Welcome to Ottawa!
Just in time for winter, Fr. Jose Richard of the Indian District arrived in Canada on December 13. He is currently a member of the Ottawa community, assisting at Resurrection parish where Fr. Greg Murray is pastor and Fr. Paul Tennyson is in residence. Fr. Jose, 35, hopes to soon enter the graduate program in pastoral counseling at St. Paul University.
In India, Fr. Jose served on the district council and in formation. “I was asked by the district to go to Canada; I believe that studying pastoral counseling will enable me to be a more effective person in the ministry of helping others,” he said.
Except for the fact that “Ottawa is very cold!” Fr. Jose says that he is “very happy and pleased with the way the SCJ community and the parishioners at Resurrection welcomed me. I feel very much at home.”
Fr. Jose’s contact information:
Resurrection Parish
1949 Saunderson Dr.
Ottawa, ON K1G 2C9
CANADA
Phone: 613 7333 4661
Email: joserichard5@yahoo.co.uk
New to ESL
Fr. Jose Richard isn’t the only SCJ coming from the southern hemisphere to frigid winter temps in North America. This semester three African SCJs join the ESL program (English as a Second Language) at Sacred Heart Seminary and School of Theology: Fr. Philippe Djiadeau and Fr. Josué Fosso of Cameroon, and Fr. Joseph Mukuna of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
For SCJs who prefer to study English during the warmer months ahead, the deadline to apply for one or both of the summer ESL programs (June 29 – Aug. 14 and Aug. 31 – Oct. 15) is March 1. For more information about ESL at SHSST, or for assistance with the application process, click here to contact Kelly Kornacki, the ESL program director.
Updates
Fr. Paul Grizzelle Reid – Fr. Paul is now retired and is a member of the Sacred Heart Community in Pinellas Park. The address:
6701 82nd Ave. N.
Pinellas Park, FL 33781-1103
Bishop Joseph Potocnak – As of Feb. 1 Bishop Joe will also be a member of the Sacred Heart Community in Pinellas Park. See the address above.
Please remember…
+Br. Joseph Mongevin, a member of the Franco-European Province, died Jan. 6. He was born in 1925 and professed in 1944.
2015 jubiliarians
As Fr. Stephen Huffstetter wrote to SCJs last week, the Provincial Council expanded the province celebration of religious jubilees to include those who have been in vows 20, 30, 40, 60 and 70+ years (along with the usual silver and golden anniversaries).
The expanded list of 2015 jubilarians includes: Fr. Joseph Thien Dinh, Br. Andy Gancarczyk, Fr. Quang Nguyen and Fr. Ed Zemlik (20 years); Fr. Christianus Hendrik (25 years); Fr. Zbigniew Morawiec (30 years); Fr. Ed Kilianski, Fr. Gary Lantz and Fr. Bob Tucker (40 years), Br. Frank Snider (50 years); and Fr. Steve Wiese (60 years).
The province celebration will take place during the July 6-10 assembly; details are in process.
World Day of Migrants and Refugees
Next Sunday, Jan. 18, is World Day of Migrants and Refugees. Click here to download reflection materials developed by Becoming Neighbors, a collaborative immigrant and migrant outreach program based in Toronto.
“So many of the newcomers we serve stress how they rely on our prayers to accompany them and since we know prayer is one of the greatest gifts we can offer, we hope that you will join us as you are able,” writes Fr. Peter McKenna, a member of the Canadian Region who works with Becoming Neighbors. “Together let us pray for all people who are encountering each other in a new way because of migration. May we give thanks for all the ways refugees and migrants reveal to us the heart of our God.”
Prayers for Christian Unity
January 18 also marks the start of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. The octave was first proposed by Franciscan Fr. Paul Wattson in 1908, beginning with the feast of the confession of St. Peter and ending with the feast of the conversion of St. Paul.
Click here to download resources for the week prepared by the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity and the Commission on Faith and Order of the World Council of Churches.
The ministry of correspondence
In the most recent Dehonian Spirituality update Fr. Johnny Klingler reflects on the “ministry” of correspondence:
“One can say that I am good corresponder. It probably began when I was drafted into the army. I served in Korea and missed my family and friends. Mail Call are two beautiful words when you are far away from people you love and care for and so I began my letter writing. As the months went by I was writing more and more and receiving many replies. It made me feel that I was not that far away from friends and family. It was also in Korea when I first began to communicate through a tape recorder.
“My ministry as an SCJ took me to many countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, South America, including Canada and many places in the USA. I was able to visit my own families in Ireland and Switzerland. I was blessed by meeting so many of my SCJ brothers and people of different cultures. My circle of family and friends increased as did my correspondence…
“It is only in recent years that I see my correspondence as a ministry. At times it can become difficult to keep up with so much correspondence but for me it is the right thing to do.”
Click here to read other prayers and reflections based in the Dehonian charism.
Click here to add someone to the email subscription list of Dehonian Spirituality.
Province JPR blog focuses on MLK
Mark Peters, province director of Justice, Peace and Reconciliation, notes that the most recent post on the JPR blog reflects on the “Martin Luther King who is not safe for TV.”
“King has become such an American icon that we forget how controversial and hated he was by so many in his day,” writes Mark on the JPR blog.
Click here to read the full blog post.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is next Monday, Jan. 19.
Provincial’s time
Fr. Stephen Huffstetter is in Hales Corners this week, but spending much of his time with the Sacred Heart Community at SHML, where he is doing a visitation. Next week he will be in Florida for a visitation with the Sacred Heart Community in Pinellas Park.
