Fr. Ky Nguyen Ordained a Priest, Bro. Branden Gordon a Deacon

Fr. Ky Nguyen Ordained a Priest,

Bro. Branden Gordon Ordained a Deacon

By Fr. Mike Mendl, SDB, and Julia St. Clair

On Saturday, May 28, Fr. Ky Nguyen was ordained to the presbyterate and Bro. Branden Gordon was ordained to the diaconate at Our Lady of the Valley Church in Orange, N.J. Both men belong to the Salesian province of St. Philip the Apostle, which covers the Eastern USA and all of Canada.

Auxiliary Bishop Vincent Nguyen of Toronto was the ordaining prelate and preached. 34 priests, mostly Salesians, concelebrated. 

The Vietnamese choir from St. Cecilia Church in Rockaway, N.J., and a schola organized by Bro. John Castonguay, SDB, provided an abundance of beautiful sacred music in English, Vietnamese, and Latin.

Another dozen SDBs, 3 FMAs, several Cooperators, students from Salesian High School (New Rochelle) and Don Bosco Prep (Ramsey), youths from St. Benedict Church (Etobicoke, Ont.), numerous members of the Nguyen and Gordon families, and parishioners from Our Lady of the Valley, Our Lady of Czestochowa in South Plainfield, N.J., and St. Cecilia also participated enthusiastically in the sacred rites. Many others tuned in via the livestream from Our Lady of the Valley Church’s Facebook, which was also shared to Salesians of Don Bosco, Canada and Eastern USA’s Facebook.

To serve the People of God

Bishop Nguyen (no relation to Fr. Ky) began his homily (which he delivered once in English and once in Vietnamese) by thanking the families and formators who had shaped the vocations of the two ordinands and asking for continued prayers for them.  He then encouraged Deacon Ky and Bro. Branden to continue in their service to the Lord and their trust in him, living out the Psalm response, “Lord, I have come to do your will.”

The bishop told the ordinands that God has chosen them and now is raising them up, transforming them for the benefit of his people.  He went on to summarize the diaconal and presbyteral responsibilities they’re undertaking, basing his words on the Rite of Ordination.

The bishop reminded both Deacon Ky and Bro. Branden that they’re being charged to proclaim God’s Word, not their own, and to proclaim that Word by their manner of life.  They are to follow the example of Christ, the Supreme Priest, in his example of service and of giving his life as a ransom (cf. Matt 20:28, from the day’s gospel)—an example for both orders, presbyterate and diaconate.

He further reminded them of what Pope Francis teaches in Evangelium Gaudium, that ordination is for the service of God’s people.  The ordained are not exalted over others but are given priestly powers to administer the sacraments, serve God’s people, and lead them to God the Father.  Having done so, on the Last Day they will be welcomed into the joy of the Lord.

Following the ordination Mass of more than two hours, dozens of photos were taken of newly ordained Fr. Ky and Deacon Branden and their families, the Salesians, and others.  Fr. Ky spent about an hour blessing everyone who approached him, beginning with Bp. Nguyen and Fr. Tim Zak, provincial, and he continued giving blessings at the reception.

Our Lady of the Valley provided a magnificent reception in the parish youth center with a varied buffet, refreshments, and desserts.

Fr. Paul Ky Nguyen

Fr. Ky was born in 1986 at Dakmil, Vietnam. He is the son of the late Peter Minh Xuan Nguyen and Mary Hoang Dang. He got his early education in Vietnam, up to a B.A. in material science from the University of Natural Science in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). He recently graduated with a Master of Divinity in Pastoral Ministry and a Master of Arts of Theology from Immaculate Conception Seminary, attached to Seton Hall University, in South Orange, N.J.

As the son of a past pupil, Fr. Ky knew the Salesians early in life. He entered the Congregation as a candidate in 2004 and made his novitiate in 2010-2011 in Ho Chi Minh City, making his first profession on August 14, 2011. As Bro. Ky he completed his practical training in the Salesian boarding school at Bao Loc, Vietnam, where he taught computer science and provided general assistance to the students.

After immigrating to the US in 2016 to rejoin his family, who had already immigrated, he made his perpetual profession on August 17, 2019, at Haverstraw, N.Y. From 2017-2018, he served as a campus minister at Salesian High School in New Rochelle, N.Y. During his time as a student of theology at Immaculate Conception Seminary, he resided in the Salesian community of Orange, N.J., and continued youth ministry activities there.

Bp. Nguyen anoints the hands of the new priest with chrism.

Fr. Ky wrote that “vocation is a journey of faith.” He cited the example of our Blessed Mother and has intended to say “Yes” to God as Mary had, as well as “rely on God’s help through the intercessions of Mary, of St. John Bosco, of St. John Vianney, of Padre Pio, and of all faithful people who have been praying supporting me on my vocation.”

Fr. Ky will return to Vietnam to celebrate a thanksgiving Mass in his hometown. On July 1 he’ll join the Salesian community of Marrero, La., to serve as community treasurer and teach religion at Archbishop Shaw High School.

