A MONTHLY NEWSLETTER TO THE CATHOLICS OF THE DUNEDIN DIOCESE T HE T ABLE T (INCORPORATING THE DIOCESAN NEWS) 21 October 2007 Issue No. 126 JUST A REMINDER WORLD MISSION DAY 21 OCTOBER 2007 Theme – “Go Proclaim the Gospel” Monsignor Vincent Walker, Diocesan Director for the Missions, calls on all parishioners to be generous in financial support for the Church in mission lands. Special envelopes are provided. Please return them in the Sunday collection basket over the next month, or return them to the central office: MISSIONZ Office, P.O. Box 12322, Molesworth Street, Wellington 6144. (See Pope’s Mission Day Message, p3) Diocesan Director for the Missions, Monsignor Vincent Walker, pins a Mission Sunday poster on the noticeboard. From the Desk of the General Manager Angel Tree Millervale to be Sold Project In 1942 Mr Robert J. Miller donated to the Diocese a property at Warrington for the use of the Catholic Youth Movement, a group to which he was particularly dedicated. 2007 An article in the New Zealand Tablet in November 1942 acknowledges the gifting, and Each Christmas, our expresses the goals of the C.Y.M. which Mr Miller shared and wanted to assist. It stated that local Prison Fellowship “The C.Y.M is concerned with the whole life of its members. It aims at forming and educating Group provides gifts them integrally for their life as workers, as future parents, as apostles. To do this it must cater for the children of not merely to their religious training, but also to intellectual, moral aesthetic, and physical inmates in the Otago culture.” Corrections Facility at Milburn and the Since this time the property has had neighbouring properties added to it, buildings replaced Invercargill Prison, through the Angel and portions of the property sold off. Many in the Diocese will have happy memories of visits Tree programme. to Millervale during the ensuing years, thanks to Mr Miller’s generosity and the ongoing These children are among the unseen development by the Diocese. victims of crime. Their families can be Over time, needs and circumstances have changed, and the use of the property by Catholic marginalised by society and the children youth has dropped away, as has the Catholic Youth Movement (later the Young Christian often suffer much because of another’s Workers Movement) as an organisation. The operation of Millervale has run at a loss for many actions, through no fault of their own. years now, despite several attempts to place it on a more economic footing, which included We attempt to make this time of the the replacement of the buildings. year more cheerful than it otherwise In light of changed needs, the decision has been reluctantly taken to sell the Millervale would be, by providing them with a gift property and concentrate our effort on providing youth facilities at the Holy Cross Centre in on behalf of their parent, who is often Mosgiel. Proceeds from the sale will go towards creating a Youth Investment account held in unable to pay for one. We can show the the Catholic Development Fund. The income generated will be for youth activities, particularly love of the Lord Jesus in a very practical to assist with funding the employment of youth workers throughout the Diocese. Facilities at way by making a child feel special at Holy Cross will also be upgraded. Christmas time. The cost of maintaining multiple facilities is significant and no longer sustainable by the Donations by cheque may be made Diocese, which is currently challenged to meet the huge pastoral needs of a changing Diocese; to Prison Fellowship and sent to either such demands include Youth Ministry, Lay Ministry, Social Services, Rural Ministries and Sister Veronica Casey, P.O. Box 1302a, Clergy support. Green Island, Dunedin or to Brother Sixty-five years on society has changed, as has our Church and the needs of our youth. The Osmond MacNamara, Invercargill Prison, intent of Mr Miller’s gift will be upheld as the goals which he espoused and which the Catholic P.O. Box 827, Invercargill. Youth Movement stood for will continue in the present day Youth Ministry. The use of Millervale - Sr Veronica Casey will cease after Easter 2008, and the property is currently being prepared for marketing. and Br Osmond MacNamara, - Stuart Young, Diocesan General Manager Catholic Chaplains The Tablet 21 October 2007 Progress on Holy Cross Residence The contractors have been working hard at Holy Cross College during the past month. The priests’ retirement residence is now taking shape with two of the units well under way. The second block of two units has been started now, while the final two (making a total of six) are on hold due to a current shortfall in the fundraising programme. If you have not made your contribution to the Holy Cross Residence Appeal the Bishop and his Committee encourages you to do so. Donations are still being received at the Diocese’s Office, Private Bag 1941 Dunedin. This Complex for our retiring clergy needs our support. “They have