Elections!
Much of the U.S. Province will be in Hales Corners this week for the provincial election assembly. Joining them will be Fr. Greg Murray of the Canadian Region, who will serve as moderator, and Fr. John van den Hengel, general councilor. Both come to the U.S. Province after joining SCJs in Ottawa for the 100th anniversary celebration of the SCJ presence in North America.
The election assembly begins with Holy Hour at 11 a.m. on Monday, June 14. The first working session will be at 1:30 p.m. that afternoon. The assembly is scheduled through Thursday, June 17. However, there is no set timetable. At the heart of the gathering is a discernment process that helps the membership determine the qualities needed in province leadership at this time in history and then who best expresses those qualities.
News of the election assembly will be posted on the province website under the “News” section. We will also post updates on the province Facebook page.
Provincial’s time
Fr. Tom, as is much of the province, will be in Hales Corners this week for the province election assembly. Last Friday he, along with Fr. Jan de Jong from the U.S. Province, was in Ottawa for the 100th anniversary celebration of the SCJ presence in North America.
SCJs in Canada
As noted above, the Priests of the Sacred Heart celebrated the 100th anniversary of the congregation’s presence in North America last Friday. Fr. Maurice Légaré writes that ” the archbishop of Ottawa, Most Rev. Terrence Prendergast, presided at the Eucharist for about 300 people. Fr. John van den Hengel, general councillor, represented the general government. After the Mass, there was a reception in the parish hall of Resurrection of Our Lord parish. There was then a banquet with about 100 special guests: collaborators, friends and alumni, as well as the confreres of the region.”
As a part of the 100th anniversary, the region asked several of its members to write reflections about either their personal history with the community or simply the Canadian Region itself. Fr. Bill Marrevee, regional superior, said that it wasn’t until he sat down to write his text that he “realized that I personally have been part of that presence for exactly 50 years. It all began with a letter from the provincial of the Dutch Province, Fr. Gijs Bakker. It was a letter sent to the 25 of us professed in 1956 in which he indicated that the plan was to send two of us to Canada where the SCJs were starting their scholasticate. If we had any objections to that possibility we should let him know. I had never thought of seeing myself going to Canada, but I had no objections either. So Harrie van Oirschot and I were chosen to take the boat in Rotterdam late August to arrive in Montréal on the way to Ottawa in the beginning of September 1960.”
In reflecting on his years as an SCJ in Canada Fr. Peter Botman notes that he was a children’s aid worker, a seminary administrator and a parish priest. Looking back at the parishes he served he noted a common theme: “All the churches I was assigned to had leaking roofs!”
These reflections and others, along with other historical information about the SCJ presence in North America, are available in the May-June Canadian Informations. Click here to view a PDF.
Welcome!
Justin Krenke was accepted this past weekend as a candidate for the U.S. Province. He begins with the Chicago formation program in fall.
Updates
Fr. David Szatkowski
Sacred Heart Monastery
P.O. Box 566
Hales Corners, WI 53130-0566
Note: his cell phone has been added to the online SCJ directory which is available under the Members’ section of the province website.
Br. Tim Murphy
New email address: tmurphy@poshusa.org
Fr. Vincent Suparman
A member of the Indonesian Province, Fr. Vincent will be coming to the United States later this month to take part in the summer ESL program. After which, he will join the pastoral team in Lower Brule, SD (pending his religious worker visa). “I should point out that Fr. Vincent is no stranger to the U.S. Province or to the English language as he spent a year in our ESL program and was one of the few, if only, Indonesians to learn how to cross country ski!” wrote Fr. Tom Cassidy in a recent letter to the province.
Fr. Vincent’s email: vincent_papua@yahoo.com
Keep in prayer
Fr. Steve Wiese is now at the Congregational Home, Rm. 1283. He is recovering from injuries suffered in a fall and is also addressing other medical concerns.
Fr. Chuck Wonch returned to Sacred Heart Monastery this past weekend after a week of hospitalization.
Mrs. Margaret (Peggy) Kernohan, the sister of Fr. Charlie Bisgrove, is being treated for breast cancer with a mastectomy and two months of chemotherapy.
SCJ retirement contributions
The Provincial Treasurer’s Office reminds SCJs that the SCJ retirement amount due on July 1, 2010, has been increased to $200 per month. The SCJ Medical is still $725 per month. For those reimbursing the province for both medical and retirement, the amount owed as of July 1, 2010, is $925 per month per SCJ.
Questions can be directed to the Treasurer’s Office.
Fr. General in India
Photos of the superior general’s recent visit to India are now available on the Indian blogsite. Click here to view.
American SCJ Br. Leonard Zaworski took the photos; he also maintains the district’s website.
17 ordained!
Sacred Heart School of Theology reports on its website that 17 of its spring graduates were ordained to the priesthood. The new priests represent 14 dioceses and religious communities.