Deacon Branden Gordon

Deacon Gordon was born in Toronto in 1987. He is the elder of Ronald Gordon and Rita Pipito’s two sons. Deacon Branden met the Salesians while in high school. A conversation with Fr. Frank Kelly of St. Benedict Parish in Etobicoke, Ont., led Branden to further spiritual seeking and an eventual return to religious practice. Fr. Frank’s “unflagging cheerfulness and personal warmth” was backed up by the example of other Salesians in the parish, particularly Fr. Mike Pace, Fr. John Puntino, and Bro. Bernie Dubé. He got involved in the parish’s youth ministry and developed a relationship with God.

After high school and university, Branden worked for Toronto Parks and Recreation for nearly ten years, then became a teacher. His parents had already inspired in him a concern for young people. This, together with an interest in religious life, induced him to consider becoming a Salesian.

Branden became a Salesian candidate in the Etobicoke community in April 2013, where he was guided by Fr. Puntino, the director. As they studied Don Bosco’s Memoirs of the Oratory together, Fr. Puntino convinced him “that there was something special about the Salesian charism.” At the beginning of 2014, he began prenovitiate at Holy Rosary Parish in Port Chester, N.Y.; he was a novice in Rosemead, Calif., in 2014-2015 and made his first profession as a Salesian on August 16, 2015, in Port Chester.

During two further years of formation in Orange, N.J., he was influenced by Bro. Tom Dion as a formator and spiritual director. He did his practical training at Salesian High in New Rochelle from 2017 to 2019, teaching religion to freshmen. In 2019, he returned to the Orange community and began theology studies at Immaculate Conception Seminary in South Orange. He has spent his summers back in Canada brushing up on his French, which he admits has been a challenge for him. Last summer, he assisted with the Bosco Bicycle program conducted by Seminaire Salesien in Sherbrooke, Que.

His apostolic work in Orange has included helping with RCIA and other catechetical programs as well as some dramatic presentations at Our Lady of the Valley Church.

Deacon Branden wrote that, as he enters his tenth year of formation to the priesthood, he “trusts that … the good Lord will continue to be with [him] on this journey towards the priesthood and that He will help [him] to persevere in fidelity” for the rest of his days.

Deacon Branden will spend this summer in the Salesian community of Port Chester, where he will gain practical pastoral experience as a deacon under the guidance of Fr. Pat Angelucci, the pastor, and the rest of the parish clergy and staff.

One more ordination coming

A third Salesian, Bro. Joshua Sciullo of Jacksonville, Fla., will be ordained to the diaconate on Saturday, June 12, in Jerusalem.

More photos:  https://link.shutterfly.com/5DxBqnR9qqb  

Homily for Feast of Visitation

Homily for the Feast of the Visitation

Is 12: 2-6
May 31, 2022
Christian Brothers, St. Joseph Residence, New Rochelle

“Among you is the great and Holy One of Israel” (Psalm Response).

Visitation: St. Vaast Altarpiece

(Jacques Daret)

That paraphrase from Isaiah 12 echoes lines from the prophet Zephaniah:  “The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst. . . .  The LORD, your God, is in your midst, a mighty savior” (3:15,17).  God chose Israel and dwells among them—in the ark of the covenant, in his Temple.  This is cause for joy and for hope amid the dangers of politics, diplomacy, and hostile neighbors and religious tensions from pagan influences, the people’s backsliding into idolatry, and the beginnings of reform under King Josiah.

The sentiments of the Isaian psalm are real for Mary and Elizabeth, who along with unborn John recognize the presence of God.  They live and try to serve the God of Israel in a difficult time, Israel’s oppression by Roman overlords and the harsh rule of King Herod.  They have the personal challenges of unexpected motherhood.  But they’re filled with joy and hope because they see that God is at work in them.

The Holy One of Israel is among us.  God is at home in his Church, even when she’s in turmoil from persecution, scandals, and internal dissension.  Despite that, we know the Holy Spirit is here; we are given the Word of God to encourage, correct, guide, and strengthen us; we have the Eucharist; God readily forgives our sins.  “He has come to the help of his servant Israel, for he has remembered his promise of mercy” (Luke 1:54).

Two Salesians on List of New Cardinals

Two Salesians on List of New Cardinals

(ANS – Rome – May 29, 2022) – After the Marian prayer of the Regina Coeli and the reflection on today’s Gospel, on May 29 Pope Francis announced the convocation of the consistory on August 27 for the creation of the 21 new cardinals. It is a joy to note that two Salesians are on the list of the newly announced – Archbishop Virgilio Do Carmo da Silva, of Dili, East Timor, and Bishop Luc Van Looy, emeritus bishop of Ghent, Belgium.

Your humble blogger
with Bp. Luc in 2007 at Ghent

Luc Van Looy was born on September 28, 1941, in Tielen, Belgium. He studied with the Jesuits in Turnhout and at Don Bosco College in Hechtel. He joined the Salesians of Don Bosco and made his first profession on August 25, 1962, and his perpetual profession on March 6, 1968. He was ordained a priest on September 12, 1970. He worked in South Korea from 1972 to 1984, including service as provincial. He then held various responsibilities of leadership in the Congregation: general councilor for Salesian Missions from 1984 to 1990, general councilor for youth ministry from 1990 to 1996, and vicar of the Rector Major from 1996 to 2003. He was nominated bishop of Ghent by Pope John Paul II on December 19, 2003, and ordained bishop by Cardinal Godfried Danneels on February 1, 2004. Pope Francis accepted his retirement in December 2018, but asked him to remain as bishop until his successor was appointed, which occurred on November 27, 2019.

