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2024 Christmas message from Fr John

Please note that the MSC Missions Office will be closed over the Christmas period,
from 3.00pm on Monday, December 23rd to 9.00am on Thursday, January 2nd.
With warmest wishes to our mission friends everywhere for a happy, healthy, and safe Christmas season.

Dear Friends,

Beannachtaí na Nollag oraibh go léir – Christmas greetings to you and yours! We have come to the end of another year, and what a great blessing it is to be here writing to you as we look ahead with hopeful hearts to 2025.

This year marked 170 years since the foundation of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart, and 60 years since we set up our MSC Missions Office for the Irish Province here in Cork City. Time goes on, generations come and go, challenges arise and are met, and new ones take their place. Throughout it all, there is always a need, there is always a call. Be it 170 years ago, 60 years ago, or today – people remain in real and great need of our ministry. From pastoral support and care, to the provision of the most basic necessities such as clean water to drink or a safe place to sleep, our MSCs continue on our shared mission to help those in need, and you, our mission friends, are a powerful and invaluable force in allowing us to do so.

Recent months allowed me and a team of MSCs to meet with many of our mission friends and benefactors across the Irish Province, and what a great pleasure and privilege it was. The sense of community and the sheer generosity of spirit are a tremendously powerful and wonderful force, particularly in the face of all the fear, sorrow, and violence that plague our world in current times. Your compassion extends to people at the other side of the world, to friends you will never meet, but whose lives have been and will be changed immeasurably because of the kindness of strangers.

Of course, Christmas can be a difficult time for many; to all who find themselves struggling for any reason this Christmas, be it with loss or illness or personal challenges, please know that you are in my prayers this Christmas, and in the prayers of our MSCs everywhere.

Pope Francis has described Christmas as “an inner joy of light and peace”, and that inner joy, that peace of mind and spirit, is my prayer for you this Christmas time. Our mission friends have been and continue to be instrumental in bringing the joy of progress and the light of hope to so many needy people and vulnerable families in so many different places, and it is with a truly grateful heart that I thank you for your kindness, on behalf of our MSCs all over the world. May the spirit of peace, goodwill, and the Lord’s love fill your heart and your home this Christmas, and may God bless and protect you and your loved ones throughout 2025.

Wishing you a happy, holy, and peaceful Christmas,

 

 

 

 

Fr John Fitzgerald MSC

Fr Alan in South Sudan: We’re on the Move

It’s all excitement in the Catholic University of South Sudan for the start of 2025. We are moving! Thanks in large part to the generous support of the Mission Support Office’s benefactors, we will shift all our lecturers and students to a local Catholic secondary school for the next four months. This will allow for the complete renovation of our existing halls, including lights and fans. We will be able to develop a programme of evening classes and extend our popular late night study sessions.

The building we are currently using is a repurposed youth centre, lacking ceilings, windows, and any electricity. As we move into the dry season, dust becomes a real problem and on a windy day it can feel like a scene out of Lawrence of Arabia minus the camels and sweeping vistas. During the rest of the year, when it rains it pours and students had to move to the centre of the classroom to avoid getting drenched.

Many of our students actually came from that school, so it will be a chance to revisit the past and see if they can fit back into the small desks. It will take a considerable amount of effort, but it will be worth it. In future, we also want to use the new building as a training centre for existing teachers to upgrade their skills and support their work.

Thanks in a special way to all of you who have supported our ministry here and on behalf of everyone in the University we wish you a joyful Christmas and a peaceful New Year.

Nhialic abi thiei,
Fr. Alan

Our Students: Meet Helena and Isabella (Our newest student – just 2 months old)

Helena is 25 years old and is in her second year of a four-year Bachelor of Business Administration Degree. She has three other children along with Isabella. Only 4% of the population of South Sudan has access to electricity, so being able to study at night is a real challenge.

“I like to study in the Catholic University because there is availability of internet, to allow us to access new information. We have a little library and we have five computers. We now have night-time study twice a week and when my baby is old enough I can take part in it. During the day it is hot. Our temperatures can go up to 42C, so it is difficult to study. Our lecturers are very committed and we don’t miss a single class.

