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Wednesday, December 12, 2018

ADMINISTERING THE MINISTERS OF LECTOR AND ACOLYTE

ON THE SOLEMNITY OF THE IMMACULATE HEART OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY ON 8TH OF DECEMBER 2018, SIX OF OUR BROTHERS RECEIVED THEIR MINISTRY OF LECTOR NAMELY DERRICK, NELSON, HEROLD, RAHUEL, KEN AND JOSEPH AND FIVE OF OUR BROTHERS RECEIVED THEIR MINISTRY OF ACOLYTE NAMELY ANTONY, DESMOND CROOS, DESMENRAJ,RAJASEKAR AND SELEXON.



Tuesday, December 4, 2018

The Fact and the Mode of Institution of the Seven Sacraments by Jesus Christ




“The seven sacraments were instituted by Jesus Christ”. Church did not institute the Sacraments. And “Jesus Christ is the Sacrament of God”, Church is the Sacrament of Jesus Christ”. So seven Sacraments were instituted by Jesus Christ.

The Reformers of the 16th century, Luther, Calvin, and Zwingly negated saying that all the Sacraments were not instituted by Jesus Christ. They argued that Jesus Christ established only three of the seven sacraments, namely Baptism, Eucharist and penitence. Later they said that only two sacraments could truly be considered by Jesus Christ. According to the Reformers Jesus Christ did not expressly established the rite or He did not explicitly promise the Sacramental grace to be conferred or both of the above. The fact of the institution of the Sacraments Martin Luther claimed that seven Sacraments do not have the scriptural warrant.

In Syncretistic Hypothesis the Rationalists at the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th centuries brought about the theory of “syncretism”. Certain things borrowed from Eastern rites. Some similarities in words adopted in Christianity. They accepted that: (I) Christianity depends more on the Judaic institution rather than on pagan ones. (II) The pagan mysteries are based on myths whereas the sacraments are based on history. (III) For pagan, purification is external but for the Christians it is internal.

St. Thomas Aquinas says Sacraments are encounters with Jesus Christ in which He reveals, offers and communicates His divine life to men. In certain sacraments, we do not have explicitly, we have implicitly. Therefore, with regards to the institution of sacraments we must consider not only what Jesus Christ said, but also everything that happened in and around him, what He did, what He spoke and what He ordered the Apostles to do. Further St. Thomas Aquinas says that Jesus Christ instituted the church. Now the pillars of the church are the sacraments. As Jesus Christ instituted the Church, the Sacraments are also instituted by Jesus Christ.

Institution of sacraments are older than scriptures. Because scriptures were written after the death of Jesus Christ, but sacraments were practice during the time of Jesus, and carried out by the Apostles. Apostles knew that the seven sacraments were instituted by Jesus Christ. As the followers of Jesus Christ they believed and propagated the sacraments and thus now they are existing in the Church. So no one cannot deny the fact the Sacramental were instituted by Jesus Christ. Therefore, there has been indeed considerable difference of language about the manner in which Jesus Christ instituted the Sacraments but about fact of institution by. Jesus Christ there has been no doubt in the teachings of the Catholic Church.
                                                 
  






C.Desmenraj
desmenraj@gmail.com  


Saturday, October 13, 2018

SAINT OSCAR A. ROMERO AND THE CLARETIAN MISSIONARIES


The martyred Bishop of El Salvador, Archbishop Oscar Arnulfo Romero will be canonized on October 14 in Rome.

On April 5, 1942, Archbishop Romero celebrated his First Mass in the crypt of our Basilica in Rome, now transformed into a place with the display of Poliscenic Nativity and Crucifixion miniatures. We read in the Bulletin of the Claretian Missionaries of the time:

“On Easter Day, 1942, in the crypt celebrates his first solemn Mass Oscar Romero, of the Pío Latino American School, native of the Republic of El Salvador, very close to our Fathers. The Very Reverend Father Andrea Resa was the presbyter assistant. The Mass celebrated by the priest was a true apotheosis. “

Oscar Arnulfo Romero was born in a humble family in El Salvador on August 15, 1917. From a young age he expressed the desire to be a priest, and entered the diocesan minor seminary of San Miguel which was run by the Claretian Missionaries, then passed to the Jesuits. He was chosen to complete his studies in Rome, and it was there where in 1942 he was ordained a priest at the age of 25 years. He continued his theological studies in Rome until he returned to El Salvador because of the Second World War.

