhunnalil, a Vatican priest from
Kerala, who was abducted by Islamic State militants from an old age home run by
Missionaries of Charity at Aden in strife-torn Yemen more than 18 months ago,
has been released.
External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj
confirmed the news via her Twitter handle at 3.45 pm on Tuesday. "I am
happy to inform that Father Tom Uzhunnalil has been rescued," the Oman Observer, a leading English daily based
in Muscat, said that the Omani ruler Sultan Qaboos bin Said had secured the
priest’s release from Islamic State in coordination with the Yemeni parties.
The newspaper also released an image of the rescued priest.
"Tom
Uzhunnalil, a Vatican priest, expressed thanks to God Almighty and appreciation
to Sultan Qaboos. He also thanked his brothers and sisters and all relatives
and friends who called on God for safety and release,” the report said. Shajan
Uzhunnalil, a cousin of the abducted priest at Pala in Kottayam district, said
that the family was relieved to hear the news. After his release Fr. Tom visited Rome and met Pope Francis. He was given proper medical care by Oman Goverment and recovered,after his recover he visisted his hometown Ramapuramin Pala . The release of the priest, who belongs to Salesians of Don
Bosco (SDB), Bengaluru, from the captivity of terrorists was a result of the
sustained efforts of many, including the government and the church , and the
prayers from all sections of people in the country. The relatives of the priest from different parts of the state have Gathered at his home at Ramapuram in Pala.
In early Fr. tom was abducted by Armed men had stormed the old age home where
Tom was serving on 4 March 2016. He was taken away after the terrorists gunned
down 16 people, including four Catholic nuns serving the home. One of the nuns
was also from India. The priest had communicated to the church and the
government through videos released on social networking sites. The priest had raised concern about his deteriorating health in the last video.
He looked more tired and weak compared to the video released earlier in
December 2016. Following this, the church in India had mounted pressure on the Narendra Modi government for securing his release.
Vatican also intervened in the matter after Tom made a direct appeal to Pope
Francis.Several delegations of the church met Modi and Swaraj. Following this,
the government had set up a three-member committee to help secure the priest’s
release. Cardinal Mar George Alencherry, head of Syro-Malabar Church, one of
the three Catholic rites in the state, said that Pope Francis had shown
personal interest in the matter and had directed actions to save the priest’s
life. He also appreciated the efforts made by the Government of India. The
Cardinal, who met the prime minister twice regarding the priest’s release, was
not ready to blame the government and the Vatican as the situation in Yemen was
volatile and India had no full-fledged diplomatic mission there.
"What
we can do at this juncture is to pray to the God to give strength to the priest
to face the situation.
Dhanbad
Deanery Mahila Sangh Convention
On 03rd September 2017 a good
number of catholic women of Dhanbad Deanery gathered in Dhowatand Parish for
their annual aam sabha. The theme of the gathering was “Adhunikta me Hamari
Dharmikta”. Fr. Susai Saleth S.J. was the main speaker. Fr. Valerian Lobo also stressed the need of
having a strong and active mahila sangh in every parish so as to bring up good
chritian families. Fr. Amatus kujur, the
dean and the parish preist of St. Anthony’s Parish, Dhandbad was the main
celebrant for the Eucharistic celebration. Fr. Nicholas Kerketta, the local
host was very generous in taking care of every need of the people gathered
there. A big thanks to Fr. Nicholas and the committee members for your good
work.
Chaibasa
Deanery Mahila Sangh Aam Sabha
This year on 16th & 17th
September the women from different parishes of Chaibasa deanery were gathered
at the campus of St. Xavier’s English School, Chakradharpur for their annual
convention. After the inaugural ceremony by the dean and the Parish Priest
Fr.Haln Bodra, Fr. Ajay Xalxo from St. Albert’s College enlighted the gathered
women on the theme : How to keep up the spiritual life alive in our families
and in the Church. On 17th the day began with Holy Eucharist where
the main celebrant Fr. Halan Bodra stressed the need of women in the family and
the church. After the break fast. Fr.Valerian Lobo, the Diocesan Director for
Family, insisted the need of strengthening the
Mahila Sangh in evry parish to revive the families. Mr. Gladston
Dungdung enlightend the women on the issues of CNT and SPT act. , Bhumi
Adhigrahan and Dharmanteran Bill. Many women raised a good number of sensible
questions and the speaker answered them to their satisfaction. The convention
ended after the action plan and sumptuous lunch. The women are grateful to the
deanery committee, the parish priest and the Principal of St. Xavier’s English
School for organizing the programme so well. Thank you.
