50th Anniversary of Death of Cardinal Trochta

50th Anniversary of the Death of Cardinal Stephen Trochta
Celebrating the life and legacy of a great Czech Salesian

(ANS - Francova Lhota, Czech Republic – March 29, 2024) – A significant jubilee is being commemorated in 2024: the 50th anniversary of the death of Cardinal Stephen Trochta, one of the most important figures of the Czech Salesian Family and of the entire Czech Church. His legacy not only remains in history, but is also alive in the present as confirmed by the numerous events prepared to commemorate this anniversary.

For the Salesian Family of the Czech Republic, this is an opportunity for a deeper reflection on the legacy left by Stephen Trochta. His memory is still alive in his native village, Francova Lhota, thru the museum and educational programs that pass on his memory to the younger generations.

This year’s anniversary will be commemorated in a special way on April 6 with a solemn ritual in St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Litomerice and in the following days in other cities related to Trochta’s life. Thruout the year there will be conferences and exhibitions, and a podcast, films, radio programs, and books about his life will be produced.

Stephen Trochta was born on March 26, 1905, in Francova Lhota. From a young age he showed extraordinary talent and desired to serve young people as a priest. That desire led him to the Salesians in Italy. He went thru formation, obtained a doctorate in theology in Turin, and was ordained in the basilica of Mary Help of Christians in 1932. He was actively involved in the formation of Czech boys, future Salesians, and played a fundamental role in the arrival of the first Czech Salesians in Frystak and later in other parts of the country. He led the construction of Salesian houses and worked among the young people.

During World War II he was deported and imprisoned in the concentration camps in Terezin, Mauthausen, and Dachau. After the war he committed himself to the renewal of the structures of the Church and his country, culminating in his appointment as bishop of Litomerice in 1947. His episcopal motto “Work - Sacrifice - Love” was not only the program of his ministry, but also characterized his life.

As bishop he worked to rebuild and revitalize the diocese, which had suffered the consequences of the war and the displacement of the original German inhabitants. During the Communist regime, he was repeatedly imprisoned and persecuted for his courageous defense of the Church and the faith. After his release from prison, he did some civilian work for several years, before the regime allowed him to return to pastoral work. During this period he secretly ordained 30 priests.

Stephen Trochta was created cardinal in pectore in 1969. This appointment remained secret for a long time, and the public became aware of it only in 1973. This act aroused the resentment of the Communist regime, which tried to limit his activities. But he continued to be active as a voice of faith and hope in times of persecution.

He died in 1974, after an exhausting and humiliating 6-hour interrogation. Altho the Communist authorities tried to prevent a public funeral, the latter became a demonstration of faith. The funeral was attended by the archbishop of Krakow, Karol Wojtyla, who eulogized Stephen Trochta as a martyr. His life and work remain in the hearts of many people as a reminder of courage, sacrifice, and love for God and neighbor.

This anniversary should be seen not only as an opportunity to remember the past, but also as an inspiration for the future. Stephen Trochta has been for many a light of faith and hope, and his legacy is still with us today. His life will be celebrated and his precious teachings will be remembered, which indicate the way of love, dedication, and service to others.

Just as it did 50 years ago, Cardinal Stephen Trochta’s appeal remains valid today: “Dear friends and benefactors of God’s work! We all need an inner renewal, a reconciliation with God and with others. It’s up to each of us. It is up to the priest, the layman, and the students. Let’s wake up from indifference, dullness, and comfort! Let us leave selfish and cowardly complaints to others. Courage!”

See also: From the Eastern Front: The Salesian Cardinals (sdbnews.blogspot.com)

Homily for Easter Sunday

Homily for Easter Sunday

March 31, 2024
John 20: 1-9
Our Lady of the Assumption, Bronx

“The other disciple … saw and believed” (John 20: 8).

All 4 gospels tell us that Mary of Magdala and several other women went to Jesus’ tomb at the crack of dawn on the Sunday after his crucifixion.  St. John, whom we just read, doesn’t mention the other women, including them only when Mary reports, “We don’t know where they put him” (20:2).

St. John also doesn’t tell us why they went, nor does St. Matthew.  According to Sts. Mark and Luke, the women went to the tomb to anoint Jesus’ dead body, which they hadn’t had time to do on Friday, because the Sabbath rest was about to begin at dusk.  They hardly expected to find the tomb open and empty.  Their 1st thought was that someone had removed Jesus’ corpse.  Neither the women nor the apostles had a thought that Jesus had been raised.  As we’ll hear next Sunday, even after seeing Jesus alive and speaking with him, the apostles couldn’t convince Thomas, doubting Thomas, that yes, he had come to life again in a new, wonderful way, very much different from 3 people whom Jesus had revived from death during his earthly ministry—the daughter of Jairus, the son of a widow at Naim, and Lazarus.

St. John and St. Peter at Christ's Tomb.
Painting by Giovanni Francesco Romanelli (Italy, Viterbo, circa 1640)

The disciple whom Jesus loved best, usually thought to be St. John, witnessed what the gospel narrates.  He was next to Jesus at the Last Supper, he was with our Blessed Mother on Calvary, and later he’ll meet risen Jesus on the shore of the Sea of Galilee.  Now he comes to the empty tomb.  Altho he arrives ahead of Peter—evidently he’s a faster runner or has more stamina—he defers to Peter by waiting for him and letting him enter 1st.  Peter is the leader of the apostles.  Similarly, today we defer to Peter’s successor, the Pope, and respect his authority and leadership of Christ’s Church.

Both Peter and the beloved disciple see the burial cloths lying separately in the tomb, on the shelf where the disciples had laid Jesus’ body 2 nites earlier.  The burial shroud and the face covering have both been carefully folded or rolled up—a 1st clue that grave robbers hadn’t removed the body.  In fact, both cloths were valuable linen, so durable that they’ve lasted 20 centuries, preserved as precious relics of our Savior—the shroud in the cathedral of Turin, Italy, and the face cloth in the cathedral of Oviedo, Spain.  You wouldn’t leave them behind, much less carefully roll them up.

Both Peter and the beloved disciple see the empty tomb and the burial cloths.  But for the moment only the beloved “sees and believes.”  Neither Peter nor Mary Magdalene nor the other disciples have yet understood the prophecies of the Jewish Scriptures, nor Jesus own predictions of his passion, death, and resurrection.  “They didn’t yet understand the Scripture that he had to rise from the dead” (20:9).

And he was dead.  Roman soldiers were expert executioners, and in Jesus’ case—as John’s gospel assures us—they made doubly sure he was dead on the cross by jabbing a lance so deeply thru his ribs that his heart was pierced and pericardial fluid poured out with blood.

He’d died.  Now he lives.  The beloved disciple probably is just beginning to grasp what that means—not only for Jesus but also for us who believe that the tomb was empty because Jesus had burst out of it—figuratively speaking, had blasted the big stone off the doorway (20:1).

What does the life of Jesus—that he’s alive now, that he’s with us now—mean?  Another way of asking is, Why are we celebrating Easter?  What’s its significance?  It’s not simply a historical commemoration like remembering July 4, 1776.  Jesus alive connects us to God his Father.  Jesus alive is our way to his Father.  Jesus alive is the truth that frees us from the lies, deceptions, and tricks of the Devil, that frees us from our sins.  He “descended into hell,” i.e., into the underworld, the place of the dead, and he rose out of that place.  Jesus alive is the source of our own life—life in our souls now, and on the Last Day, life in our flesh and bones too, just like him.  On the Last Day, the dirt of our graves and the waters of the sea will open up, burst asunder like the stone off the door of the tomb, and our graves too will be empty.  “When Christ your life appears, then you too will appear with him in glory” (Col 3:4).

Salesians in Goma Rescue Displaced Children

“If it weren’t for Don Bosco, we’d already be dead.”

Displaced children in Goma thank the Salesians for their help

(ANS – Goma, DRC – March 20, 2024) – As part of his extraordinary visitation to the province of Central Africa (AFC), Fr. Alphonse Owoudou, regional councilor for Africa, recently traveled among Salesian works in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo, in the area of Goma. That area has been the scene of armed clashes between the army and some rebel formations for several months now. In this context of great suffering for the local population, Fr. Owoudou has once again renewed the Salesian commitment to accompany and to give hope and spiritual and human support to all those in need, and has received intense testimonies of how all the work done by the Salesians in this land really does make the difference between life and death for many people.

Fr. Owoudou spent four full days, between March 15-18, visiting the Don Bosco work in Ngangi, the 2d work of the AFC East Delegation in institutional terms – after ITIG, also in Goma, which is the delegation’s headquarters – but the one that is pastorally the most important, because it is so rich in apostolic works: a care center for children in difficulty, the vocational training center which also has a detachment for agricultural training, the primary school, youth center, a boarding school for the poorest youngsters, and even a small chapel.

In addition to all the activities, the Ngangi center is also a beautiful testimony of collaboration between different religious groups, all committed to the good of the population served. The Salesians of Don Bosco, the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, and the Salvatorian Sisters reside at the center, and all the communities take care of their respective recipients, in communion of intent, in harmony with each other, but also respecting their specific charisms.

Until a few weeks ago, the Don Bosco Shasha presence in Ngangi was also dependent on the work, where the agrarian training courses took place, and where thousands of people who had fled from the battle zones had already taken refuge because of the clashes in the area. Since mid-February, however, rebel militias have reached there, and both the displaced people and the 3 Salesians working there have had to abandon their homes and continue their journey as displaced persons.

“There are now about 26,000 people in Goma, including many minors who have come from all the surrounding areas,” says Fr. Owoudou. “Some are up to 12 years old; the youngest, whom I saw the day before yesterday, is 5 days old, and his mother died during childbirth.”

“To the youngest, the Salesians distribute a gruel made of maize, soy, and sorghum, which is a real lifesaver for many of them. In addition, thanks to an aid project strongly desired and supported by the Rector Major, through the Don Bosco Mission office in Bonn, basic necessities for survival are delivered monthly to each family: a 10 kg packet of beans, a sack of flour, soap, 1.5 liters of oil and medicines," the regional councilor said.

“We were all but dead, but thanks to your confreres, we now have our lives assured, even if uncertainty remains because we don’t know how long the armed conflict will last,” a mother testified to Fr. Owoudou, after seeing her son begin running again after days of when he nearly died of starvation.

“I saw before my eyes so many children running again, happy, beautiful, full of hope, probably also because they were unaware of the nightmare their parents were going through,” the Salesian priest commented.

And during the welcome greeting at the work, one of the center’s young guests read a message for Fr. Owoudou prepared by the children themselves, in which he said: “Reverend Father, your presence here is a sign of love, a ray of sunshine and hope. We, the young people who have been victims of wars which have changed our condition forever, turning us into children separated from our families, we are now marginalized and are called ‘mai bobo’ [street children, abandoned, ed.].... If it weren’t for Don Bosco, we’d already be dead. Here, then, is a good opportunity to thank you, Salesians of Don Bosco, for your love and support toward us young people in difficult situations.”

Speaking of his visit to the center in Ngangi, Fr. Owoudou concludes: “So many mothers, so many people have told me when I return to Italy to thank Don Bosco for all the help.... Perhaps they wanted to say thank you to the Rector Major, or perhaps some believed that Don Bosco is still alive today. Certainly, Don Bosco is alive in the Salesians who have remained with the people in all circumstances: in the suffering in the fields, in the flight from the war.... It seems to me this is what the Rector Major calls the ‘Salesian sacrament of presence.’”

Homily for Palm Sunday

Homily for Palm Sunday

Mar. 24, 2024
Mark 11: 10-10
Mark 15: 1-39
Phil 2: 6-11
St. Francis Xavier, Bronx
Our Lady of the Assumption, Bronx

Christ's Entry into Jerusalem
(Benjamin Robert Haydon) 

“Hosanna!  Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” (Mark 11: 9), the crowd “kept crying out” as Jesus entered Jerusalem.  5 days later, the crowd cried out, “Crucify him!” (15:13-14).

The mark of a person of integrity is that he or she is consistent in word and action.  The crowds in Jerusalem weren’t consistent in their following of Jesus, 1st acclaiming him as a messiah, then shouting for his blood.

Even Jesus’ closest friends deserted him.  On Thursday nite, Simon Peter bravely asserted that he was ready to go to prison and death with Jesus, and a few hours later he denied even knowing him.

Do you ever wonder how you would’ve acted if you’d been there?  How we act now as Jesus’ followers can be assessed.

We began this liturgy of Palm Sunday by noting that during Lent we’d been preparing our hearts “by penance and charitable works” to celebrate “our Lord’s Paschal Mystery”:  his passion and death on the cross and his resurrection for our redemption.

Part of the preparation of our hearts was to examine ourselves:  our thoughts, words, and actions, and to commit ourselves to ongoing conversion, toward a more faithful following of Jesus, toward becoming men and women of Christian integrity.

St. Paul tells us that Jesus “emptied himself.”  The Son of God descended from his glorious place in heaven and became a lowly human being.  In that condition he suffered the most painful and ignominious death that the Roman government could inflict on rebels, slaves, pirates, and bandits.  Can we humbly empty ourselves by enduring insults without seeking revenge, by serving others without seeking recognition for our efforts?  How do we handle the sufferings of life—physical or mental pain, grief, and loss?

We expect priests, sisters, and brothers to be men and women of integrity, to be the persons they profess to be, to practice what they teach.

All of us—are we consistent in honoring the dignity of other people in how we speak to them, how we speak about them, how we treat them, how we assist society’s unfortunates:  the sick, the homeless, the migrant, the victims of famine and other natural disasters?

Are we persons of integrity who observe the Church’s teaching regarding human life:  that every life is sacred, in the womb and in the sickroom; that in vitro fertilization (recently in the news) is gravely immoral because it separates the creation of human life from personal intercourse and makes people into manufactured products; and it destroys tens of thousands of human lives in that manufacturing process.

Are we persons of integrity regarding the Church’s teaching on sexuality, on what we watch and how we see other people, on our interactions with others, on our openness to life in every sexual act?

Does our integrity as Christians extend to honesty in our dealing with employers, employees, the places where we shop?  to truthfulness in our speech?

During Lent we’ve had the opportunity to look at our faithfulness in following Jesus, our personal integrity as Christians.  We’ve tried to recommit ourselves to him who comes to us in the name of the Lord, who redeems us from our sins, who gave his life for us so that he might give us eternal life.  Actually, we have to renew our commitment every day.  God’s grace assists us day by day.

Homily for Friday, Week 5 of Lent

Homily for Friday
5th Week of Lent

March 22, 2023
John 10: 31-42
Provincial house, New Rochelle

“Is it not written in your law, ‘I said, “You are gods’”?” (John 10: 34).

The purpose of the life, death, and resurrection of our Lord Jesus was to make men and women children of God, to restore to us the divine image that God created in the beginning.

The Gate of Heaven
(Andrea di Bonaiuto)

The Fathers of the Church taught that God became man in order that man might become God—not ontologically, of course, but by adoption.  St. John writes that we are God’s children now; what we shall later be hasn’t been revealed.  But we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is (1 John 3:2)—the God partially revealed to us by God the Son.

In the 2d Eucharistic Prayer we pray that we may be coheirs with Christ.  We shall share in his glory, for he makes of his followers his own brothers and sisters, children of God, divine offspring.

Homily for Thursday, Week 5 of Lent

Homily for Thursday
5th Week of Lent

Mar. 21, 2024
Collect
Christian Brothers, St. Joseph’s Residence, N.R.

We prayed this morning, as we often to, that God look kindly on us His mercy is the hope of us sinners.

Our prayer speaks of 3 consequences of God’s kind mercy.  The 1st is forgiveness; he cleanses us of sin.  Every time Jesus pardons sinners in the Gospels, our hearts are glad.  We, too, plead to be cleansed.

2d, the divine removal of sin remakes us; it restores us to God’s image.  We’re made holy.  His kind mercy helps us persevere in holy living.  So we pray that his mercy stay with us, and we stay with God.

3d, divine mercy, forgiveness, and holiness of life will leads to the fulfillment of God’s promise.  God promised Abraham land and offspring (Gen 17:3-9).  Jesus promises we’ll never see death (John 8:51) but will share his inheritance with him, the divine heritage of God’s children.  By the kind mercy of God, we’ll become “coheirs of eternal life,” as the 2d Eucharistic Prayer says.

God’s everlasting pact with Abraham’s descendants (Gen 17:7) includes us.  He remembers his promise of mercy, the promise he made to our fathers, to Abraham and his children forever” (Luke 1:54-55).  We don’t inherit geography but what Aquinas’s “O Salutaris” calls our patria, “our true native land,” the kingdom of God.

Pastoral Assignments for 2024-2027 Announced

Pastoral Assignments for 2024-2027 Announced

On the feast of St. Joseph, March 19, Fr. Dominic Tran, Salesian provincial of the Eastern U.S. and (all of) Canada, announced the names of 6 Salesians who will serve as directors of communities for the term 2024-2027.

Frs. Steve Ryan and Abe Feliciano were appointed to 2d terms as leaders of their respective communities in Marrero, La., and Ramsey, N.J.  The Marrero community administers and teaches at Archbishop Shaw High School, a school of the archdiocese of New Orleans, and ministers to 2 parishes in Harvey: St. Rosalie and St. John Bosco.  The Ramsey community administers and teaches at Don Bosco Preparatory High School, which is a work of the New Rochelle Province.

Fr. Sajdak

Fr. Dave Sajdak has been appointed director of the Chicago community, which serves a joint parish of St. John Bosco and St. James.  Fr. Dave has been serving there as an assistant pastor and, so far, will remain assistant pastor.  He replaces Fr. Richard Alejunas as director; Fr. Rich will be moving to New Rochelle, where he's already filling the role of province treasurer.  A new pastor in Fr. Rich's place has not been announced.

Fr. Mike Conway will succeed Fr. Tim Ploch as director of the New Rochelle community, which serves the province's central administration, Salesian High School, and Salesian Missions, the development arm of the province at the service of the entire Salesian Congregation.  Fr. Mike has been director of Salesian Missions since last summer.

Fr. Conway

Fr. Bill Bucciferro will become director of the Salesian community in Port Chester, N.Y., replacing Fr. Pat Angelucci.  The Salesians minister at St. John Bosco Parish there; the parish is result of a merger of 4 Port Chester parishes mandated by the archdiocese of New York 9 years ago.  Fr. Bill has been ministering at the Salesian Boys and Girls Club of East Boston since 2017, and earlier was an assistant pastor at one of Port Chester's Salesian parishes.  A replacement of Fr. Pat as pastor has not been announced.

Fr. Bucciferro

Fr. Manny Gallo, presently the vice director of the Marian Shrine in Haverstraw-Stony Point, N.Y., will become director, succeeding Fr. Dennis Donovan.

Fr. Gallo

Fr. Tran also announced 3 appointments to the provincial council for the same 3-year period. New members will be Bro. Travis Gunther from the Ramsey community and Fr. Sean McEwen, pastor of St. Benedict's Parish in Etobicoke, Ont. Bro. Bill Hanna of the New Rochelle community was appointed to a 2d term. Their terms will begin this summer.

Frs. Dave Moreno and Lou Molinelli will step down from the provincial council this summer.

Homily for Solemnity of St. Joseph

Homily for the Solemnity of St. Joseph

March 19, 2024
Collect
Christian Brothers, St. Joseph’s Residence, N.R.

Christ in Joseph's Workshop
(Matteo Pagano)

We prayed in this morning’s collect that the Church would continue St. Joseph’s mission, watching over, i.e., safeguarding and assisting, the mysteries of human salvation.  It’s true, of course, that God could have redeemed sinful humanity in a countless number of ways.  But he chose to act with a humble human family descended from David.  He chose the human cooperation of the Virgin Mary and her spouse Joseph of Nazareth.  Thus the beginnings of our salvation were entrusted to Joseph, head of the family who guided his wife to his ancestral home to reinforce their connection to David, and the protector of mother and child from the evil plotted against them by Herod and his court.

The mysteries of our salvation unfolded gradually in the conception, birth, and growth of Joseph’s foster child and his earthly ministry, which Joseph didn’t live to see.  But he watches over the continuation of that ministry, the ministry of Christ’s Church.  We might say that Joseph is the father of the Church in a unique way, not the way that we say Irenaeus or Augustine is a father of the Church.  As Joseph once gave Mary’s Son his name, protected infant Jesus, and solicitously looked after the boy as he grew, he still protects and looks after Christ’s living body and helps the Church faithfully bring God’s salvation to us in Christ’s Word and sacraments, in grace and mercy.

Homily for Solemnity of St. Patrick

Homily for the Solemnity of St. Patrick

March 18, 2024
Salesian HS, New Rochelle, N.Y.                                   

Window, St. Francis Xavier Church, Bronx

As we celebrate the solemnity of St. Patrick, patron of Ireland, one of the greatest missionaries in the long history of Christianity, and patron saint of our archdiocese, we might think about the virtues that made him great, by God’s choice and God’s grace.

Forgiveness.  As a youth Patrick was abused by being kidnapped and sold into slavery in a foreign land, where he toiled as a shepherd and swineherd for 6 years before escaping.  Not only did he forgive those who so abused him, but he even returned to them and brought them the greatest gift he had, his Catholic faith.

Patience.  Before he was ordained bishop and sent back to Ireland, Patrick was betrayed by a former friend whom he’d trusted with a grave secret.  We don’t know exactly what that was, but it seems to have been some sin or fault of his youth, which this false friend disclosed some years later, perhaps in an attempt to derail Patrick’s priestly vocation.  It hurt Patrick deeply, but with patience and faith, he went on with his life and his vocation.

Courage.  It took courage, naturally, for Patrick to venture back to the land where he’d been enslaved, and still more courage to challenge the entrenched Druid priests and the high kings of Ireland—most famously by defying a royal edict and lighting the Easter fire where it would be widely seen and enrage the king.

Faith.  Patrick was able to do all he did because of a firm belief in Christ.  He writes in his Confession, a spiritual autobiography, “I give unceasing thanks to my God, who kept me faithful in the day of my testing.  Today I can offer him sacrifice with confidence, giving myself as a living victim to Christ, my Lord, who kept me safe thru all my trials.  I can say now:  Who am I, Lord, and what is my calling, that you worked thru me with such divine power?”

Forgiveness, patience, courage, and faith are virtues all of us can practice in our ordinary lives as disciples of Christ.

Homily for 5th Sunday of Lent

Homily for the
5th Sunday of Lent

Mar. 17, 2024
John 12: 20-33
Jer 31: 31-34
Heb 5: 7-9
Collect
The Fountains, Tuckahoe
Assumption, Bronx
St. Francis Xavier, Bronx

“Sir, we would like to see Jesus” (John 12: 21).

(by Henrik Olrik)

The people identified as Greeks in this gospel passage are Gentiles from either Galilee or the surrounding non-Jewish territory, from Lebanon, Syria, or the Decapolis.  Jesus’ preaching and miracles have won him notice beyond Israel.

What is it that Jesus allows them to see?  His answer is that he’s a grain of wheat that must fall to the earth and die in order to produce fruit (12:24).  He must be lifted up from the earth—he means both lifted on the cross and raised up to heaven—so as to draw everyone to himself (12:32); everyone—both Greeks and Jews, all of humanity.

The collect—that’s the technical name for the opening prayer—noted that God’s Son “handed himself over to death out of love for the world.”  The Letter to the Hebrews says something similar:  by his suffering, Jesus “became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him” (5:9).

Those who obey Jesus, who see him as the Christ, who follow him, become the fruit he produces for the glory of God.  “Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there also will my servant be.  The Father will honor whoever serves me” (John 12:26).

On the hearts of those who follow Jesus and serve him, God the Father writes a new law, as Jeremiah prophesied (31:33).  That new law, the law of the new covenant or new testament, is the law of love.  When that law is written on our hearts, we imitate Jesus by practicing self-sacrificing love,[1] dying to ourselves like the grain that falls to the earth.  “Whoever hates his life in this world will preserve it for eternal life” (John 12:25).

Around 200 A.D., during a period of persecution, a Christian writer named Tertullian in Carthage, North Africa, stated that “the blood of martyrs is the seed of the Church.”  The Church is the fruit, 1st of Christ’s blood, then of the blood of his witnesses, his martyrs.  On Friday blood shed for Christ was celebrated in a ceremony in the cathedral of Lahore, Pakistan.  The diocese was concluding its investigation into the life, virtues, and reputation for holiness of Akash Bashir, a 20-year-old youth who was a past pupil of the Salesian school in Lahore.  Akash was serving as a security guard at a nearby parish church when, on March 15, 2015, a suicide bomber tried to enter during Mass.  Akash confronted him, grappled with him, and was killed when the bomb detonated.  Thus he saved many lives inside the church.  The diocese is proposing that he be canonized as a martyr who shed his blood for Christ and is sending the case to Rome.

Akash Bashir

We prayed in the collect that we might “walk eagerly in that same charity with which [Jesus] handed himself over to death” because he loves the world and wishes the world to be saved from the ruin of sin.  Martyrs aren’t the only ones who follow in Jesus’s steps, showing his love for the world and their love for their neighbors.

When spouses sacrifice themselves for their partners and their children, they bear the fruit of raising new disciples for Jesus—their children and grandchildren.  When we sacrifice ourselves for our parish, we bear fruit by strengthening the faith of other believers.  When we sacrifice for our neighbors and others, we plant a seed in their minds that Christ lives in us and acts thru us for their sake; and that seed may germinate and produce the fruit of goodness and virtue in them, perhaps even the fruit of Christian faith.

We die to ourselves when we reject the lure of sin—the lure of avarice, lust, jealousy, pride, anger, gluttony, and sloth (the 7 deadly sins)—and instead practice humility, chastity, patience, self-restraint, diligence, and gentleness.  What wonderful seeds those are to plant in the hearts of our children, families, friends, and neighbors!  What wonderful ways to help them see Jesus, the same Jesus to whom Philip and Andrew long ago led Gentile seekers.

---

[1] From Frank J. Moloney’s commentary on this gospel, p. 97.

Diocesan Inquiry into Cause of Canonization of Akash Bashir

Diocesan Inquiry into the Cause of Canonization of Akash Bashir Closes

(ANS – Lahore, Pakistan – March 15, 2024) – At Sacred Heart Cathedral in Lahore, Pakistan, on Friday, March 15, Archbishop Sebastian Francis Shaw, OFM, officially closed the diocesan inquiry into the life, martyrdom, and reputation of the Servant of God Akash Bashir (June 22, 1994 - March 15, 2015), a cause that had been opened two years ago, on 15 March 2022.

Exactly nine years have passed since the day Akash Bashir sacrificed his life to prevent a suicide bomber from causing a massacre in St. John’s Church in Youhannabad, a Christian neighborhood in Lahore. Akash was 20 years old, had studied at the Don Bosco Technical Institute in Lahore, and had become a security volunteer.

Abp. Shaw presided over the closing session of the diocesan Inquest, in the presence of Fr. