Salesian HS Walk-a-Thon Raises Funds for American Cancer Society

Salesian High School Walk-a-Thon Raises Funds for American Cancer Society

By Fr. Jim Heuser, president of Salesian HS

Salesian staff lead students on walk
thru Five Islands Park

(New Rochelle – October 30, 2026) – Salesian High School organized its 2nd annual Walk-a-Thon in support of the American Cancer Society on October 23. 450 pupils, teachers, and some parents walked approximately 3 miles through Five Islands Park and the Petersville neighborhood in New Rochelle. The decision to raise funds for the American Cancer Society this year stemmed from the fact that the disease has affected several members of the school community in recent years: teachers, pupils, and Salesians, as well as their families. The school raised over $5,000 to be allocated to cancer research and patient support. At the end of the walk, participants heard from Francis Badillo, the youth ministry coordinator, who gave a heartfelt account of his eldest son’s suffering, recounting the cancer diagnosis received 2 years ago, the various treatments attempted, the relentless progression of the disease and his current condition in hospital.

Students assembled before starting their walk

All's Quiet on the Long Path

All’s Quiet on the Long Path

We’ve been having gorgeous weather, milder than usual for this late in October.  Having a big project nearly wrapped up, I got an OK to go camping on Thursday, Oct. 29, after attending to some spiritual business on the other side of the Hudson.

I drove to the hikers’ parking lot off Long Mountain Parkway (Rte 6) and at 2:45 p.m. headed south on the Long Path.  The most hazardous part of my 2 days hiking and 1 nite of camping was just crossing the highway twice.

My destination was the Stockbridge Shelter, which I last visited 3 years ago.  I’d forgotten how much elevation one gains hiking thither from Rte 6—about 300 feet, spread over 2¼ miles.  I thought I’d handle that in an hour.  Ha!  It took me an hour and a half, including a couple of short breathers and some swigs of water.

There were signs in the parking lot and at the start of the Long Path on the opposite side of the highway warning about hunting—presumably for deer.  Hikers were advised to wear bright clothing and to stick to the trail.  I stuck to it, but I went with the white outer shirt I was already wearing.  (On the return trip, I wore my bright orange (Univ. of Illinois) windbreaker.

In any case, after leaving the parking lot I didn’t see a soul, either going to the shelter or returning.  Nor did I see a deer, or anything larger than a chipmunk.  I did spot a woodpecker and lots of small birds.  The only sounds were rustling leaves.

We haven’t had a good rain for over week, and the spots on the trail that normally would be crossed by little creeks or mushy weren’t so.  The foliage had a good mix of orange and yellow, and still a good bit of green.

I reached the shelter at 4:15

and found it empty—except for a lot of stuff previous visitors had left behind, including a pretty clean, heavy blanket, some empty liquor bottles, one not quite empty, a large Trump 2024 banner, a bagged roll of TP, and assorted other stuff.  

After emailing my confreres at home to let them know where I was (later I also sent a beautiful photo),

I gathered firewood.  It was surprisingly easy to find, both small pieces and larger ones that I sawed up into manageable chunks.

I’d worked up an appetite from the hike and the firewood.  I prepared supper:  chili mac with beef and Crystal Lite, followed by some trail mix and dried apricots.  

Then Evening Prayer and hanging my bear bag from a tree. 

There was a sign right outside the shelter advising use of the cables “behind the shelter” to hang your food, but I couldn’t see anything anywhere in back.

By then the sun had set, and I got a fine fire going in one of the 2 fireplaces in the shelter.  (At this time of year, I always want a shelter with a fireplace.) 

I was enjoying the quiet and the solitude.

The wind had risen and was blowing strong, from the west I think.  So it was chilly outside.  I decided to hunt for the elusive cable apparatus, and by descending from the shelter and walking toward the front of the shelter, I found them indeed—not quite in front of the shelter, more to the east side, but definitely not “behind” it, and definitely below it.  I didn’t relocate my bag, leaving it hanging from a tree limb, like so many other times.

I sat on the shelter platform with my book (Dagger John, a biography of Abp. John Hughes), getting up as needed to feed the fire till about 8:30, when I left it to subside gradually.  I plowed thru maybe 30 pages of the book before deciding to turn in.  I’d laid the Trump banner under my groundcloth, and I used the orphaned blanket for part of my pillowing, under my backpacker’s pillow stuffed with some clothing.

Many shelters have logbooks in them.  I signed into the one here.

After Nite Prayer, I changed into sleepwear (long johns and one more top layer) and snuggled into my sleeping bag.  Very comfortable.  My REI air mattress provided a good pad underneath.  Sleeping, tho, was another story; I tossed and turned most of the nite, dozing now and then, and a troublesome shoulder aching persistently.

The nite was quiet—“not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.”  Just the constant wind, but the shelter interior was warm enuf even after the fire died out.  My phone informed me the temperature was in the low 60s.

The nite looked foggy, but I’m not sure it was.  I waited till dawn to get up, which was about 6:30 a.m. on Friday.  It was 52° with a stiff wind still blowing—and no fog.  I visited Mother Nature, then took up the Liturgy of the Hours (iBreviary).  When it got light enuf, I celebrated Mass on one of the ledges alongside the fireplace opposite the one I’d used for my fire.

I retrieved my bag of food from the tree where I’d hung it and made breakfast:  hot granola, coffee, mixed nuts, and dried apricots—delicious, filling, and nutritious.

Packing up is always a chore, seemingly harder than packing before a trip.  At least this time I didn’t have to deal with a tent.  I take my time, trying to be methodical and, of course, not overlook anything.  Between yesterday and today, I picked up some of the litter left by my predecessors—an empty water bottle, small glass booze bottle, various tea candle remnants, etc.  I wasn’t tempted to take the Trump banner or the heavy blanket.

It didn’t get much warmer with the sun up; the wind continued strong.  Leaves carpeted the trail, occasionally obscuring the footpath.  But the trail conference has done an excellent job blazing it, so it wasn’t hard to follow at all.  Today’s earworm was “when autumn leaves start to fall.”  That was a contrast to yesterday’s snatch of a tune from The Mikado, which I’d just listened to at home:  “A is happy – B is not.”  Why that snatch?  Who knows?  It catchier than “Behold, the Lord High Executioner,” anyway.

I left the shelter with my pack feeling a little bit lighter than on the way in; after all, I’d used a lot of the 4 liters of water I’d brought.  The trail was mostly downhill, requiring care in spots and made a little treacherous here and there by the leaves’ hiding rocks, depressions, or bits of wood.  It took just about the same time, an hour and a half, to return to the car (at 10:30).

I emailed home that I was back at the car after doing a little litter removal in the parking lot—cans, bottles, cups, Burger King detritus.  Then homeward before 11:00.

All photos: https://linkit.shutterfly.com/PyaY0_

Advisory Team for Salesian Missionary Volunteers Meets

Advisory Team for Salesian Missionary Volunteers Meets

JC Montenegro, Lauren Hichaaba, Marco Fulgaro,
Fr. Christopher Kunda, & Adam Rudin

(ANS – Rome – October 26, 2026) – On Saturday, October 24, the annual meeting of the advisory team for Salesian missionary volunteer programs (SMV) began at the Sacred Heart complex in Rome. This mixed team coordinates and leads the SMV at the level of the Salesian Congregation.

Lauren Hichaaba (Australia), Juan Carlos Montenegro (USA West), Adam Rudin (USA East), Fr. Christopher Kunda SDB (Zambia), and Marco Fulgaro (Missions Department, SDB headquarters) began the meeting with a planning session and briefing on the week’s program, followed by Mass in the “Letter from Rome” chapel on Sunday, October 25, and a sharing session, led by Fr. Christopher, at Villa Borghese.

Sunday afternoon was devoted to a mid-term review of the strategic plan drawn up last year. On Sunday evening, Fr. Carlos Mendez (Youth Ministry Department, SDB HQ) will join the group. Over the coming days, the team will meet with several general councilors and the Rector Major; they will work on a documentary to highlight the potential of the SMV; continue organizing the World SMV Meeting in Madrid, October 17–22, 2027; and present the new guidelines for Salesian communities hosting volunteers (Thursday, October 29).