Virgilio Do Carmo da Silva was born on November 27, 1967, in Venilale, East Timor. After attending Salesian primary and secondary schools in Fatumaca, he joined the Salesians and made his first profession on May 31, 1990. He made his perpetual profession on March 19, 1997, and was ordained on December 18, 1998. From 1999 to 2004 and again from 2007 to 2014 Fr. Do Carmo was novice master for the Salesians. From 2005 to 2007 he did his licentiate in spirituality at the Salesian Pontifical University, Rome. From 2009 to 2014 he was the director of the technical school of Nossa Senhora de Fatima in Fatumaca. In 2015 he became the provincial of East Timor-Indonesia Vice Province. On January 30, 2016, he was appointed by Pope Francis as bishop of Dili, and in September 2019, Pope Francis appointed him East Timor’s first archbishop.

 

Bp. Luc speaking in 2006

with Fr. Del Labonte'

Homily for 7th Sunday of Easter

Homily for the
7th Sunday of Easter

May 29, 2022
Acts 7: 55-60
St. Joseph Church, New Rochelle

“Stephen, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently to heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God” (Acts 7: 55).

The Stoning of St. Stephen (Annibale Carracci)

The reading from the Acts of the Apostles this morning reports the martyrdom of St. Stephen, the 1st disciple of Jesus to be killed because of his faith in Jesus.  He’s been preaching that Jesus is the Christ, God’s anointed one who leads believers to forgiveness of their sins and eternal life.  That arouses murderous fury in some of the Jews who hear his preaching.  As Stephen’s about to be executed by stoning, he completes his Christian testimony

-- by proclaiming that Jesus is glorified at the Father’s side,

-- by forgiving his killers just as Jesus did,

-- and by handing over his spirit to God, as Jesus did.

So Stephen gives us example of Christian life:  to keep our eyes on the eternal life that Jesus promises, to forgive those who offend us, and to put ourselves completely into God’s hands.  Many followers of Jesus risk their freedom and even their lives to do that, e.g., in Hong Kong and the rest of China; in Nigeria, where Islamists terrorize the disciples of Jesus; and in other places.

In the U.S. and Canada, our lives aren’t in danger, but there are believers who risk their livelihoods because of their faith:  bakers and florists and photographers who refuse to endorse homosexual behavior, doctors and nurses who refuse to participate in abortion, pharmacists who refuse to fill abortion prescriptions.

But for us, less threatened in that regard, it’s still a daily challenge to live each moment focused on Jesus Christ, to see him in our minds “standing at the right hand of God,” and then to make decisions based on Jesus’ teaching and example rather than on our own laziness, selfishness, intellectual pride, or unwillingness to forgive.

Stephen’s last recorded words are, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them” (7:60).  He echoes Jesus’ words from the cross, “Father, forgive them; they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34).  Jesus’ death conveyed to all human beings God’s forgiveness even tho the sins of all of us are responsible for his death.  Stephen unites himself to Jesus in his death and imitates Jesus in forgiveness.

We find it hard to forgive.  Yet, how many of us have been as injured by our relatives or anyone as Stephen was injured by the men stoning him to death?  Not to mention as Jesus was injured by those who condemned him to crucifixion?  Can we not ask God to pardon everyone who has hurt us, even tho we are truly hurting (as Jesus and Stephen were hurting, of course)?  Can we not ask God to touch with his grace the hearts of whoever has hurt us?  Can we not ask God to soften the hardness of our own hearts?

Stephen’s prayer for the forgiveness of his killers wasn’t without effect.  Acts notes the presence “of a young man named Saul” at the execution (7:58), too young to take an active part in the murder, and entrusted instead to secure the killers’ garments.  But, ominously, the next verse after our passage this morning records, “Now Saul was consenting to his execution” (8:1).

Acts will go on to report Saul’s later career as a violent persecutor of Christians:  he “was trying to destroy the Church; entering house after house and dragging out men and women, he handed them over for imprisonment” (8:3) and even death (26:10).  And then Acts will tell us how Saul’s anti-Jesus fervor was turned around entirely and how he became the apostle Paul.  Stephen’s prayer was very effectively heard in the case of the “young man named Saul.”  Our prayers that people be forgiven, that hearts be converted, may also be heard by the Father, the master of hearts.  So we can pray for individuals who’ve hurt us, for international criminals who wage unjust wars, for politicians who call for more and more blood to be spilled in our nation’s abortion clinics.

Stephen gave his spirit over to Jesus as he was being killed, as Jesus died entrusting his spirit to his Father (Luke 23:46).  Complete trust in God in life and in death was a trait of Stephen.  In the challenging moments of our lives, we can imitate him, praying, for example, “Jesus, I trust you,” or paraphrasing St. Paul, “God can turn this problem or this evil into something good.”  We can always remind ourselves that, despite any horrors in this world, God has our ultimate interest in his hands—our eternal welfare.  Nothing in this world can take us out of God’s hands, out of his care.