Catechists
Renewal programme
From 04th to 06th
September, 2017 , 29 catechists from
kolhan region gathered in Divya Bharati Pastoral Centre for the renewal
programme. The topics were ‘why the sacraments necessary’ and what is Bhumi
Adhgrahan Bill and Dharmantaran Bill’ . Fr. Valerian Lobo and Fr. Anil Dang
S.j. delebarated on the above topics respectively. After the two days of
reflection the catechists left with lot of satisfaction for the knowledge they
received. Thanks a lot to all the parish preists for encouraging your
catechists.
Chiabasa
Deanery Annual Krus Vir Rally
This year St. Xavier’s Boy’s School,
Chaibasa hoisted the annual Krus vir convention from 26th to 28th
of September 2017. There were above 600 children from various schools and
parishes. The day began with the hoisting of the flag by Fr. Halan Bodra, the
dean and the parish Priest of Chaibasa
followed by procession to the Church reciting rosary. In the Church we had
benediction and prayed for the success of the rally. After supper different
groups presented the cultural programmes. Next day began with meditation
followed by the Holy Eucharist celebrated by Fr. Valerian Lobo, the diocesan
krus vir director wherein he explained through power point the theme of the
convention : Krus vir- Parivar ka Anand. After the break fast Fr. Retesh S.j.
highlighted importance of the krus vir
to bring about joy in the
families. The bible quiz really brought a lot of joy to the children. Final day
Fr. Sahaya Dasan was the main celebrant for the Eucharist. The ended with
distribution of gifts to the winners of various compititon and lunch. Thanks to
all the members of the committee for their whole-hearted cooperation for the
success of the rally.
Youth Sunday at St. Joseph's Cathedral, Golmuri
KRUSVEER
SUNDAY AT CATHEDRAL, GOLMURI
24TH
September 2017 was marked as Krusveer Sunday at st. St. Joseph’s Cathedral,
Golmuri. Fr. David Vincent was the main celebrant. 28 children became candidate
for Krusveer and 14 children took oath to remain zealous and vibrant soldiers of
Jesus Christ. The children savored the sweetness of snack after the Mass and shored
their joy to one-another. A sincere thanks to all the animators. Thanks &
congratulation s to Julius Kujur for sponsoring delicious and sumptuous snacks. (Fr. Manoj Tigga)
A
Workshop on Acupressure
As
the physical exercise and workouts help maintaining our health, likewise the
method of acupressure has also been proven effective. If this approach is
followed for 10 -15 minutes on a daily routine, it can show great effects on
our health. Realizing the effectiveness of acupressure, the Catholic Charities
organized a workshop for its staff on acupressure on 14th September.
All the staff of the Catholic Charities benefited by the workshop as they have
learnt now how to find out the specific points in the body and press them in
order to get rid of the diseases. A big thanks to Sr. Jeyama SRA for guiding
and imparting the knowledge to all the staff.
An
Awareness program on Dengue
This
year, in Jamshedpur, Dengue fever has been a matter of discussion and concern
as many suffered from dengue fever. Therefore the Catholic Charities felt that
a workshop should be arranged to conscientize the staff and the neighbouring
friends. Hence, on 27th September a workshop was organized with the
help of Dr. Nilima Bara, Dr. Alok Suman Prasad and their team from JUSCO. There
were more than 70 participants as they came from Pratiksha, Vianny Niwas and
nearby villages. Thanks to Dr. Nilima Bara and her entire team.
Farmer’s
District level Convention
The
Catholic Charities Jamshedpur organized a district level farmer’s Convention at
Ravindra Bhavan, Chaibasa on 13th September. The main theme was “I
am a farmer.” 130 farmers came from all over West Singhbhum and Saraikela
–Kharswan to participate in this convention. One of the objectives of it was to
provide a plateform to the farmers to interact, share and network with the
government officials. Fr. Prabhu welcomed and briefed the gathering about the
objectives. Dr. Pramod Kumar the
director of Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Jagannathpur was the chief guest, who in his
speech assured his full help and support to the farmers. Mr. Walter Kerketta
and Mr. David Tigga from SIGN were also present for the convention. Thanks to
all the staff of Catholic Charities for organizing it superbly. (Fr.
Birendra Tete)
St. Xavier’s English School, Chaibasa
It
gives me mammoth pleasure to write that St. Xavier’s English School &
Junior College has been able to sustain numerous extracurricular opportunities
for its students.
The
year 2017-18 is a year to cherish it being the Silver Jubilee year. Keeping
this in view we had a great Jubilee Cup Inter School Basketball Tournament
inauguration on 15th of September. The Chief Guest of the event was
Fr. Staney , Principal of St. Xavier’s High School, Lupungutu many other
dignitaries were Present.
On
16th of September the Tournament came to an end with the Final match
to be played between St.Xavier’s English School & Junior College and St.
Xavier’s Boy’s Chaibasa.The Chief Guest of the event Fr. Sahay Thason in his
redressal speech asked the players to enjoy the game and to remember whatever
we do should be for the glory of God.