The meeting will then continue in Würzburg, Germany, where the team will have the opportunity to meet and get to know some German volunteers as they complete their placement.

(ANS – Rome) – From 24 to 30 October 2026, the Advisory Team for Salesian Missionary Volunteering (SMV) met in Rome to promote strategic priorities, strengthen international collaboration and reaffirm Missionary Volunteering as a vital expression of Don Bosco’s charism.

During the meetings, the group had the opportunity to engage in an exchange with Fr Jorge Crisafulli, General Teamlor for the Missions, Fr Rafael Bejarano, General Teamlor for Youth Ministry, Fr Silvio Roggia, General Teamlor for Formation, Fr Fidel Orendain, General Teamlor for Social Communication, and other representatives from the various sectors of the Congregation. Discussions focused on the formation of volunteers, the protection of minors and vulnerable persons (safeguarding), mental health, accompaniment, and shared responsibility between Salesians and lay collaborators in carrying out the Salesian mission.

A significant moment was the international launch of the “Guidelines for Salesian communities hosting volunteers”, presented in English with simultaneous translation into Italian and Spanish. The event was attended by Fr Jorge Crisafulli, Fr Rafael Bejarano and Fr Fidel Orendain; the meeting was moderated by Lauren Hichaaba, representing the Advisory Team. The dialogue-based format emphasized the importance of creating welcoming communities where volunteers can grow personally, spiritually and vocationally.

The Rector Major himself, Fr Fabio Attard, also encouraged the Team over the course of the days, urging the group to “prioritize depth over numerical growth, to foster authentic collaboration and to remain attentive to the evolving realities that young people face”.

Reflecting on Don Bosco’s vision, which sees the mission as a shared responsibility, the Rector Major went on to emphasize that effective leadership requires prayer, listening, discernment and a clear pastoral vision. He also highlighted the growing challenges related to mental health and safeguarding, stressing the need to create communities where young people can experience a genuine sense of belonging and personal accompaniment.

The Advisory Team also continued preparations for an International Meeting of Salesian Missionary Volunteer Coordinators, scheduled to take place from 17 to 22 October 2027 in Madrid. The initiative aims to foster greater collaboration and promote a shared vision of Missionary Volunteering throughout the Salesian world.

The Advisory Team has continued to develop a documentary highlighting the joint commitment of missionary volunteers and Salesians to new frontiers. Through authentic testimonies from different continents, the project aims to inspire young people to embrace missionary service as a concrete response to God’s call.

The meeting thus reaffirmed a fundamental conviction: Salesian Missionary Volunteering is much more than a simple opportunity for service. It is a journey of faith, encounter and vocational discernment, through which young people become active protagonists of Don Bosco’s mission and witnesses of hope throughout the world.

In the coming days, the Advisory Team will then travel to Würzburg, Germany, to take part in a gathering of volunteers.

Homily for Thursday, Week 30 of Ordinary Time

Homily for Thursday
Week 30 of Ordinary Time

Oct. 29, 2026
Luke 13: 31-35
Eph 6: 10-20
Christian Brothers, St. Joseph’s Residence, N.R.

Herod Antipas
(James Tissot)

“Go and tell that fox, … ‘on the third day I accomplish my purpose’” (Luke 13: 32).

Not all the Pharisees oppose Jesus.  Some are friendly enuf to warn him of danger.  Why Herod should “want to kill” him (13:31) is unclear.  But the threat is real; the ruler has already killed John the Baptist.

Nevertheless, what Herod thinks and plans doesn’t determine what Jesus will do.  That’s determined by the Father’s will:  “I must continue on my way…, for it’s impossible that a prophet should die outside of Jerusalem” (13:33).

Jesus has already undertaken his way to the holy city, the city of prophetic destiny.  Luke tells us in ch. 9, “When the days for his being taken up were fulfilled, he resolutely determined to journey to Jerusalem” (v. 51).  He has cast out demons and performed miracles, but his purpose still lies ahead.  He will resolutely carry out the Father’s will regardless of Herod.