The University’s partial scholarship for women is encouraging us, as the full fee would be too much for us to pay, as many of us are not working. When you are pregnant in other universities you are suspended as a student, but here we are allowed to bring our babies with us and this is really helping us.

I study at night when the baby is asleep. When Isabella is awake she wants to know about everything I am doing. I have to get up at 2:00am and study until 4:00am using a torch. Then I start preparing for my other children to go to school, lighting the fire, and making the porridge.

My hope for the future is to open up my own school, to ensure that education reaches more children in South Sudan. In our primary schools we have a lot of students, up to 150 children in a class with one teacher and those teachers often are not well trained.

With everything that is going on here the number of students will increase next year. Our sisters are admiring how we going and they hope to join us.”

Read more from Fr Alan’s missionary journey in South Sudan:

Sharing memories throughout the generations at our 2024 MSC Light Up a Memory Mass

On Saturday, November 23rd, we brought the Month of the Holy Souls to a close with a beautiful candlelight memorial in tribute to loved ones who have gone before us at our annual Light Up a Memory Mass. This year marked the tenth anniversary of what has become a much-loved and highly anticipated tradition each year, and once again we lit up the Sacred Heart Church on the Western Road, Cork, with the flame of remembrance and the everlasting warmth of treasured memories.

November weather was out in full force with stormy conditions all round, but that did not deter local mission friends and parishioners from joining us at the Sacred Heart Church for a truly special evening of music, reflection, and prayer in honour of loved ones who have gone before us in the Lord’s eternal embrace. Almost 900 people also joined us via our live stream to remember and pray with us, from Ireland, the UK, and Europe, to Canada, the United States, and the Philippines.

An evening of love and goodwill

Fr John Fitzgerald, director of the MSC Missions Office, celebrated this year’s Mass with Fr Con Doherty and Fr Seamus Kelly, and opened this year’s ceremony by speaking of what the annual Light Up a Memory ceremony means. “We in the Missions Office next door to this church, where we communicate with so many benefactors, so many helpers, so many people who keep our missions going… where we try to look after as many projects as we can in different places… we make a promise, every year, that apart from having the Novena to the Holy Souls, as you’d find in most churches, we promised that we would always have a ceremony towards the end of the November, a Light Up a Memory Mass for your dead, for my dead, and for the dead who have no-one to remember them at all.”

“When I looked here about 15 minutes ago, there was hardly anyone in the church really, a few stragglers getting to know each other,” said Fr John. “Then a nice crowd arrived, considering that here in Cork tonight, just to let the whole world know, that it is something like 15 degrees, so it is very warm, but we’re in the middle of a storm that’s going to finish tomorrow so it’s not a night really for the faint-hearted! I congratulate the people who have made their way here tonight, it is great, but I am also very aware of so many people tonight who are at home and listening to us, not only from Cork, but from all over the place.”

As the Mass progressed and the candles were brought to the altar, Fr John once again remembered those joining us in spirit from home, saying, “I am also very much aware of yourselves at home… I know you wish you could have brought your own candle tonight, but we have plenty of love to go around for you, we have plenty of goodwill, because we know what it is.”

A language of the heart

Reflecting on loss and grief, Fr John spoke of the language of the heart – the mourners who tell us they are heartbroken, the sympathisers who say that their heart goes out to the bereaved, those who come to a funeral with heavy hearts. “We should not take that sort of language for granted,” reflected Fr John. “It is a sort of an explanation of what has happened, or that description of a feeling. Heart language is a beautiful way of speaking to grief, to loss, to love, and to pay sympathy to somebody else… It is a language to do with a healing of the heart, the love of the heart and the heart of Christ, and it is a language of hope. Heart language is a language of hope. So here in the Sacred Heart Church tonight, on this big night for us who promised we would pray for the dead, we believe in the power of the risen Christ and the promise of the hereafter – we believe in that. And we believe in the language of the heart when we deal with loss, with grief, with healing, and with joy as well when we try to move on.”

“We are invited to be a people of hope.”