The match began with the unveiling of the trophies and Blessings of players by
the guests. A great Fiesta to witness. St.
Xavier High School lupungutu was the winner and St. Xavier’s English School and
Junior College was 1st runner up of the Jubilee cup. St. Xavier Boys
also went on to participate at the football Match organized by St. Francis De
Sales School, Saraikela. Xavierite’s
are also very generous when it comes to the cause of helping the needy. Funds
were collected to be sent for the Bihar flood affected victims. It was
generously contributed both by the teachers and the students. 23rd September
was the last working day of the school before the Pooja Vacation. On this day we
had the Parents Teacher Meeting. We enjoyed getting to meet parents and hearing
their thoughts.
Bible Quiz 54
Mt.20:22-28
Everyone wishes to become great. Jesus by
serving the humanity fulfilled God’s will and became great. We as his disciples
called to serve our people and become great. So, let us follow Jesus to attain
this purpose.
1. Whose
mother came to Jesus?
2. What
did Jesus say to the disciple’s mother?
3. What
did the mother of two sons request Jesus?
4. Complete
the sentence: will you …………… that I am going to drink?
5. Who
has the authority to allow someone to sit at Jesus right and left?
6. What
do the rulers of this world do to their citizens?
7. What
must I do if I want to become great?
8. Why
did the Son of Man come to this world?
9. Every
year on 08th of Nov what do we commemorate in Khuntpani feast?
10. Who
is called the “Saint of the Gutters”?
You are requested to send the answers latest by the first week of September to the following address.
Director
Divya Bharati Pastoral Centre
Near Mudhra Hospital,
Chaibasa, Jharkhand – 833201
Thank You for the Contribution
towards Bihar Flood Relief Fund
Names
|
Amount
|
St.
Mary’s Eng. High School, Bistupur
|
25000.00
|
Jeevan
Jyoti School of Nursing, Telco
|
8000.00
|
Prem
Niketan Society, Bistupur
|
20000.00
|
CCJ/SJVK/V.
B Jamshedpur Staffs, SHG
|
39351.00
|
St.
Joseph’s Cathedral, Golmuri
|
23500.00
|
Gyandeep
Vidhyalaya, Birsanagar
|
8000.00
|
Benedictine
Sisters, Birsanagar
|
500.00
|
St.
Joseph,s School, Golmuri
|
16000.00
|
S.C.J.M.
Convent, Baridih
|
5000.00
|
St.
Xavier’s Eng. High School, Chaibasa
|
12500.00
|
157851.00
|
BIRTHDAY
WISHES –OCTOBER
Date
|
Name
|
06
|
Michael
Dogam
|
14
|
Bipin
Pani
|
15
|
Fabian
Toppo
|
23
|
Pradeep
Marandi
|
23
|
Puthumai
Raj
|
BISHOP’S
ENGAGEMENTS
OCTOBER 2017
|
||||
01
|
Sun
|
07.00 am
|
Confirmation
|
Anandpur
|
03
|
Tue
|
09.30 am
|
Diocesan Consult/ JDC GB Meeting
|
Golmuri
|
05
|
Thur
|
03.00 pm
|
Meeting: Fr. Valerian Lobo with UCPI
Members
|
Golmuri
|
07
|
Sat
|
08.30 am
|
Confirmation
|
Burigora
|
08
|
Sun
|
07.30 am
|
Confirmation
|
Sini
|
05.30 pm
|
Governing Board Meeting, St Joseph’s
Hospital
|
B. Pahari
|
||
15
|
Sun
|
07.00 am
|
Confirmation
|
Gomo
|
17
|
Tue…
|
PM
|
To Patna tp Bettiah
|
|
19
|
Thur
|
09.00 am
|
Episcopal Ordination of Msgr. Peter S. Goveas
|
Bettiah
|
20
|
Fri
|
AM
|
Patna to JSR
|
|
22
|
Sun
|
07.30 am
|
Confirmation
|
Ghatshila
|
06.00 pm
|
Jubilee of Sr. Grace, SCJM, Mercy
Hospital
|
Baridih
|
||
28
|
Sat
|
P.M.
|
Blessing of Auditorium, Eng. School
|
CKP
|
29
|
Sun
|
7.00 am
|
Confirmation
|
Kutkutungri
|
11.00 am
|
Mass: PDDM - Congregation Feast
|
Mango
|
||
Contribution for the Diocesan News Letter
Your great work or the success story of your parish or institution may be an inspiration to others. It may help someone to restructure his/her priorities. Therefore, may we request you to send the news and stories of success / failures, pastoral activities for the “News Letter”. So that everybody could benefit from it. (You may send them to Fr. Jilson T.L - pajsrbishop@gmail.com)