He was ordained bishop on June 21, 1970, and served as the fourth Archbishop of San Salvador. On March 24, 1980, he was murdered around 6:25 pm while celebrating the Eucharist in the Chapel of the Hospital of Divine Providence.

REMEMBRANCE IN ROME

Monsignor Romero kept his whole life in close contact with the Claretian Missionaries and with the Basilica of the Heart of Mary in Rome.
In his Diary he wrote on May 3, 1979 in Rome, ten months before his martyrdom:

“Finally, I dined at the General House of the Claretian Fathers, having shared the main table with Father General, who tomorrow will leave for Germany for the celebration of his predecessor, who is now more than eighty years old. With them, I remembered the days of my minor seminary and also my first Mass, which I celebrated precisely in the temple annexed to this center of Claretian authority, the Temple of the Heart of Mary. And when I asked for an autograph in their guestbook, I wrote: “Today I went back to my origins: I did my minor seminary in San Miguel (El Salvador) with the dear Claretian Fathers and celebrated my first Mass here on April 5, 1942 . Thanks and blessings. 3-V-79. Oscar Arnulfo Romero, Archbishop of San Salvador “.

In the archives of the house this autograph is kept together with his photograph.

The reason for his visit to Rome was to attend the beatification of Fr. Francisco Coll. On May 1, 1979, he wrote in his Diary:

“In the afternoon I went to concelebrate at the beautiful Basilica of the Heart of Mary where the Claretian Fathers invited the Dominicans to signify their old friendship with the newly Beatified Fr. Coll. The Father General of the Dominicans and the Father General of the Claretians joined the main celebrant who was Cardinal Tarancón. The concelebration was splendid, about 60 bishops and priests, and the large temple was completely filled with religious and pilgrims. The Father General of the Claretians preached about the similarities between these two saints, Saint Anthony Mary Claret and Father Francisco Coll”.
It was on this occasion that the Claretians invited him to dinner on May 3. He wrote in his Diary on May 2:

“I was invited by the Claretian Fathers to go to dinner tomorrow at the Church of the Heart of Mary with the Father General of the Claretians. I will do so with feelings of gratitude for the Claretian communities that work in our Archdiocese. “

VIC MEMORIES

And he continues in his Diary on May 10 with his visit to Vic, as he had made the trip to Rome given by the Dominicans of the Annunciation for the Beatification of Father Coll:

“Afterwards, I had the good fortune to visit the tomb of Father Antonio Maria Claret, founder of the Claretians. There is a very rich reliquary and a magnificent temple where the center is the corpse adorned with a silver mask and Episcopal adornments. And, above all, they have reconstructed the places that witnessed the creation of this cordimarian religious Institute in its original form. In the background, there is a portrait of the figure of Father Claret, about 1.50, small in height, and the other companions of the foundation; names that I knew from my first years of seminary, since I began my priestly formation with this congregation that was then taken by Monsignor Dueñas to San Miguel. I narrated these memories to the Fathers, who thanked me very much for the visit and I thanked them very much for their welcome, always cordial “.

The chronicle of our House briefly notes:

“The Bishop of El Salvador, accompanied by Priests and Dominican Nuns of Father Coll has visited our Saint and the Museum “

OTHER MEMORIES

In these very familiar events, Romero himself indicates the root of that affection for the Congregation. Expelled from Mexico during the persecution of Calles, several of our people came to El Salvador hired by the Bishop of San Miguel to take charge of the diocesan seminary. For ten years, from 1927 to 1937, they fulfilled their delicate mission with real competence and to the satisfaction of all. The chronicle says that they left when their contract ended, although in another part it indicates that they were called by the Superiors to assign them to other Organisms that are in need and to whom it was impossible to send personnel from Spain after the enormous bloody suffering of the 271 martyrs of the religious persecution of 1936.

Mons. Romero, many years later, in 1962, wrote for the newspaper Chaparrastique, San Miguel, how were his first seven years of seminary with our brothers:

“They were, under the mantle of the Heart of Mary, the Claretian Fathers and the seminarians, a family whose spirit was that of the same founder, Saint Anthony Mary Claret. That famous manual of the seminarian that was taught, El Colegial, was not only read in by pages, but lived in that environment of dignified, humble and helpful priests, in their active system of education”.