To use contemporary language, Jesus is laser-focused on God’s will.  That’s an example for us.  “On the 3d day” Jesus will accomplish his purpose—an allusion to his resurrection, by which he goes beyond exorcisms and healings and opens the way to eternal life for us.  Eternal life is the Father’s plan for the human race.  Those who follow Jesus must resolutely seek and carry out God’s will without regard for the Herods of our time, or for “the principalities, powers, and world rulers of this present darkness, or the evil spirits in the heavens” (Eph 6:12)—or for our own desires and wills.

The Salesian Mission in the Americas

The Salesian Mission in the Americas
A network that beats with the heart of Don Bosco

(ANS – Medellin, Colombia – October 26, 2026) – The final day of the continental meeting of provincial superiors and youth ministry delegates from the Americas, held in Medellin October 19-23, was devoted to reflection on Salesian formation and its relationship with the educational and pastoral mission. Fr. Dominic Tran and Bro. Travis Gunther represented the New Rochelle Province.

Fr. Silvio Roggia, general councilor for formation, led the discussion on the 5th edition of the Ratio Fundamentalis Institutionis et Studiorum, promulgated on January 26, 2026. His address provided an opportunity to explore the theme of Salesian formation as an ongoing process, which unfolds thruout one’s entire life and is oriented toward the mission of being educators and pastors of young people.

Under the theme “Networking, the dream continues,” for 5 days provincials, delegates, and representatives from various Salesian networks across the 2 American continents shared experiences and reflected on the current challenges facing Salesian youth ministry, on strengthening networking, and on collaboration between Salesian organizations.

The meeting was also attended by Fr. Rafael Bejarano, general councilor for youth ministry; Fr. Gabriel Romero, councilor for the America South Cone Region; and Fr. Hugo Orozco, councilor for the Interamerica Region.

One of the central themes was networking, understood as a way of living out Don Bosco’s mission together. Building on the Rector Major’s message and a reflection on the journey undertaken by the Congregation, the participants explored the relationship with the Don Bosco Network, mission offices, and Salesian NGOs, emphasizing the importance of sharing expertise, collaborating, and building sustainable networks in the service of young people.

The Salesian province of Medellin, Colombia, hosted the meeting, welcoming participants in an atmosphere of fraternity and shared Salesian charism. As part of the experience, the participants also visited Ciudad Don Bosco, where they were able to learn about the educational programs and holistic support services aimed at vulnerable young people.

At the end of the meeting, a renewed commitment was made to strengthen ties between the provinces and Salesian networks, to promote shared discernment, and to consolidate avenues of collaboration across the continents. The event also reaffirmed the close link between formation and youth ministry, areas that are fundamental for preparing Salesians capable of understanding new contexts and responding to the challenges facing young people.

“Networking, the dream continues” – this phrase sums up the desire to keep Don Bosco’s dream alive in the Americas, by uniting efforts and pooling gifts and resources to continue accompanying, educating, and evangelizing young people, especially those most in need.

25 Years of Miracles in Mongolia

25 Years of Miracles in the Land of the Nomads
Silver jubilee of the Salesian presence in Mongolia

(ANS – Ulan Bator, Mongolia – October 27, 2026) – “The past with gratitude, the present with optimism, the future with courage.” Inspired by this motto, the Salesian delegation of Mongolia celebrated its silver jubilee on October 23-24.

Taking into account the country’s historical heritage and social context, the celebration was organized in 2 distinct parts: a non-religious ceremony held on October 23, followed by the religious celebration, which included Mass, on  October 24.

The silver jubilee was marked by the presence of guests from every corner of the world, including Fr. William Matthews, SDB regional councilor for East Asia–Oceania; Fr. Marcello Baek, provincial of the Holy Korean Martyrs Province in South Korea; Fr. Joseph Kim Khanh, vice provincial of the Vietnam Province, who laid the foundations for the Mongolian mission prior to its integration into the South Korea Province; and Fr. Joseph Toth, a missionary from Slovakia, who first arrived 25 years ago and is currently serving in Yakutsk, Siberia. Together they shared their joy and gratitude for 2½ decades of grace.