The last verse of the reading tells us that Stephen “fell asleep” (7:60).  Stephen and every follower of Jesus who has departed this world is at rest, waiting to be re-awakened on the Last Day, when the Lord Jesus will return and all the just will enjoy, body and soul, everlasting life.  “I believe in the resurrection of the body and life everlasting.”

Homily for the Solemnity of the Ascension

Homily for the Solemnity
of the Ascension

May 26, 2022
Collect
Christian Brothers, St. Joseph Residence, New Rochelle

(Benjamin West)

“The ascension of Christ your Son is our exaltation” (Collect).

Jesus’ ascension is the final act of the paschal mystery, altho its celebration is no longer the end of the paschal season, which extends until Pentecost, when the Church “received power … to be [Christ’s] witnesses … to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8)—to preach the paschal mystery and to extend its reach to men and women everywhere, then and till Christ’s return.

Risen from the tomb, Jesus now rises bodily—in his humanity, in our humanity—to his Father’s side.  So the collect calls his ascension “our exaltation” as well as his.  It continues, “Where the Head has gone before in glory, the Body is called to follow in hope.”  As we belong to Christ thru his paschal mystery and our participation in his sacraments, becoming one body with him, so we hope to rise on the Last Day and be taken to him, to live with him and all the saints in his Father’s presence.

That’s our hope.  We need that hope in our tragic, sinful world, so overwhelmed by wars, mass shootings, street violence, drug trafficking, human trafficking, the ruin of God’s creation.  In the face of all that, St. Paul urges us to know “the surpassing greatness of his power for us who believe” (Eph 1:19), sure that Christ will triumph over every evil as he triumphed over death—over our personal sins and over the awful sins of Putin, the mafia, the drug lords, Planned Parenthood and “every principality, authority, power, and dominion, and every name that is named … in this age” (Eph 1:21).

At Bethany Christ told his disciples—not only the 11 but all of them:  “You are witnesses of these things,” charged to preach repentance, forgiveness (Luke 24:47-48), and the promise of eternal life.  We are his witnesses now, witnesses in hope, witnesses in the joy of forgiveness, witnesses that Jesus Christ lives, and where he has gone, we his brothers and sisters, we his members, shall follow.

Homily for Solemnity of Mary Help of Christians

Homily for Solemnity of
Mary Help of Christians

May 24, 2022
Rev 12: 1-3, 7-12, 17
John 2: 1-11
Christian Brothers, St. Joseph Residence, New Rochelle

“A great sign appeared in heaven, a woman clothed with the sun” (Rev 12: 1).

Mary Help of Christians

(Church of the Sacred Heart, Rome)

The sign described by John the Visionary may be interpreted in several ways, as has been done since the Fathers of the Church.  The woman may be taken to be the ancient people of God, brilliantly illumed by divine light, crowned with the 12 stars of the tribes of Israel.  She gives birth to the Messiah.

The woman may also be seen as the new Israel of God, the Christian people enlightened by the 12 apostles.  From this people comes the Messiah.  According to St. Gregory the Great:  “The sun stands for the light of truth, and the moon for the transitoriness of temporal things; the holy Church is clothed like the sun because she is protected by the splendor of supernatural truth, and she has the moon under her feet because she is above all earthly things” (Moralia, 34, 12).

In either interpretation, the dragon, enemy of God and his people from the beginning of creation, makes war on them, striving to destroy them, as did the Assyrian and Syrian empires in the Old Testament and the Roman Empire when Revelation was being composed.  “The dragon became angry with the woman and went off to wage war against the rest of her offspring, those who keep God’s commandments and bear witness to Jesus” (Rev 12:17).

Yet another interpretation, apropos of today, is that the woman is the Virgin Mother, crowned by God with glory, surrounded by 12 apostolic stars, giving birth to and protecting numerous offspring—who are assaulted by Satan and his demonic allies.

God has given his people another defender, Michael, leader of the loyal angels.  He and his angels are victorious, for they fight in God’s name and with God’s power, and the woman shares in that victory.  That’s why in so many places today the prayer to St. Michael is said before or after Mass.

The mother of Jesus at Cana gives us the clue to victory in the fight against the Devil.  That’s her simple directive to the household servants at the wedding feast:  “Do whatever he tells you” (John 2:5).  The news from Pres. Biden’s visit to Japan has reminded us of the U.S. policy of “strategic ambiguity” toward China.  Call Mary’s words “strategic ambiguity”—because surely she doesn’t know how Jesus will answer her request, how he’ll rescue the precarious situation at hand.  It’s ambiguous.

But what better strategy could she have planned?  What better advice could the mother of Jesus, the woman clothed with the sun, give us, the servants of the household of God, than to do whatever he tells us?

That, in fact, was the story of her own life, from the moment she said, “Let it be done to me as you say” (Luke 1:38).  With her fiat she let the power of God loose among the human race, as her instruction to the servants let the power of her Son loose at Cana for the accomplishment of his hour (John 2:4), for the 1st of his signs (2:11) that would culminate in his cross and resurrection.