given their lives to our community – let’s give something back”. Construction of the priests’ retirement residence is well under way. Pope’s Message for World Mission Day: “All the Churches for all the World” Pope Benedict XVI’s Message for 81st World Mission Day, which "Missionary commitment, then, remains ... the Church's primary this year is celebrated on Sunday October 21, has the theme: "All the service to humanity today, in order to guide and evangelize cultural, Churches for all the World." social and ethical transformations, and to offer Christ's salvation to In the Message, dated May 27, Solemnity of Pentecost, the Pope recalls modern mankind, humiliated and oppressed in so many parts of the the fact that this year marks the 50th anniversary of Servant of God world because of endemic poverty, violence, and the systematic negation Pius XII's Encyclical "Fidei donum," which "promoted and encouraged of human rights." co-operation between Churches for the mission 'ad gentes'. The Pope goes on to render thanks to God "for the abundant fruits" The theme of this year's Day, the Pope writes, "invites local Churches of "missionary co-operation in Africa and in other regions of the earth." on all continents to a joint awareness of the urgent need to relaunch He also mentions the many priests "who have dedicated their apostolic missionary activity to meet the many grave challenges of our time." energies to serving newly-created communities in poor and developing areas," among them "no small number of martyrs who, to witness of the Benedict XVI highlights how the Lord continues to call "the word and apostolic dedication, have united the sacrifice of their lives. Churches of ancient tradition which, in the past, have supplied the missions not only with material resources but also with consistent "Nor can we forget," he adds, "the many male and female religious, numbers of priests, religious and lay people, thus engendering effective and lay volunteers who ... have made prodigious efforts to spread the co-operation between Christian communities." Gospel to the ends of the earth." Faced with "the secularized culture ... the crisis of the family, the drop The Holy Father highlights how "all Christian communities are born in vocations and the progressive ageing of the clergy, these Churches missionary." Hence, "for the individual faithful it is not just a matter of run the task of closing in on themselves, of looking to the future with collaborating in evangelizing activity, but of being protagonists in and reduced hope and of lessening their missionary efforts. Yet this is jointly responsible for the mission of the Church." This "brings about precisely the moment to open trustingly to the Providence of God, the growth of communion between communities and an increase of Who never abandons His people and Who, through the power of the reciprocal aid, both in terms of personnel (priest, religious and lay Holy Spirit, guides them towards the accomplishment of His eternal volunteers) and of the means necessary to evangelize today." plan of salvation. Nonetheless, the Pope continues, it must not be forgotten that "the "The Good Shepherd also invites Churches of recent evangelization first and principal contribution we are called to make to the Church's to dedicate themselves generously to the 'missio ad gentes'," the Holy missionary activity is prayer. ... May all communities join in the choral Father adds, noting how some of these Churches, though beset by invocation to 'Our Father Who art in heaven,' that His kingdom may many local needs, still manage to send priests and religious elsewhere, come on earth! "even to the lands of ancient evangelization." Thus, the Pope continues, "I appeal particularly to children and young people, always ready "we witness a providential 'exchange of gifts' which benefits the entire for generous missionary commitment, ... to the sick and suffering, mystical Body of Christ." recognizing the value of their collaboration, so mysterious and Pope Benedict expresses the hope that "missionary cooperation may indispensable for the work of salvation, ... and to consecrated people." intensify, making full use of everyone's potentials and charism," and that Benedict XVI concludes by calling on the Virgin "to guide our "World Mission Day may contribute to making Christian communities footsteps" to "a Pentecost of love. In particular, may she make us aware and all the baptized ever more aware of the universal nature of Christ's that we are all missionaries ... called by the Lord to be His witnesses in call to propagate His kingdom unto the ends of the earth." every moment of our lives." - Vatican Information Service The Society for the Propagation of the Faith Assists 1100 Mission Dioceses in proclaiming the Gospel Page 2 21 October 2007 The Tablet Pastoral Care Workshop From 31 August to 2 September members of Walking New Paths gathered at Holy Cross Centre, Mosgiel, for a weekend workshop focusing on Pastoral Care.