In a lovely personal moment, Fr John shared the importance of also being able to move on and look ahead in life, even as we carry the love and sorrow of loss that never fades away. “My father is dead for many years,” he explained, “and there was a family friend one time, I was giving her a drive, and when I had my hand up on the gear lever, she said to me – ‘Oh,’ she said, ‘you have freckles on your hand like your father.’ She said, ‘I remember his hands, he had freckles on his hands, and he had a scar on his finger’ – which he had. And I then kind of funnily said, ‘Well, I have a scar on my thumb.’ And she said, ‘Yes, well we all have to carry our own freckles and our own scars.’ So, there is this kind of a movement, that while I was thrilled that I had a scar like my father, she was saying, well you have to get on with your own troubles and your own freckled life – so, you know we have that little thought as we move out of here tonight.”

This year’s Mass once again featured a wonderful musical accompaniment from Gerry and Deirdre Tuohy, while Fr John’s homily incorporated a selection of poems and prayers, each one a fitting reminder of the power of grief, of faith, and of love everlasting as he prayed for those we have loved and lost, and for those who have nobody to remember them at all.

Bringing the ceremony to an end, Fr John prayed for protection, grace, and hope on this sacred night: “We are not far from the Kingdom of Heaven itself, and we are here very close to it in the kingdom of this world. So, we are invited to be a people of hope, a people who listen to the voice of God, and a people who can be assured that our dead are in the hands of God.”

We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to all who took part in this year’s Light Up a Memory celebrations, in the Sacred Heart Church and beyond. All of us, and one point or another, in one form or another, have been touched by grief, and our annual Light Up a Memory Mass is always a very poignant and moving way for us to commemorate treasured memories of those we hold dear, while praying for healing and hope in our hearts as we navigate life without them, carrying memories and generations of love and remembrance down throughout the years. Sincere thanks to all who took part in this truly special evening of prayer, reflection, and fond remembrance on the tenth anniversary of this very special ceremony – may God bless you all.

Please click here to watch a recording of our 2024 Light Up a Memory Mass.

 

MSC Pilgrimages: Lourdes 2025

“The invitation is open to all, so what’s keeping you?”

Do you sometimes feel that you’d like to do something different, something more?
What better way to embrace the spirit of faith, hope, and love than by joining us on our
2025 MSC pilgrimage to Lourdes in May?

A Jubilee Year of Hope: MSC Pilgrimage to Lourdes 2025

2025 marks the Jubilee Year of Hope, and the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart invite you to celebrate this special year with us on our annual MSC pilgrimage to Lourdes. From May 25th to 30th, Provincial Leader and Spiritual Director Fr Joe McGee MSC will lead our pilgrims on a five-day journey of reflection, prayer, and thanksgiving, with accommodation and daily meals included (ex. Cork). To find out more about how you can take part, please contact mary.morrish@mscmissions.ie or call 021 4546691.

Please click here for full details of our 2025 pilgrimage to Lourdes

Every year, people travel with us on pilgrimage for different reasons. Some may be struggling with illness, grief, stress, or other personal challenges. Other wish to take part in a traditional pilgrimage journey with like-minded travellers, sharing stories, experiences, and reflections on life. Many wish to simply pray, reflect, and offer thanksgiving for their blessings.

The experience of pilgrimage is different for every individual; the major common denominator, however, is joy, and an awareness of something bigger, of something more. A sense of something special comes into being on a pilgrimage; the Holy Spirit moves amongst those making the journey, while strangers become friends and unite in the solidarity of faith. Community spirit comes out in force – no matter where you may find yourself in the world, the message of God’s love overcomes all cultural barriers in a true celebration of faith, togetherness, and intimacy with God.

Please click here for full details of our 2025 pilgrimage to Lourdes

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“A powerful, life-changing experience.”

Historically, pilgrims would leave their homes, their families, and all of their creature comforts, embarking on journeys that could stretch to hundreds of miles with nothing but what they could carry on their backs. Today, the circumstances of pilgrimage may be less extreme, but they are nonetheless powerful for it, and modern-day pilgrims continue to leave their homes and their daily comforts behind in the quest for spiritual fulfillment.

“Pilgrimage is about freedom,” says Fr Alan Neville MSC. “It’s about walking to the horizon – and when you get there, you keep on going. It’s about taking part in something that is at the same time enjoyable and profound. I’ve yet to meet one person who regretted making the trip. For every one of them it has been a powerful, even life-changing experience. The invitation is open to all, so what’s keeping you?”