October 23: gratitude and unity shared with Mongolian society

The celebrations began on October 23 at the Don Bosco Erdem Technical School in Ulan Bator. The program featured a wealth of traditional artistic performances, including the Morin Khuur (horse-head fiddle) and Urtyn Duu (traditional Mongolian singing), as well as testimonies from representatives of various Salesian centers, who presented 25 years of Salesian history and work in Mongolia.

A moving moment of the day was the testimony of Mark, a former pupil of the school, who offered an example of what Salesian preventive education means. He is now a respected and much-loved teacher who expressed his deep gratitude to the Salesians for having shaped not only his professional career, but also his life and his faith.

During the day, the local Mongolian community paid a moving tribute to the Salesians. Residents and young people, who are traditionally reserved in expressing their emotions, invited the foreign Salesian missionaries onto the stage. Wearing colorful traditional Mongolian deels as a sign of respect for the local culture, the Salesians were welcomed with sincere gratitude by the people they have served for 25 years.

October 24: the Salesian Family united in praise at Sts. Peter and Paul Cathedral

On October 24, over 300 members of the Salesian Family, including the Salesians, the Polish ambassador to Mongolia, priests and religious from the prefecture apostolic of Ulan Bator, lay faithful, the Salesian Sisters, the Salesian Cooperators, and members of the Association of Mary Help of Christians, filled Sts. Peter and Paul Cathedral, where Fr. Matthews presided over Mass.

The 2d day began with an account by Fr. Timothy Choi, the delegate for Mongolia, on the life of Fr. Carlo Maria Savio De Ocampo Villegas, the first Salesian missionary to arrive in Mongolia (2001). After 17 years of devoted service, Fr. Carlo suffered a stroke while celebrating Easter Mass in Darkhan, leaving him paralyzed on one side of his body. He subsequently returned to the Philippines. To mark the 25th anniversary, Fr. Carlo entrusted his beloved medal of Mary Help of Christians to Fr. Timothy.

Another deeply moving moment of the event was when the Salesian confreres sang the famous Mongolian song “Nutgiin Shuvuud” together with the audience. The song expresses the deeply rooted spirit of the nomadic life of the Mongolian people, mirroring the path of self-giving taken by the Salesian missionaries, who left their homeland to live as loving strangers in a distant land.

The mission in Mongolia is facing real challenges due to staff shortages, the financial crisis, and various other social and cultural issues. Despite this, the Salesian Family in Mongolia remains steadfast. Faced with a difficult reality, it entrusts itself to its vocation with “hope against all hope” (Rom 4:18), following the words of Pope Francis from his apostolic journey to Mongolia: “God loves smallness and thru it accomplishes great things.”

As Fr. Carlo Maria Savio testified, the history of the Mongolian mission has been a continuous journey of grace under the maternal care of Mary Help of Christians. The Salesians in Mongolia look to the future with optimism, carrying in their hearts the miracles of the past 25 years.

Homily for Tuesday, Week 30 of Ordinary Time

Homily for Tuesday
Week 30 of Ordinary Time

Oct. 27, 2026
Eph 5: 21-33
Christian Brothers, St. Joseph’s Residence, N.R.

Matrimony
(St. Catharine's Church, Spring Lake, N.J.)

“Brothers and sisters:  Be subordinate to one another out of reverence for Christ” (Eph 5: 21).

Today’s passage from St. Paul has become controversial after the women’s liberation era.  If we understand that Paul’s applying the Gospel to the Greek and Jewish culture of his time, as we need to apply it to our time, then the passage makes sense.  It doesn’t make sense to apply the rules of 1st-century culture to our time, as distinguished from the timeless standards of human nature.

Paul’s essential message is reverence for Christ, displayed by mutual respect and concern.  That doesn’t change with the culture.  All the baptized “are members of his Body” (5:30).  Christ loves the Church “and handed himself over to sanctify her” (5:25-26).  The Church loves him and obeys him, that his self-sacrifice for her might be effective, “that she might be holy and without blemish” (5:27).

