St Anthony Brief IRISH FRANCISCAN MISSION MAGAZINE No .5 AuG/SEPt 2014 €1.00 God’s Word: A Path from Darkness to Light ✣ Kuron Peace Village ✣ Caring for Love Within Marriage Spirit and Life EIGHT HUNDRED From souls made one in Christ, YEARS OF A fountain flows from hearts on fire PRAYERFUL With love for the Eternal Light, PRAISE Which draws us upward by the silence Deep within the listening heart. Written by an To be a voice for all Creation Irish Poor Clare Sister A harmony of Joyful Art. THE FEAST OF To Him who gifted us with beauty, ST CLARE OF ASSISI In sight and sound, in leaf and flower, IS CELEBRATED ON That we might ever sing the Glory 11 AUGUST. Of our God’s Almighty Power. St Anthony Brief SStt AAnntthhoonnyy BBrriieeff 2 Spirit and Life. 4 From the Editor. God’s Word: A Path from Darkness to Light. Brid Caffrey 5 shares how encountering Christ in the Scriptures was a key part of her journey to healing from sexual abuse. Maria Telgte Mission Revisited. After many years Gerry O’Reilly 8 OFM returns to Maria Telgte Mission, South Africa, to attend the funeral of its outstanding parish priest for 54 years, John Kerr OFM. Kuron Peace Village. Sr Cathy Arata, School Sister of Notre 10 Dame, is part of the inter-congregational missionary project, Solidarity with South Sudan. She works for peace and reconciliation. 12 Church Brief. The Pope and the Bishops. Marko Phiri reflects on the different 13 responses to Pope Francis’ recent meeting with the Bishops of Zimbabwe. Caring for Love Within Marriage. True love – as opposed to 14 falling in love – never ends, writes Hieronim Bartlomiej Stypa OFM. A special synod on marriage takes place in Rome this October. 15 The Order Grows in Zimbabwe. Food for Thought! Joining Slimming World to shed some pounds 16 gave Sr Mary Burke FMDM insight into deeper things. 18 A Golden Thread of Love. 19 La Verna Retreat Centre. Twelve Rays of Empowering Grace. In this Jubilee Year of the 20 Holy Name of Jesus, Pat Conlan OFM looks at how the IHS monogram was used to teach the path to Christian holiness. Volume 74 No.5 Missionary Magazine of the Irish Franciscans. Published bi-monthly by News from Around the Franciscan World. the Franciscan Missionary Union, 22 8 Merchants Quay, Dublin 8. From Cash Counter to Altar for Fr David. Sarah Horgan writes Editor: Fr Bernard Jones OFM. 23 of the faith journey of David Collins OFM who was ordained priest Production: Fr Francis Cotter OFM. in Cork friary on 24 May. Subscription & Distribution Secretary: Helen Doran. Tel: (01) 6777651. A Radical Pope! Francis Cotter OFM reflects on the daring vision Design, Layout & Printing: 24 of Christian life and mission that Pope Francis is putting before us. Corcoran Print & Design. Tel: (053) 9234760. Franciscans and the Pueblo Peoples of New Mexico. Gearóid Subscription including Postage: Ó Conaire OFM recently got the opportunity to look at the friars’ Ireland – €12.00 per annum 27 Britain – Stg£12.00 per annum ministry among the Pueblo Peoples of New Mexico. Overseas – €15.00 per annum Front cover : Alfigio Tunha, Michael Mission Digest. Ordinations in Harare. Perry (Minister General), and Onward 30 Murape at the Irish Provincial Chapter. Letters to the Editor. Aug/Sept 2014 31 3 From the Editor e Wisdom of Nature Nature is a great teacher and healer if we take the time to observe and allow its beauty to touch us. All is given to us by the hand of Fr Bernard Jones the Creator, the Giver of all that is good. We see in the animal world how well nature cares for her young, protecting them, feed - ing them and teaching them the knowledge they will need to grow and survive. How much more will God provide to you and me who are made in His image and likeness! As the Psalmist prays: “For it was you who created my being, Knit me together in my mother’s womb, I thank you for the wonder of my being, For the wonders of all your creation.” Soon we will be approaching autumn when nature starts to prepare for the winter. We can be assured that the God of love is watching over all of us in all the seasons of our lives. The following prayer expresses this faith vision: “God of the seasons, there is a time for everything; there is a time for dying and a time for rising. We need courage to enter into the transformation process. God of autumn, the trees are saying goodbye to their green, letting go of what has been. We too have our moments of surrender with all their insecurity and risk. Help us to let go when we need to do so. God of fallen leaves, lying in coloured patterns on the ground, our lives have their own pat - terns. As we see the patterns of our own growth, may we learn from them. God of birds, going south for another season, your wisdom enables us to know what needs to be left behind and what needs to be carried into the future. We yearn for insight and vision. God of flowers, touched with frost and windows wearing white designs, may your love keep our hearts from growing cold in the empty seasons. God of life, you believe in us, you enrich us, and entrust us with the freedom to choose life. For all this, we are grateful. Amen.” – Bernard Jones OFM ([email protected]) St Anthony Brief 4 God’s Word: A Path from Darkness to Light Brid Caffrey shares how encountering Christ in the Scriptures was a key part of her journey to healing from sexual abuse. y personal journey from the that the Church will listen and learn to walk I just knew I did not want to be this way trauma of abuse to healing and with people on their journey and thus heal but did not know where to start. I said to MMhope has taught me much about the whole body of the Church before more Jesus one day in a last effort of hope: “If the kind of ministry that can bring Christ to limbs fall off. you really care for me and can bring me people. And also the kind of ministry that is Most times I am like Peter in Matthew’s your peace as you promised: ‘Peace I doomed from the beginning. I wish to point Gospel, chapter 14, when he took a step leave you; my peace I give you. I do not a direction for the kind of ministry I believe out of the boat when Jesus asked him to give as the world gives. Do not let your will genuinely help people to recognise do so but when he started to walk he took hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.’ God in their lives. I know that, at its best, fright and began to sink crying out: “Lord Prove it and send me someone to help me pastoral ministry involves a deep human save me”. And Jesus put his hand out and to heal my life and not bring a legacy of bit - encounter in which people are willing to put helped him saying: “Man of little faith, why terness to my family and those in my life their own fear and doubt, hope and do you doubt?” In times when I fear or who are special to me.” Believe it or not, despair, light and darkness, at the disposal doubt a decision I reach out also to Jesus my cry of anguish was heard and for years of others. In this way they help others to and Jesus takes my hand and leads me on now I have had the company of a special find a way through their confusion and the right path. It is in this light that I am person, my counsellor, walking my journey reach the solid core of life. The very ele - sharing my journey of faith from forgive - with me. ment that is most personal and unique in ness to new life. He helped me to acknowledge how each one of us, if only we have the angry and hurt I was and most important courage to share it, is probably that which The Grace to Forgive that I had the right to be so and it was not can speak most deeply to others. It is the The freedom and growth comes with the my fault in anyway. I remember the day I nature of things that we heal others special gift of the ability to forgive. As forgave the priest who was the main through our own wounds. We are all someone who has realised the freedom source of my anger and hurt. I just handed “wounded healers” – as Henri Nouwen puts that comes from forgiveness I just want him over to Jesus and asked Him to help it. to share my long road to gaining this gift this person as He had helped me through By entering into communion with with people who are still in great pain my counsellor who is also a priest. I for - human suffering, by sharing with others our and anger. I realise now that for years I gave him not because he deserved it but own painful struggles, we give relief and was using almost all my energy being because I deserved to be set free from the we experience relief ourselves. We are all angry due to past hurts.