When we respond like the servants at Cana and do whatever Jesus will tell us—it’s always a strategic ambiguity because God’s ways are unknown and mysterious—the power of Christ is let loose in our lives.  Jesus can do great things in us (cf. Luke 1:49), even in our lowly selves (Luke 1:48), when we give him our own fiat, when we try to “keep God’s commandments and bear witness to Jesus.”

The Language of Art, a New Way to Communicate

The Language of Art, a New Way to Communicate

(ANS – Rome – May 24, 2022) – This is the 5th of 6 articles by Fr. Gildasio Mendes, general councilor for communications, on “St. Francis de Sales Communicator: Inner Pilgrimage, Wisdom in the Art of Communication.”

Francis had received a profoundly humanistic education and lived in an academic environment that bore all the vitality and cultural fruitfulness of the Renaissance. He studied Latin and Greek. Through his knowledge of literature, he developed and created his own language, a simple, practical, and affectionate style of writing. In the Renaissance, art had a great impulse and influence on the fabric of culture. Inspired by the art of antiquity, the Renaissance was a fertile field for the growth of new ideas and projects.

Through his abilities and personal interest Francis de Sales was able to appreciate literature, poetry, painting, and music, thus expressing his great artistic sensitivity and integrating beauty, discipline, and the meaning of art within his cultural and spiritual formation.

Francis lived this artistic experience within his spirituality. He shows in some passages of his writings how he was drawn toward painting, literature, music, and poetry. This was not simply an academic or cultural taste. Art touched his way of thinking, feeling, praying, and writing.

Fr. Morand Wirth has the following to say:

Images taken from artists served him first and foremost to illustrate his aims; however, one senses in Francis de Sales a real appreciation for the beauty of the work of art as such and at the same time the ability to communicate his emotions to his readers. He would say, for example, that “the symmetry of a splendid painting cannot bear the addition of new colors” (C 152) and that “in canvases and frescoes representing a large number of characters in a small space, there is always something left to see and notice, shadows, profiles, bends, twists” (S II 33). Moreover, is painting not perhaps a divine art? The Word of God is not only on the plane of hearing, but also on that of seeing and aesthetic contemplation: God is the painter, our faith is painting, the colors are the Word of God, the brush is the Church (C 145).

Francis de Sales also loved singing and music and emphasized the importance of beautiful music in the liturgy to encourage personal and liturgical prayer. Wirth notes:

It is known that he had hymns sung during catechism classes, but we would like to know what was sung in his cathedral. He wrote in a letter after a ceremony in which a text from the Song of Songs was sung: “Ah, how well all this was sung yesterday in our church and in my heart!” (L IV 269).

As a writer, an artist of the word, St. Francis experienced artistic beauty through letters, liturgy, music, and poetry. Francis also wrote some religious poems. In 1598 he wrote a poem on the Transfiguration (with a literal, not poetic translation for each stanza).

We have seen, Lord, this face so clear
Infinitely clearer than the shining sun
When in broad daylight it shines brightest
And the universe looks on like a shining eye.

But if such is the body, how much more brilliant
The glory of thy heart, wonderful heart,
With a happiness filled, great and abundant,
Which from its first birth made it glorious.

Heart so full of splendor that it spreads out
Above its own clothes it makes to shine so as to see
So radiant and white, that snow so shining that
Heaven cannot show to our eyes.

Oh! who then will doubt that he still radiates
Over his servant clothed in humility
Who amid worldly travails honors him always
Remains united to him as his garment?

Come now, ye who admire with what immense glory
Shrouded is the head of your God, and of happiness so great
Know that the dear price of so much glory
Can be paid by humility alone (O I 106-107).

Applying his perspective on art to spirituality, St. Francis opens up a pathway in which, through the construction that writing is, in the choice of words with their meanings, colors and sounds, relating words to their symbols, the linguistic skills that link emotions to words are developed.

Francis de Sales was also a great storyteller! As we know, narrative is a way of communicating characterized by talking about things and experiences through letters, stories, literature, and tales, using images, metaphors, mythical, religious, and cultural elements to communicate a message.

Storytelling prefers simple, human language, deeply touches the imaginative, cognitive, and emotional aspects, encouraging the reader’s or listener’s involvement in the plot and the story being told.

Unlike a conceptual text, which depends on formulations with logical premises and conclusions, narrative follows a more informal, figurative, and symbolic language, allowing the person to become involved and be part of what is communicated, starting from his own experience and upbringing.

St. Francis, in his spiritual accompaniment, certainly knew how to use the art of listening – listening to the individual’s own story and experience of God.

Homily for 6th Sunday of Easter

Homily for the
6th Sunday of Easter

May 22, 2022
John 14: 23-29
St. Pius X, Scarsdale, N.Y.

“Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him’” (John 14: 23).

What do you really love?  How do you show your love?

If you love chocolate, you might overindulge with a select box of sweet goodies.  If you love your dog, you might shower it with affection, take it on long walks, and talk silly nonsense to it.  (Or cats might draw your affection, and some cats have been known to return it.)