In today’s culture, both husbands and wives, and all Jesus’ disciples, therefore, ought to “be subordinate to one another,” to sacrifice themselves for one another, to respect and serve one another.  For “the two shall become one flesh” (5:31)—not only husbands and wives but all the baptized one Body with Christ, whether male or female, married or single.  We religious, too, members of the one Body, must serve “one another out of reverence for Christ.”

“Blessed are you who fear the Lord, who walk in his ways!” (Ps 128:1)—in the ways of our Lord Jesus, who gave himself up for us.

Homily for 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Homily for the
30th Sunday of Ordinary Time

Oct. 25, 2026
Matt 22: 34-40
The Fountains, Tuckahoe, N.Y.[1]
St. Francis Xavier, Bronx

The Pharisees question Jesus
(James Tissot)

“Teacher, which commandment in the Law is the greatest?” (Matt 22: 36).

The rabbis in Jesus’ time discussed that question a lot, and Jesus’ answer, at least regarding “the greatest and the first commandment” was widely accepted.  To this day, pious Jews recite that 1st commandment as part of their daily prayer.

Jesus takes the question a step further by proposing a 2d part to his answer:  one must love not only God but also one’s neighbor (22:39).

The Pharisees and scribes in Jesus’ time counted 613 individual precepts in the Law of Moses.  Most of them depended on one or the other of these 2 great commandments, love of God and neighbor.

What does it mean for us to love the Lord our God will all our heart, soul, and mind?

It means to give God 1st place in our lives.  No person and no thing is more important or can command our attention and devotion more than God.  It means worshiping God on Sunday (in its pastoral care for us, the Church includes Saturday evening as part of Sunday); that’s more important than sleeping in, going to work, going to the beach, shopping, or team practice.

It means connecting with God daily thru Scripture reading and prayer.  It means listening to the Church’s moral teachings, e.g., about human life and death and about care for the environment, which is God’s created world.

Human life is to be brought forth only by the natural union of husband and wife, not in a laboratory or with a surrogate.  That natural union is always to be open to the possibility of life, and not intentionally impeded.  Human life belongs to God from beginning to end, from conception to natural death.  God has made humans in his image, male and female, and that’s unchangeable; Pope Francis called transgenderism “demonic.”

God cares for every person; made in his image, we’re all his children.  That’s why Jesus teaches that love of neighbor is the 2d great commandment.  We can’t be so focused on God that we’re blind to our neighbor.  Ethel Waters, an American singer and actress, once said, “Some folks are so heavenly-minded they ain’t any earthy good.”  We can’t commend someone who, for example, gives so much time and attention to his parish that his spouse and children are neglected.

On the contrary, a saint has been described as someone with her eyes on heaven and her feet on the ground, someone who gives due attention to both God and the world around her.  St. John Bosco insisted that his mission for young people is to make them honest citizens and good Christians—citizens here on earth who are heading toward heaven.

That resembles what Jesus said last week, doesn’t it?  Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.

And that means that all of us who are citizens are obliged to vote.  Our love for our neighbor is expressed in part by whom we vote for and what public policies we favor, e.g., about war and peace, life and death, care for the poor, the hungry, the homeless, the refugee.  In fact, the Lord commands us, as we heard in the 1st reading, not to wrong an alien among us—a foreigner—or a widow or orphan, and to care for our poor neighbors (Ex 22:20-26).  That divine command directly contradicts what our government is doing.

In Jesus’ time, the rabbis and scribes generally restricted the meaning of “neighbor” to mean one’s fellow Jew.  Jesus broadened that meaning to be all-inclusive, particularly in his parable of the Good Samaritan, but also in his healings of Gentiles and his sitting with and instructing a Samaritan woman when she came to draw water from the village well.

Jesus speaks with the Samaritan
woman at the well

All of God’s children are our neighbors, and we’re obliged to love all of them.  I was surprised by the results of a recent national survey which found that 39% of adult Catholics have experienced racial or ethnic discrimination, including 10% within their parish and 11% within Catholic education.  Love for God’s children has no room for discrimination based on race, sex, language, national origin, age, religion, or state of health.  The Rev. Martin Luther King was 100% right when he preached that people should be judged by the content of their character and not the color of their skin.