Statuette of Fr. Claret given by Mons. Óscar Romero to Fr. Lino Hernando. It’s a pity that the chronicler of the House of Palencia, in a note written much later than the moment, already 1995, did not write down dates or other details that would have been very interesting. It says:

“The visit of Bishop Most Reverend Romero to Fr. Lino Hernando, whom he valued so much, since he was his formator in the Major Seminary in Central America, to the point that while Fr. Lino was in Cuba, Monsignor Romero called him to Central America to render him a tribute with all his formands. When he came here to visit him, he left as a souvenir a statuette of Fr. Claret, which he kept with great affection and today is displayed in front of us in the TV room as a perpetual memory of both Monsignor Romero, a martyr in defense of the poor, and Fr. Lino who worked much and well in the Antilles and Central America. Besides, this was his last residence before he retired and lived his last already sick years in Colmenar Viejo.

Of the statuette referred to (now in the Claretian Museum of Colmenar Viejo), notes in Palencia:

“Statuette of Fr. Claret given by Mons. Óscar Romero to Fr. Lino Hernando.”

Moreover, we find in his Diary, already very close to his martyrdom, on September 19, 1979, a reference to the Claretian missionaries:

“I went to lunch with the Claretian seminarians in Santa Tecla, a nice group of nine boys and a priest who attends them, with whom we shared moments of my many memories with the spirit of the Claretians, who fed my first minor seminary in San Miguel. It was very interesting the dialogue on table and after dinner and, they were, I think, were very satisfied, as well as they gave me a lot of encouragement too.”



Each year the Salvadoran community present in Rome, with its Ambassador, Consul and authorities, celebrate in the Basilica of the Heart of Mary the Independence Day on the second Sunday of September. Every year, the historic figure of Saint Oscar Arnulfo Romero is remembered together with the said celebration.


 By - Fr. Efrain Vasquez Mamani, cmf

Friday, October 12, 2018

Reflection - 28th Sunday in Ordinary time

Today’s readings are inviting us to reflect on Detachment from worldly inheritances. We are so much attached to the worldly wealth. First reading tells us to obtain the wealth of wisdom instead of the wealth of this world. The 2nd reading tells us that the Word of God is alive and active, even sharper than a two- edged sword. 

In the Gospel passage, we see the words which came from Jesus’ mouth pierces the heart of the Young man who wants to inherit the eternal life. He says to Jesus, “Good master, what must I do to have eternal life?” Jesus replies that no one is good but God alone. For human beings it is impossible but not for God. God alone is perfect and he is infinite and eternal and he is the highest Good and we the human beings are sharing his Goodness. So Jesus tell us that his father alone can be called as Good. The young man might have thought that by following the Commandments alone he can inherit eternal life, but it is not right. Jesus invites the young man to detach from all what he owned. The sad part of the story is that the young man could not.  The words came from Jesus’ mouth disappointed him.


The same invitation given to all of us today.  All of us are too eager to possess the eternal life.  But we are also blocked into some worldly wealth. We hardly want to share our wealth with poor. We prefer to hold onto our possessions. My dear friends, if we want to inherit the eternal life, leave all the wealth which could get decayed within one day, but inherit the wealth of wisdom which can lead us to eternal life. When we leave all these for the sake of Kingdom of God, we will receive them in hundred times in the presence of God.


By - Ithayaraj

Thursday, October 11, 2018

Membetrs of our Community 2018 - 2019




Rev. Fr. Maria Arul cmf

Date of Birth & place -  18. 10. 1955
Alenchy - India
     
arulcmf@gmail.com
       
0768615550 / 754002036
1st Profession – 07. 06. 1976
Perpetual Profession – 31. 05. 1981
Priestly Ordination – 09. 04. 1983
Present Status - Superior & Prefect of Students - Theology


Rev. Fr. B. S. Danushka Silva cmf


Date of Birth & place - 27. 09. 1982, Galgamuwa - Sri Lanka
 
danushkacmf@gmail.com
 0772207341
1st Profession – 08.09. 2005
Perpetual Profession – 08. 09. 2011
Priestly Ordination – 09. 04. 2013
Present Status - Prefect of Students Philosophy -  III & Secretary of independent Delegation of Sri Lanka