If you love your spouse, you remember birthdays and anniversaries, you help with the household chores, you share the responsibilities of parenthood, and you use the 3 words that Pope Francis says are vital to a good relationship:  please, thank you, and I’m sorry.

Evening Prayer by Pierre Edouard Frere

What about Jesus?  Addressing his apostles at the Last Supper, he calls them his friends and not his servants (John 15:13-15), tells them that he lays down his life for his friends, and repeatedly commands them to love one another.  All of that is addressed not only to the 12 apostles but also to us.

Jesus tells us that if we love him we’ll keep his word.  In the verse immediately before today’s reading, St. Jude the Apostle asked him, “Master, what happened that you will reveal yourself to us and not to the world” (14:22)  In that context, we can say that we reveal Jesus to the world by keeping his word.

How do we go about keeping his word and thus making Jesus known?  The 1st and most important thing is to have a loving, personal relationship with Jesus.  Your love for your spouse and your children rests on such a loving, personal relationship.  When Jesus tells the 12 that he and his Father will “make our dwelling with him,” he’s speaking of an intimate relationship.  Jesus becomes part of our lives, the central focus of our thoughts, desires, and actions.  That seems to be a little abstract or challenging—true.  After all, we don’t see, touch, and speak with him the way we do our spouse or kids.  But we can talk to Jesus as warmly and personally as to anyone else—because he’s real, and he loves us and wants our company and our friendship.  We can talk to him in church, in our home, on a walk, while driving.

We also listen to Jesus.  We listen in prayer, to hear what he speaks to us in our hearts, to discover how he guides us day by day.  Fundamental to that listening is actually reading his words in the sacred Scriptures.  Jesus speaks to us in the Gospels, in the letters of St. Paul and the rest of the New Testament, and in the Old Testament too.  “Whoever loves me will keep my word.”  So we have to take up his word, read his word, ponder his word, seek to understand his word, and then to put his word into practice.

The word of God has an internal power that no other written or spoken words have.  It comes from the Holy Spirit.  You might be inspired by Shakespeare or Dante or Martin Luther King.  Their words are powerful.  But the Scriptures affect our souls.  They convey the grace of Jesus to us.  As St. Peter told Jesus after Jesus revealed the mystery of the Holy Eucharist (John ch. 6), “You have the words of eternal life” (6:68).

The words of the Scriptures prompt us to keep Jesus’ word, to keep his commandment, to love one another.  Sometimes it’s hard to love one another:  when we’ve had an argument with someone, when someone treats us unjustly, or even when we’re just feeling grouchy (as we all do sometimes).  Jesus’ word received attentively has the power to put us at peace:  “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.  Not as the world gives do I give it to you.  Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid.” (14:27)  God makes his dwelling with us (14:23).

Salesian Missions and MedShare Deliver Medical Supplies

Salesian Missions partners with MedShare to deliver medical supplies

(ANS – Kiev – May 18, 2022) – A hospital in Ukraine has medical supplies thanks to a new partnership between MedShare and Salesian Missions of New Rochelle. MedShare is a humanitarian aid organization dedicated to improving the quality of life of people, communities, and the planet by sourcing and directly delivering surplus medical supplies and equipment to communities in need around the world.

The shipment, which left the U.S. in March, is now in the hands of Salesian Sisters. The supplies are being distributed to ambulances and clinics and used to treat those who have been internally displaced within Ukraine and arrive daily seeking medical attention.

“We appreciate MedShare’s donation, which has assured that Salesians on the ground in Ukraine have access to the medical supplies they need to care for the sick and injured,” said Fr. Gus Baek, director of Salesian Missions. “Salesian organizations around the globe have come together to help support Salesians in Ukraine who are working with people displaced inside the country and refugees who have fled to bordering countries. The need is overwhelming, and we are all doing our part.”

Salesian Missions has already launched a Ukraine Emergency Relief Fund that will help provide shelter, nutrition, and supplies to refugees in need. This fund is among other fundraising efforts that Salesians in more than 130 countries are doing in support of Salesians on the front lines of this crisis.

In addition to financial support, Salesians are sending material support similar to the medical supplies from MedShare. Through the support of a U.S.-based foundation, two ambulances were purchased in Serbia, filled with medicines, and then driven by two Serbian drivers into Ukraine. Even though the trip was filled with challenges, the two ambulances made it to their destination inside Ukraine.

Both men and women Salesians around the globe are answering the call to help support people in distress in Ukraine and refugees fleeing the conflict. Salesians living and working in Ukraine have remained in their centers and churches, and they are helping families with shelter and nutrition.

Homily for Thursday, 5th Week of Easter

Homily for Thursday
5th Week of Easter

May 19, 2022
Acts 15: 7-21
Christian Brothers, St. Joseph Residence, New Rochelle

Argument and disagreement are nothing new in the Church.  Yesterday’s reading from Acts ended with the apostles and elders coming together in Jerusalem to hash out a contentious issue—the contentious issue—of the early Church:  the relationship between Jews and Gentiles within the community of believers.  That’s where our reading today begins.

Did Greeks, Egyptians, Romans, Arabs, and others have to adopt circumcision and all the rest of the Law of Moses in order to follow Jesus and be saved?

Peter tells the assembly, “We believe that we are saved thru the grace of the Lord Jesus” (15:11), not by the Law.  The Collect stresses that:  By your grace, O God, “we are made just….  Stand by your gifts, that those justified by faith” may persevere.  The great gathering in Jerusalem recognized that Jesus offers salvation by grace.  God calls whomever he wishes, including the Gentiles, and freely bestows his Spirit also upon them.

Pope Francis has been repeating over and over that everyone is saved by God’s mercy, by grace.  The message bears repeating.  We sinners are liable either to discouragement on account of what the Collect calls our own “pitiable” state, or to harsh judgment of others who appear to us to be greater sinners than we think we are (like the Pharisee in the Temple scorning the tax collector [Luke 18:9-14]).  In either case, discouragement or judgment, we need the reminder of mercy, of grace.

As you’ve heard, today’s my 44th anniversary of ordination.  You know well that vocation is a mystery of grace.  Why did God call me or you?  Only he knows.  Why have you and I persevered thus far, while so many others haven’t?  In my SDB ordination class of 10, 3 left the priesthood entirely a long time ago, and 1 left the Salesians and became a good diocesan priest.  You probably have similar histories.

I know that many people have prayed for me and are still doing so.  They’re appealing to God’s grace—that by his grace I may be his faithful minister and an instrument of his grace.  By God’s grace may all of us persevere in our baptismal faith in the Lord Jesus, that his joy might be in us and our joy complete (cf. John 15:11).

International Conference on St. Francis de Sales

UPS to Hold International Conference on St. Francis de Sales

Website is online

(ANS – Rome – May 16, 2022) – On the occasion of the 400th anniversary of the death of St. Francis de Sales (1622-2022), the Salesian Pontifical University (UPS) is organizing an international conference to celebrate his legacy. St. Francis de Sales influenced the history of spirituality and religious life not only through his writings but also through his own way of life—and not only during his lifetime, but until today. This is why it is worthwhile to study his legacy for the benefit of today’s Church and spiritual life.

The conference is organized by the Institute of Spiritual Theology of the UPS School of Theology. The scientific committee, coordinated by Professor Wim Collin, SDB, unveiled the conference’s official website today. Information about the conference is available on the website, such as the schedule, the speakers with the different talks they will give, the congregations and institutes that will participate in the conference, the possibility to register, and so on.

The conference will be held at the UPS in Rome from November 18 to 20, 2022. It will consist of two parts: the first part deals with congregations, institutes, and religious societies that have Francis de Sales as their patron and source of inspiration; the second part studies a wide variety of topics that have their origin in the spirituality, life, and writings of St. Francis de Sales.

Information is available at: https://francescodisales.unisal.it 

Don Bosco's "Marietina" Becomes Uruguay's First Saint

Don Bosco’s “Marietina” Becomes Uruguay’s First Saint!

(ANS – Montevideo – May 17, 2022) – On Sunday, May 15, in a packed St. Peter’s Square, ten new saints were proclaimed. Among them was Maria Francesca di Gesù Rubatto, foundress of the Capuchin Sisters of Mother Rubatto, Uruguay’s first canonized saint. Don Bosco was instrumental in her life and discernment that led her to choose religious life. In addition, he prophesied several aspects of her mission.

It was her ability to go to a personal encounter in a simple and affable way, to lead people to God, that brought to the altars this woman of courageous choices. She adopted Uruguay as her mission land and the homeland where she chose to die. Her life reveals a strong and decisive relationship with Don Bosco.

Anna Maria (Sister Francesca’s name before she became a nun) arrived in Turin in 1862 after losing almost all of her family. She settled in the home of her older sister, who was married, and then went to work for a wealthy countess. It was the time when Don Bosco was working with his oratories, and she decided to work with him with that discretion, prudence, kindness, and tenderness that always characterized her.

Anna Maria had no intention of becoming a nun, even tho she had consecrated herself to God when she lived in Carmagnola (her hometown). In Turin, however, along with the vulnerable young people welcomed in the oratories, she discovered the purpose of her life and, when she was invited to join the religious institute that was being formed, she consulted Don Bosco. And he said to her, “Look, Marietina (that’s what he called her), it’s God’s will that you go. Don’t worry, because your community will last a long time. You will never lack anything because my brothers – the Salesians – will always be close to you, and I tell you that you will die in a foreign land.”

These prophecies of Don Bosco to his affectionate Marietina came true. Indeed, in her mission, she incorporated many characteristics of the Preventive System, such as the desire to care for abandoned young people in order to educate them to give dignity to their lives.

To her sisters, settled in the house where her remains rest today, in Belvedere, she indicated that their mission was to care for and nurture the young hearts that God entrusted to them so that they would be “the honor of the Church and their country.” This phrase is almost a replica of Don Bosco’s famous expression of forming “good Christians and upright citizens.”

Homily for Tuesday, 5th Week of Easter

Homily for Tuesday
5th Week of Easter

May 17, 2022
Acts 14: 19-28
Christian Brothers, St. Joseph Residence, New Rochelle

You probably recognized the 1st reading this morning as the same reading we heard on Sunday, with 2 verses as prolog, narrating the outbreak of persecution in Lystra and Paul’s being stoned and left for dead.