“If ever you wrong them,” the Lord says in our Exodus reading, “and they cry out to me, I will surely hear their cry.  My wrath will flare up” (22:22-23).  I’m sure we don’t want to be under God’s wrath.  We’d rather hear his voice and be blessed.  “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart … [and] your neighbor as yourself” (Matt 22:37,39).

 

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[1] Several chunks of text omitted at The Fountains assisted living home.

Salesian Missions Funds New Chapel in Assamese Village

Salesian Missions Funds the Building of St. Anthony’s Chapel in the village of Paneery New Line in Assam

(ANS – Paneery New Line, India – October 21, 2026) – Salesian Missions in New Rochelle has funded the construction of the chapel of St. Anthony in the village of Paneery New Line in the Udalguri district of the Indian state of Assam. The new building is already being used by the faithful of the local community for celebrations and prayer.

The project involved the complete construction of the building, which is equipped with electricity and fans, while the landscaping of the area outside the chapel has helped to enhance the entire site. The community belongs to the Adivasi tribe, who are mostly workers on the tea plantations of the Paneery Tea Estate. The families live in difficult economic circumstances and depend on day labor for their livelihood. The residents played an active part in the construction, working alongside the builders and also helping to decorate the chapel.

“We are fortunate finally to have a place to pray,” said local leader Lazarus Toppo, recalling that previously the community had only a simple mud-brick structure.

Homily for Memorial of St. John Paul II

Homily for the Memorial of
St. John Paul II

Oct. 22, 2026
Collect
Christian Brothers, St. Joseph’s Residence, N.R.

(L'Osservatore Romano)

The collect for this memorial begins by addressing God as “rich in mercy.”  That was the title of St. John Paul’s 2d encyclical, Dives in misericordia.  Later, he instituted the annual observance of Divine Mercy Sunday.  He demonstrated mercy by visiting and forgiving his would-be assassin.

The collect next notes God’s will “that Pope St. John Paul II should preside over your universal Church.”  48 years after his election, we may forget how tradition-shattering his election was:  the 1st non-Italian Pope since 1523, and the youngest one since Pius IX’s election in 1846.  It evidently was God’s will that a man who had been a slave worker for the Germans, a secret seminarian, a charismatic youth minister, a pastor familiar with the oppression of totalitarianism, and a father of Vatican II should become the vicar of Christ.  Side note: as a youth he also was a Salesian parishioner.

John Paul II shrine
in St. Stanislaus Kostka Church, Krakow,
where he worshiped as a student
and during the German occupation

We prayed that our hearts be “open to the saving grace of Christ.”  John Paul’s 1st encyclical was Redemptor hominis; later he gave us Redemptoris missio, Evangelium vitae, and Ecclesia de Eucharistia.  His constant theme was “Do not be afraid”—not afraid, especially the young, to open wide the doors of our hearts to Christ.  All his ministry as priest, bishop, and pontiff, in writings and in travel—104 trips beyond Italy—aimed at making Jesus Christ, “the sole Redeemer of the human race,” known and drawing us into a close relationship with him.  He brought the Lord Jesus to everyone everywhere and himself lived in close communion with Christ.  He showed “the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, [filling us] with all the fullness of God” (Eph 3:19).

John Paul also taught us to love Jesus’ mother.  His encyclical Redemptoris mater and his motto Totus tuus highlighted Mary, who cares for us as her children and always directs us to her divine Son.

We’ve been “instructed by his teaching”—in 14 encyclicals and numerous other writings; in Wednesday audiences, most notably those that presented “the theology of the body”; and his challenges to totalitarianism by his insistence on truth, on freedom, and on human dignity.

Not least, John Paul taught us thru his suffering.  We watched the vigorous skier, kayaker, and hiker become old and frail while continuing his zealous ministry with courage and dignity until the day came for him to pass over “to the home of the Father”—as the whole world kept vigil outside the papal apartment as if for a father.  He truly was “il Papa.”