Aug 23, 2017
On Tuesday, August 15th, five MSC novices took the next step on their missionary journey as they made their First Professions in Myross Wood House, Co. Cork. On this special occasion, the community of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart joined together with the novices and their loved ones to celebrate the conclusion of the novitiate year and the beginning of a new chapter for Daniel, Domenico, Giacomo, Jaime, and Piotr.
Fr Joseph McGee MSC, who was Irish Provincial Leader at the time, explains, “First Profession takes place at the conclusion of the Novitiate, which is a one-year period of intense spiritual preparation for young men who wish to become Missionaries of the Sacred Heart. From this point on, they are now members of the Society, with temporary status, and they will continue their studies in preparation for the day when they will make their Final Profession as full members of the Society.”
“Profession is a promise.”
Fr Michael Curran MSC was one of the group’s leaders throughout the novitiate year in Myross Wood, alongside Fr Nicholas Harnan MSC and Novice Master Fr Michael Huber MSC. Having worked closely with the five novices during the course of the year, the First Profession ceremony was a proud moment for the group leaders. “Profession is a promise,” says Fr Michael, “a serious commitment made to God. It has as its objective the ‘following’ of Jesus – taking his word seriously, as all Christians do, but also imitating him in his celibate commitment, in the poverty and simplicity of his lifestyle, and in his obedience to the mission entrusted to him by the heavenly Father.”
Newly professed Br Giacomo Gelardi MSC describes his experience: “We were all very nervous ahead of the ceremony,” he recalls. “The night before, I think we all only slept for two or three hours at a time! The day itself, however, went very well. At moments, I realised where I was and what I was doing, and I felt both peaceful and joyful. This is what I had been waiting for, and now it felt real. I have always been for Jesus, and now it’s official!”
Treasuring the past and building the future
So, what’s next for the newly professed MSC members? First comes a well-deserved holiday, then they will return to their studies in different parts of the world. “The normal course of study would be about six years in total,” explains Fr Michael. “Meanwhile, these young men are in ‘temporary’ vows. They have to complete a minimum of three years in temporary Profession before taking their final vows.”
“During this time,” adds Fr Joseph, “the newly professed members will be given more opportunities to engage in various types of pastoral experience. They will live in community with our MSCs, and thus grow more and more as members of the Society.”
“I’ll be studying theology in Maynooth for three years,” says Br Giacomo. “I know it’s going to be difficult, but I don’t mind. I’m a perfectionist, I want to do my best at everything – in prayer with Jesus and at university – but I’ll take it as it comes.”
“This has been a wonderful day for the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart.”
This year’s First Profession ceremony has been an event of great significance for the MSC community. “This has been a wonderful day for the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart – not only in Ireland, but throughout Europe,” concludes Fr Joseph. “It means new life. It really is encouraging that, in this day and age, young men who might otherwise live fruitful and productive lives in any other professional capacities have chosen to dedicate themselves to our mission and ministry. Each of these young men has many talents and skills which he will place at the service of our mission, and I look forward to watching them progress along their journey as they follow the Lord’s call.”
Congratulations to the Myross Wood
European Novitiate 2016 – 2017!
Br Piotr Zlobinski MSC (South German-Austrian Province)
Br Jaime Rosique MSC (Spanish Province)
Br Domenico Rosa MSC (Italian Province)
Br Daniel Filipek MSC (South German-Austrian Province)
Br Giacomo Gelardi MSC (Irish Province)
Images by Alan Dodd.
Aug 22, 2017
In August 2017, the Venezuelan Community in Ireland reached out to Fr Joseph McGee MSC, who at the time was the Irish Provincial Leader, to thank the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart for our ongoing ministry in Venezuela, and to ask for our continued prayers as this troubled country looks to the future with hope.
In the summer of 2017 the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart marked 50 years of ministry in Venezuela, and our MSC missionaries are currently the only Irish priests working to help local people in the region in the midst of this humanitarian crisis. In honour of our Golden Jubilee, this summer Fr Joseph visited our MSC missions in Venezuela and was struck by the conditions that local people are forced to endure on a daily basis.
“Despite the chaos and misery that is in our country today,” writes the Venezuelan Community, “we have been blessed by having these priests adopting our homeland as their second home and providing their help and support in the cities of Maracaibo and Caracas.”
“It is important for us to let all the family of the Sacred Heart know how priceless is the sacrifice and commitment that you are demonstrating by staying there against the backdrop of conflict,” continues the letter.
Venezuela is currently in a critical state, with severe food and medical shortages just the tip of the iceberg as the country struggles with social, economic, and political chaos. The Venezuelan Community in Ireland send their gratitude for the support of our MSCs and our mission friends across the world:
“A special word of thank you for not leaving our people and for supporting them with your pastoral work. In moments like this, all help is needed, but we firmly trust that if we continue believing in the mercy of God, this terrible moment will pass very soon.”
“Together, we are stronger and better. Please do not forget Venezuela.”
Aug 19, 2017
Reflection: All are welcome within the Church, but in keeping with the terms of the covenant.
The Gospel (Matthew 15:21-28)
A house of prayer for all people
In the first reading of today’s Mass, there was mention of a new age for the people of God, with an opening to foreigners and others to the house of God – a house of prayer for all people, but presupposing their good works and their fidelity to the covenant. Today’s Gospel reading is about Jesus’ reply to a pagan woman seeking his help. Jesus replies that the time had not yet come for the entry of the gentiles; his mission was only to his own people and the lost sheep of the house of Israel. However, the woman persists and Jesus praises her great faith and grants her request.