If you’d like to find out more about the pilgrimage experience, you are welcome to read all about some of our previous pilgrimages to Lourdes. All are welcome to take the first steps towards another wonderful pilgrimage journey with us over the coming months, and make 2025 a year to remember for all the best reasons.

 

Read more about our MSC Pilgrimages

A Jubilee Year of Hope: MSC Pilgrimage to Lourdes 2025

2025 marks the Jubilee Year of Hope, and the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart invite you to celebrate this special year with us on our annual MSC pilgrimage to Lourdes. From May 25th to 30th, Provincial Leader and Spiritual Director Fr Joe McGee MSC will lead our pilgrims on a five-day journey of reflection, prayer, and thanksgiving, with accommodation and daily meals included (ex. Cork). To find out more about how you can take part, please contact mary.morrish@mscmissions.ie or call 021 4546691.

Please click here for full details of our 2025 pilgrimage to Lourdes

Please click here for full details of our 2025 pilgrimage to Lourdes
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Fr Alan in South Sudan: It’s Never Boring in Rumbek

November is a busy month in Rumbek. We are coming to the end of the year and students are preparing for their final exams. Before all that can happen, we had our graduation with our Senior 4 students. It is a time of sincere gratitude for all that has been achieved, for the sacrifices that were made, the work that was done. This year, 78 students graduated from Loreto, our largest number yet, and their families came from all over to celebrate their daughters’ success. It was day of speeches, prayer, and dancing.

No sooner had we tidied away the marquees and cleaned up the bunting, then it was down to the Primary School for our First Holy Communion Mass. Over the course of the year, these boys and girls attended special classes on Saturday mornings with Sr. Priyanka to prepare. They learned about the life of Jesus and his followers, the gift of the Eucharist given by God to all his people, and they practised their prayers in both Dinka and English. This First Holy Communion Day was a low-key affair by Irish standards, but was both joyful and heartfelt.

While the schools are winding down, the Catholic University is only getting started on our academic year. We are welcoming our largest cohort of students yet. It’s a real gift to have so many young women and men committed to further education and to raising up their country as future entrepreneurs and teachers. We now have well over a hundred students spread across three degree courses. In the midst of studies covering economics, African literature, and Catholic social ethics, there’s always time for fun, such as a friendly volleyball match between our old and new students. The lecturing staff also tried their luck and showed that our experience does not just begin and end at the lecture hall door. We still lost though – badly.

Only 4% of South Sudan has access to electricity, and this means that at nighttime there is little access to light in towns and almost nothing at all in the villages. To this end, we are starting our late-night study programme, opening our Catholic University library until 8:00pm two nights a week, with a view to expanding the programme. It will provide an essential opportunity to allow students to carry out course work, catch up on their reading, and progress their studies.

Over the weekend, we had our Secondary School Confirmations, with 44 Confirmandi. Since Bishop Christian has been appointed to the newly erected Diocese of Bentiu, I celebrated the sacrament with them. Over the past year, we have journeyed together as they explored their faith, grew in their relationship with God, and had ample time to ask as many challenging and insightful questions as possible, as teenagers are wont to do. It was also good to keep me on my theological toes.

Looking forward to the next month, we have the Senior 4 exams (our equivalent of the Leaving Cert), a road trip to Juba to buy supplies for the year, and a seven-day Diocesan youth walking pilgrimage for peace through the bush, not to mention of course the celebration of Christmas. Life in Rumbek is many things, but never, ever boring.

Nhialic ke yin (God bless you),
Fr. Alan

Read more from Fr Alan’s missionary journey in South Sudan:

A warm thank you: On the road with MSC friends and benefactors

October was an especially busy month for the MSC Missions Office here in the Irish Province, as our MSCs hit the road to meet with some of our many friends and benefactors in different parts of Kerry, Waterford, and Cork. Fr John Fitzgerald, Director of the MSC Missions Office, was at the helm of a team of MSCs who ventured around Munster to meet with just some of our wonderful mission family here at home, in great gratitude for the invaluable support and friendship we see in action every day.

A series of four thanksgiving evenings took place throughout the month of October. Everybody in attendance was enrolled in our Golden Book of the Sacred Heart and our Blue Book of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, while the books themselves were a special part of each evening’s celebrations. Those present each received a little flameless candle, all of which were placed around the Golden Book and the Blue Book display at the beginning of each evening, so that everybody’s intentions would be remembered throughout the night.

During our Thanksgiving Mass, a video played in the background, highlighting our mission projects around the world, and the life-changing work our MSCs undertake every day. Fr John Fitzgerald regaled the congregation with stories from the mission fields, explaining just how vital the help we receive from home is, and how the support of our mission friends makes an unimaginable difference in places many of us will never see in person. Gerry and Dee provided beautiful music throughout each Mass, and after each ceremony, there was an opportunity for our mission friends to chat with our MSCs over tea and coffee. Each evening was a special way for our MSCs to reconnect with just some of the benefactors who make our work possible every single day.

“An honour and a privilege”

The first event took place in the Killarney INEC at the beginning of October, where Fr John Fitzgerald, Fr John Finn, and Fr Seamus Kelly met with some of our Kerry friends. Then it was on to Waterford, where Fr John Fitzgerald and Fr Alan Neville met with some of our benefactors at the Tower Hotel in Waterford City. Finally, the month ended with two events at the Sacred Heart Church on the Western Road in Cork, where Fr John Fitzgerald was joined by Fr John Finn, Fr Alan Neville, Fr Seamus Kelly, Fr Tom Mulcahy, Fr Con Doherty, and Fr Tony Horgan. Our Head of Fundraising, Mary Morrish, also joined the team to thank just some of the mission family that make our work possible. Our MSCs met over 400 people over the course of four evenings, giving us a great chance to chat with people who are changing lives across the world, through the kindness and compassion that begin at home.

“It was our absolute honour and privilege to celebrate Mass with our mission friends and benefactors, and to meet with those who could come along to our evenings,” says Fr John Fitzgerald. “I am astounded at the knowledge they have, both of our projects and of our MSCs, and I have been equally amazed at the fact that so many of them have continued the tradition began by parents or loved ones who have now passed in supporting our missions. It is always humbling to have the opportunity to hear personal requests for prayer, for those who are sick or facing different challenges, and it really has been our privilege to be able to hear these intentions in person, and to pray with some of the people whose kindness is encouraging and motivating our MSC communities across the world.”

It really was a very special thing to be able to chat in person about our current projects, as MSCs and mission friends alike both heard stories and told their own. Indeed, it brought home to us all the fact that, despite distance and differences, we all have our own challenges and goals at heart, and we are all doing our best in our own situations. It is truly heartwarming to see the great generosity of mission friends and benefactors who are dealing with their own struggles in life, reaching across the miles to help beneficiaries on the mission fields who might be facing similar family problems, albeit in different circumstances. The generosity that begins in your own home, through our Missions Office here in Cork, quickly reaches our MSCs who are ministering in places like rural Guatemala, remote villages in the Amazon, and the barrios, or slums, of Venezuela, to name but a few. It just goes to show that the boundaries set in place by distance or language are nothing in the face of compassion, and that is the true missionary spirit and the love of Jesus in action in human form, here on earth.

While our team of MSCs were fortunate enough to meet with a great many of our mission friends and benefactors on this occasion, we are of course acutely aware of so many more people who all provide fundamental support to our ongoing missions. Constraints of time and space mean that we cannot meet with everybody in one swoop, but rest assured that every single donation we receive is put to the best possible use with heartfelt gratitude, and every one of our benefactors across the province is in the prayers of our MSCs priests daily. Having received such a warm welcome in Kerry, Waterford, and Cork, we hope to be able to meet even more of our extended mission family in the not-too-distant future, and in the meantime, we thank you sincerely for your continued friendship and support, which means so much to so many.

Promoting mental wellbeing in the Philippines

The team at the MSC Centre for the Poor in Butuan City were all on board to promote mental health and wellbeing at a recent mental wellness workshop, which took place at the beginning of November.

An evening centred on Self-Care for Mental Wellness and Well-Being took place at the centre on November 5th, with guest speaker BK Sister Ma. Lourdes L. Aseneta, chairperson of Brahman Kumaris – Phils,  providing an educational insight into mental wellness and the importance of self-care.

The team at the MSC Centre for the Poor work daily to promote a harmonious relationship between local communities and the world in which we live – nurturing our natural environment, while reaping its benefits in creating a sustainable lifestyle that will help poor and struggling families to build the foundation for a brighter future. The team here are highly active in their ministry, developing and facilitating programmes that encourage disadvantaged and vulnerable individuals and families to learn the skills they need to build a better quality of life and a brighter future. Some of their outreach programmes include agricultural and clean water projects, plastic-free and zero-waste initiatives, and emergency response aid which provides urgent care to survivors of the typhoons and tropical storms that frequently hit the country.

The community at the MSC Centre for the Poor are working tirelessly to build a better world and a better quality of life, and the focus on mental health and wellbeing is just one of the ways in which they are continuing on their journey to encourage a brighter, more positive future for all.

Images via the Facebook page for MSC Centre for the Poor.

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An invitation to join us in prayer at our 2024 Light Up a Memory Mass

In November, we remember, keeping family, friends, and loved ones who have gone before us in our prayers at this sacred time. This year, we invite you to take part in a very special ceremony of remembrance and thanksgiving, as we celebrate the tenth anniversary of our much-loved Light Up a Memory Mass.

Our annual Light Up a Memory Mass has become a beloved tradition in the hearts of many, and this year, we mark its tenth anniversary in a special celebration of cherished memories. Once again, we are glad to invite old friends and new to take part in our remembrance Mass, which will be celebrated this year on Saturday, November 23rd. This beautiful candlelit evening of music, reflection, and remembrance will take place at 6.30pm the Sacred Heart Church on the Western Road, Cork, and will be streamed live here on the MSC website for those who cannot attend in person.

Grief inevitably touches us all, and the Month of the Holy Souls is a special time to honour fond memories of those we have loved and lost. This November, we come together to light a candle in tribute to those whose memory we hold dear, honouring precious memories of lives well lived.

All are welcome to join us in reflection on this special night, and to submit the names of departed family, friends, and loved ones for remembrance. We would greatly appreciate your support for our ongoing mission projects, and in gratitude for your contribution, we will be glad to remember your intentions on the evening. You can then send us the names of your departed loved ones, and our MSC priests will remember them specially during our Light Up a Memory Mass.

This year is a particularly special one, as we mark the tenth anniversary of what has become a much-anticipated tradition to close the Month of the Holy Souls. From the COVID pandemic to ongoing war and social unrest, the events of recent years have demonstrated more than ever the tremendous power of unity and love. Those who cannot be with us in person on the night are very welcome to join us on our live stream, and to light a candle in their own homes or in our online candle gallery, where those listed will have a special place in the prayers of our MSC priests.

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In the bleak winter months, the light of remembrance warms our hearts, and the flame of hope and love continues to burn brightly, an enduring spark to light up the darkness. We hope you will join us for an evening of reflection and remembrance in honour of the loved ones who are always in our thoughts.

Find out more about our annual MSC Light Up a Memory Mass.

Please click here to watch the Light Up a Memory Mass, and all November Masses for the Holy Souls, on our live stream.

Fr Albert’s Story: Papua New Guinea’s oldest missionary

A recent article on the Aleteia website shone the spotlight on Fr Albert Boudaud MSC, Papua New Guinea’s oldest missionary. Aleteia’s Camille Dalmas writes a touching piece on Fr Albert, now aged 84, and his missionary journey, following an encounter during Pope Francis’ visit to Port Moresby in September of this year.

Fr Albert Boudaud MSC (Image from Camille Dalmas’ article on www.aleteia.org)

The article explains how Fr Albert began his ministry in Papua New Guinea in 1968, at the age of 28. Originally from the Vendée, he joined the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart in Issoudun and was ordained in 1967.

Following his initial pastoral year in Paris, Fr Albert embarked on what was an epic voyage to Papua New Guinea, “a place where his congregation were pioneers”. The journey took 45 days, taking him “across the Mediterranean, the Atlantic, and finally to the Pacific via the Panama Canal… Then came the Marquesas, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, and Sydney. And from there, he traveled to Port Moresby.”