Reading that, I’m struck by the contrast of the next verse:  “they proclaimed the good news to that city” (14:21), namely Derbe, whither they fled from Lystra.  Being stoned to death, or nearly so, doesn’t sound like good news or a reason to continue proclaiming good news.

(Brian Laing via

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/299137600226555132/)

For Paul and Barnabas, the Good News they proclaim outweighs the dangers.  “Undergoing many hardships to enter the kingdom of God” (14:22) is part of following Christ toward eternal life, as he endured passion and death on the way to resurrection and to “restoring us to eternal life” thereby (Collect).  Following Christ requires perseverance, and our 2 apostles encourage their disciples to that in spite of persecutions (14:22), encouragement that they reinforce with the beginnings of church structure:  the appointment of presbyters or elders (14:23).

Our brothers and sisters in Hong Kong, which our SDB Cardinal Charles Bo on Saturday called “a police state”—and as a Burmese bishop he knows something about police states—and our brothers and sisters in Nigeria, the Middle East, and South Asia have that constancy in faith and hope for which the Collect prays today.

Your lives, brothers, have already been lives of perseverance in the faith—in our Catholic faith and in the charism of Edmund Rice.  “May we never doubt the promises of which we have learned” from the Good News.  Even at this stage of our lives, perseverance is necessary because every day requires us to say “yes” again to Jesus.

Salesians Haven't Forgotten Ukraine's Refugees

Salesians Haven’t Forgotten Ukraine’s Refugees

(ANS – Rome – May 16, 2022) - The campaign of humanitarian support made necessary by the war in Ukraine continues its silent but daily efforts to meet the most basic needs of those families who, because of the war, seek refuge and accompaniment outside Ukraine. Attention to the real needs of others, generosity, and creativity are the hallmarks of a commitment that continues unabated and without borders.

From Italy come testimonies about two significant welcoming experiences. The first comes directly from the Salesian Motherhouse: “Currently in Valdocco, in Turin, we are hosting 16 Ukrainian boys who are part of a rowing team,” says Fr. Alberto Goia, youth ministry delegate for the Salesians of Piedmont, Valle d’Aosta, and Lithuania. “They range from 12 to 17 years old and they arrived with their coach right after Easter. When we welcomed them they were bewildered, yet they immediately showed a desire for normality.”

Normality that also passes through the possibility of practicing the sport that united them and that punctuated their pre-war lives: “They could not get over the fact that they were able to see their friends again, to be together and be able to train again. In fact, thanks to the association Gli amici del fiume (The Friends of the River), they have resumed sports activities, which means so much to these boys,” Fr. Goia continues.

But that’s not all: because for the sense of normalcy few things are as strong as culinary habits. “There are some Ukrainian women living in Turin who have made themselves available to cook their typical dishes, which is important for the boys because it’s not easy to adapt immediately to different flavors. Rediscovering familiar food is a way to feel welcome while still maintaining a connection to their homeland. It’s necessary to take into account that these minors have left not only their homes but also their parents, with fathers being called to fight.”

The second experience is underway at the Salesian Don Bosco Oratory of St. Francis of Assisi parish in Terni, where an ad hoc Italian language course has been created to offer the possibility for Ukrainians in the city to communicate without the need for a language mediator. Not only are professors teaching, but also and especially high school students, who immediately responded to the appeal of the parish priests. The project, carried out in cooperation with the social services of the City of Terni, was the initiative of the Salesians.

“The objective of this course is not only to teach them Italian but also to make new friends,” explains Alessandro, a student and now also a ‘professor.’  Walks have also been organized for the young refugees, so they can discover the city where they now live; while the younger ones, once the Italian lesson is over, move to the little playing field of the oratory and initiate shared play with other children and young people.

In Spain, instead, the solidarity campaign launched by the Madrid Province and the NGO Bosco Global, aimed at supporting some 30 refugees in the Polish cities of Gdansk, Lubrza, and Szczecin, continues and will now also have two new reception points in Spain, in La Almunia and Burriana.

“We continue to raise funds. All donations that will come to the accounts of the province and Bosco Global will be destined for specific projects to assist people who are victims of the war in Ukraine,” explains Fr. José Luis Navarro, coordinator of provincial mission animation and the Campaign for the Ukrainian Emergency. “We will manage the projects proposed by the Coordination Center in Warsaw, and we will also take care, depending on the needs and the amounts collected, of the direct assistance projects that are being established in the Salesian houses of our province.”

Finally, another initiative worth highlighting comes from Malta and concerns the journalistic and humanitarian venture of reporters Neil Camilleri and Giuseppe Attard of the newspaper Malta Independent. The two traveled to Ukraine between March 28 and April 7, visiting cities such as Lviv and Kiev. They witnessed the tragedy of war and its scars in locations such as Irpin and Bucha. During their stay, they also interviewed many refugees housed by the Salesians in Ukraine, Poland, and Slovakia, which is why they are now producing a documentary about their recent experience in Ukraine, to raise funds for refugees living under the care of the Salesians of Don Bosco. That documentary will be available exclusively on GO TV starting May 23.