The combination of the first reading with today’s Gospel reading presents an opportunity for reflection on the invitation to become members of the Christian community, together with the demands made by this membership. In the parable of the wedding banquet and the wedding garment, when the invitation to the wedding banquet was not accepted, the king sent his servants to gather people from the streets – the good and the bad – so that the wedding hall was filled with guests (Matthew 22:1-14; read on the 28th Sunday of the year). Then, when the king saw that there was one not wearing a wedding robe, he had him cast out. The lesson to be drawn from this is that there are conditions attached to the open invitation to the messianic feast, and here on earth to membership of the Church.
The salt of the earth and the light of the world
There has been, and will be, a certain tension between the invitation to membership of the Church, the House of God, and the demands arising from the covenant with God and the mission of the Church. According to Christ himself, his followers are intended to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world, and the early Church took this very seriously in her teaching and practice. From this, there arose the question of how to combine fidelity to Christ’s teaching and the Church’s own mission and failings arising from human weakness – a question that still arises for the Church today. Matthew’s own community was severe enough on the person who refused to make amends with one of his fellow Christians – by exclusion from the community. Paul took an equally severe attitude towards a Christian in Corinth guilty of marital misconduct. This is a problem that will always be with us, arising from the call of the Church by Christ to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world, and behaviour running contrary to this.
There has been a long history of the Church in this matter, with, for a long period, heavy penalties for the errant. The problem is currently being discussed in the Church, especially with regard to the question of Holy Communion for divorced and remarried persons, and with regard to admission of certain non-Catholics to Holy Communion. Fundamentally, it is a question of how to reconcile the infinite mercy of God with fidelity to the demands of the covenant and Christ’s message for the world. One can only pray that a satisfactory solution will be found.
Fr Martin McNamara MSC
For more reflections from Fr Martin, please visit the Sunday Scripture Online.
Aug 14, 2017
The summer edition of the MSC Message is here!
• Enjoy MSC news from at home and abroad.
• Catch up on the latest news from the mission fields, with updates from our ongoing projects in South Africa, the Philippines, and South Sudan.
• Read a summer message from Fr Michael O’Connell, Director of the MSC Missions Office.
• Get up to date with Fr Alan Neville and the MSC Vocations team.
Read the MSC Message Summer 2017
Aug 9, 2017
The Commission was a project that came from a group of people with a passion for university mission in the UK. Originally piloted in Richmond 2016 (then Student Leadership Training), The Commission was a huge success among the seventy students who attended. They went away after three days with a new found enthusiasm and skill set for modern day discipleship on campus!
In 2017, it went to the next level. From the 9th until the 12th of July, the Commission was held in St Mary’s University in Twickenham, featuring speakers from the FOCUS college evangelisation team from the US.
FOCUS (Fellowship of Catholic University Students) are a group inspired and conceived from Saint John Paul II’s call to “New Evangelisation”. Their mission is to simply live the great commission which Jesus instructed through student outreach on university campuses. Using tools they have developed specifically for the evangelisation of young people, FOCUS now have over 500 missionaries on 100 campuses in 36 of the United States of America. (more…)
Aug 8, 2017
The summer of 2017 marked 50 years since the first MSC mission began in Venezuela.
Today, the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart are the only Irish priests working in this turbulent region, where social and political turmoil mean that daily life is fraught with danger and suffering for local people.
MSCs bring the message of God’s love to the homes and hearts of the people
In June of 2017, Irish and Venezuelan MSCs joined together with local parishioners in Maracaibo and Caracas to commemorate the Golden Jubilee of the Venezuelan mission, which began in 1967. Celebratory Masses took place across the region, with a special outdoor ceremony in the parish of La Santa Cruz, Caracas, on June 17th.
An altar was set up outside the parish church in order to accommodate the large crowds in attendance, reflecting the true essence of the MSC mission: to make God’s love known everywhere, and to everyone. Our mission is not limited to the church or the sacristy – our missionaries bring the message of God’s love to the homes and hearts of the people, no matter where they may be.
The Jubilee celebrations also commemorated Fr Joe Ruddy MSC, who is retiring from the Venezuelan mission after 50 years of dedication and service. In 1967, Fr Joe arrived in Venezuela with three Irish MSCs: Fr Eamonn Donoghue, Fr Vincent Screene, and Fr Tony Moran. Since then, Fr Joe and a growing community of MSC brothers have gone up into the hills and out into the streets of the barrios to minister to parishioners living in the slums, helping local people to take pride in their parishes as they work together with a renewed sense of unity and co-operation.
Looking to the future with hope
Today, Venezuela is a troubled land, one where poverty, hardship, and social and political unrest motivate young Venezuelans to go abroad to create better lives for themselves. During this time of great disorder and uncertainty, the MSC Golden Jubilee celebrations offered missionaries and locals alike the opportunity for reflection on the achievements that have been accomplished over the last 50 years, and hope for better things to come in the years ahead.
During his time as Irish Provincial Leader, Fr Joseph McGee MSC visited Maraciabo and Caracas to take part in the Golden Jubilee celebrations. Read more about his thoughts on our Venezuelan mission here.
PLEASE HELP US TO CONTINUE OUR VITAL WORK IN VENEZUELA