Rev. Fr. Devaseelan CMF


Date of Birth & place – 22. 12 . 1976,
Kandy, Sri Lanka
0777879034
1st Profession – 08.09. 2004 
Perpetual Profession – 08.09.2009
Priestly Ordination – 30.04.2011
Present Status - Econome, Prefect of Students


J. Dilan Rojan cmf


Date of Birth & place - 22. 12. 1989, 
Jaffna,Sri Lanka
0771446961
1st Profession – 08. 09. 2014
Present Status - Theology -  IV





A. Reginold Ronson cmf


Date of Birth & place - 09. 10. 1988, Jaffna – Sri Lanka
0778868259
1st Profession– 08. 09. 2014
Present Status - Theology -  IV


J. Donal Christy cmf


Date of Birth & place - 17. 12. 1989, 
Jaffna – Sri Lanka
0774666497
1st Profession – 08. 09. 2015
Present Status - Theology -  III


Iresh Nimarshana cmf


Date of birth & place – 30.05. 1990, 
Colombo – Sri Lanka
0771536692
1st Profession – 08. 09. 2015
Present Status - Theology -  III


K. Ann Roy Aravinth cmf


Date of Birth & place - 06. 10. 1990, 
Jaffna – Sri Lanka
0766723837
1st Profession – 08. 09. 2016
Present Status - Theology -  III


T. P. Johnson cmf


Date of Birth & place - 22. 04. 1990, 
Jaffna – Sri Lanka
0769372716
1st Profession – 08. 09. 2016
Present Status – Pastoral Year



Y. Sutharsan cmf

Date of Birth & place - 04. 11. 1988, 
Ampara – Sri Lanka
0776998163
1st Profession – 08. 09. 2016
Present Status - Pastoral Year



Charles Mathews Desmenraj cmf

Date of Birth & place  05. 10. 1990
Atchuvaley, Jaffna, 
desmenraj@gmail.com 
0770687669
1st Profession - 8-9-2017
Present Status - Theology  II

Gunaseelan Selexan cmf

Date of Birth & place 28. 07. 1991
 Murungan,Mannar, 
0778865914
1st Profession - 8-9-2017
Present Status - Theology II

S. Rajasekar Dias cmf

Date of Birth & place  15.07.1993
Emilnagev, Mannar. 
0775779637
1st Profession - 8-9-2017
Present Status - Theology  II

A. Desmond Croos cmf

Date of Birth & place  17.04.1988
 Thalvapada, Mannar.
0763612259
1st Profession - 8-9-2017
Present Status - Theology II

Antony Danoshan cmf

Date of Birth & place 03.12.1993
 Sinnakkadi, Mannar. 
1st Profession - 8-9-2017
Present Status - Theology II


Sewanyana Joseph cmf

Date of Birth & place  05.05.1990
Kakumiro District Bukumi parish-Uganda. 
1st Profession - 8-9-2018
Present Status - Theology I

Nelson Mandela Dominick Shirima cmf

Date of Birth & place 12.04.1991
 Arusha, Tanzania. 
0768600126
1st Profession - 7-16-2017
Present Status - Theology I

Ken Omondi cmf

Date of Birth & place 05.12.1992
 Homa-Bay, Kenya. 
1st Profession - 8-9-2018
Present Status - Theology I



K. Derrick Samuel Mariae cmf

Date of Birth & place 28.04.1992
 Makindye, Kampala, Uganda. 
0771311525
1st Profession - 7-16-2017
Present Status - Theology I

Rehuel Waclin cmf


Date of Birth & place 24.06.1995
 Buguias, Bunguet,Philippines. 
1st Profession - 8-9-2018
Present Status - Theology I

Harold Tan cmf

Date of Birth & place 08.04.1994
 Tayabas, Philippines. 
1st Profession  - 8-9-2018
Present Status - Theology I

A. Ithayaraj cmf

Date of Birth & place -16. 07. 1994, 
Mannar – Sri Lanka
0762911445
1st Profession - 8-9-2018
Present Status - Philosophy - III