“He remembers sailing the Pacific Ocean for nine days without seeing anything but water,” writes Dalmas.

Making Papua New Guinea his home, Fr Albert moved throughout local villages, learning as many of the country’s 800 different languages as he could. “I came voluntarily, I integrated myself, I made it my country by living close to the people,” he says in the Aleteia piece.

To fit in, he also had to chew areca nut, the natural drug — also known as betel nut — that turns the teeth of so many Papua New Guineans red (and causes mouth cancer). “When the situation was a bit difficult, we’d chew together and that made it possible to get things done.”

Shoes and sandals wore out during these years of mission, when he wasn’t simply going barefoot over muddy terrain. He took the Gospel and the Eucharist on “patrols” to remote villages. He remembers being bitten by snakes before chasing them away with a stick.

He also has baptized people everywhere. “It’s our most important job,” he insists. He spent several days in each village, celebrating Mass and conferring the sacraments.

– Camille Dalmas, Aleteia

Fr Albert is now retired after many years of faithful service. To read his full story, please click here to visit the Aleteia website.

Remembering MSC founder Fr Jules Chevalier on the 117th anniversary of his death

October 21st marked the 117th anniversary of the death of our founder, Fr Jules Chevalier MSC. Each year on this day, we pray especially for the man who planted the roots of our foundation from humble beginnings, sparking a charism and a mission that we still share over a century later, as our extended Sacred Heart family continues to minister in over 50 countries across the world.

Representatives from several of the Chevalier communities gathered in Rome to pray for Fr Chevalier in the run up to his anniversary, the Chevalier Family in the Philippines also commemorated the day “celebrating the life and mission Jules Chevalier bequeathed to us”, MSCs in the Province of the Pacific Islands “gathered with our Sisters of the OLSH, former Chevalier students, families, friends, and benefactors to mark this special day”, and our MSC and OLSH communities in Vietnam came together for a beautiful service that celebrated the love of the Holy Spirit, and our shared mission to spread that love to every nation throughout the world.

Philippines:

Province of the Pacific Islands:

Vietnam:

The Australian website for the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart have shared an account of the Death of Fr Jules Chevalier, from the writings of Fr Charles Piperon, quoted from October 21st in the Jules Chevalier Daily Readings (selected by Jan Bovenmars MSC).

“Father Chevalier’s sickness was rapidly bringing his life to an end. Monday, October 21, was the day on which God, in the plans of his infinite mercy, chose to call to himself his faithful servant. Our Superior General, Father Mayer, had set out in haste from Rome and arrived at Issoudun during the night. Immediately on his arrival, he hurried to Father Chevalier who recognised him and still had the strength to bless him. Father Mayer did not leave him again.

Towards midday a crisis seem to indicate the end. Father Mayer then had the community assembled and with them recited the prayers for the dying. From this moment on prayers were said continually at the deathbed of our Father. At three o’clock, there was a fresh crisis, no less painful than what had preceded; but the infirmarian’s intervention helped him surmount it. This was the last of his sufferings. After that he remained for more than two hours in great calm, almost motionless, as if in a peaceful sleep. Then, like the flickering out of a flame, he fell peacefully asleep in the Lord. The clock struck five and the evening Angelus was ringing in the parish.

Thus died our beloved Father, surrounded by his intimates and by some of his religious who had come from various parts to assist at his last hour and to render him their final respects. He had lived eighty-three years, six months and six days, the greater part of which – fifty-three years – had, by a special design of divine Providence, been spent in the town of Issoudun.”

Together, we pray for Fr Chevalier in his eternal rest in the Lord’s love, and we continue, encouraged in our shared missionary journey “to be on Earth the heart of God”.

Sources:
Missionaries of the Sacred Heart Australia
Facebook – Ametur MSC
Facebook – MSC Scholasticate Community-Philippines
Facebook – Missionaries of the Sacred Heart – Province of the Pacific Islands
Facebook – MSC Vietnam
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Celebrations abound at Centro Faustino Villanueva, Guatemala

September and October were action-packed months in San Agustin, Guatemala, at the MSC-run vocational school Centro Faustino Villanueva!

The month of September brought very special celebrations indeed as students at the school marked the 203rd anniversary of Guatemala’s independence.

“Guatemala is your land, your homeland, cherish it, magnify it, love it, defend it. Make it Happy!,” read a post on the Facebook page for Centro Faustino Villanueva, which was accompanied by these wonderful images of colourful and fun-filled celebrations.

In October, the community at the centre celebrated the joy of youth with Dia del Niño, or Children’s Day. “We celebrate those who, with their infectious laughter, teach us to enjoy the little things,” the centre posted on Facebook.

Founded by the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart in 1984, Centro Faustino Villanueva marks its 40th anniversary this year. This vocational centre is dedicated to helping disadvantaged and underprivileged youths, and is located in the extremely remote region of San Agustin, Alta Verapaz, in Guatemala. Situated more than eight hours’ drive from Guatemala City, the school provides a vital service to children and youths living across this very rural area.

With the motto “Open doors to education”, the centre works with over 200 students from impoverished villages and vulnerable family groups in the surrounding area, with a waiting list for places. Youths at the centre can study a range of three career skill sets: business administration, science, and teaching. A recent agricultural programme also works to supplement the food supply for the school community, while teaching the students valuable life skills that they can take back to their own homes and communities to improve the quality of life there.

With blessings and best wishes to Fr Jairo and all at Centro Faustino Villanueva as they continue in their invaluable work for families and communities across Alta Verapaz.

Images via the Facebook page for Centro Faustino Villanueva.

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Celebrating the missionary journey with Pope Francis in Papua New Guinea

In September, Pope Francis undertook an Apostolic Journey throughout Southeast Asia, visiting Papua New Guinea, where the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart have been ministering since the 1800s.

Cardinal John Ribat MSC, Archbishop of Port Moresby and Papua New Guinea’s first cardinal, greeted the Pope, telling him, “I offer you a warm welcome to this beloved country.”

On Sunday, September 8th, the Holy Father presided over Mass for approximately 35,000 Catholics at Sir John Guise Stadium in Port Moresby. Cardinal John Ribat MSC joined the Papal Mass, where beautiful images of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart and Blessed Peter To Rot were displayed on the altar.

The Missionaries of the Sacred Heart arrived in Papua New Guinea in September 1882, and have been a strong and constant presence for good since, “making them an intrinsic part of the history and mission of the Catholic Church in the country and a point of reference to this day, including in the education and healthcare sectors.” (Claudia Torres, Vatican News)

Speaking to Vatican News earlier this summer, Superior General of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart Fr Mario Abzalón Alvarado Tovar MSC reflected, “In fact, since 1881, we have been in Papua New Guinea, marking the beginning of the modern era of the Church there.”

“There had been minimal presences many centuries before, in very ancient times, but since 1881, we have been present continuously. We are, in a sense, the pioneers of the ecclesial growth in Papua New Guinea.” (Renato Martinez, Vatican News)

Archbishop Rochus Joseph Tatamai MSC, the Archbishop of Rabaul, also spoke at length with Vatican News ahead of Pope Francis’ visit. Touching on the origins of the mission in Papua New Guinea and the upcoming canonisation of the Blessed Peter To Rot (a lay Missionary of the Sacred Heart who was martyred for the faith in the 1940s), the Archbishop was optimistic about the Holy Father’s visit, noting that it would encourage “a greater revival and reawakening of the faith amongst the elderly, the seniors, the oldest, but also amongst our younger generation”, in a “vibrant Church” with a “vibrant faith”. (Claudia Torres, Vatican News)

Indeed, during his visit to the northwestern coastal city of Vanimo, Pope Francis encouraged all present to embody the missionary spirit, as we can all be “missionaries where we live: at home, at school, in the workplace”. He reflected on the fact that love is stronger than fear and “destructive behaviours”, and reminded us that “its beauty can heal the world, because it has its roots in God”. (Devin Watkins, Vatican News)

This is one of the most simple, yet powerful, messages to come from the Holy Father’s trip to Papua New Guinea: “The beauty of love can heal the world.” (Linda Bordoni, Vatican News)

Images via Vatican News and the Ametur MSC Facebook page.
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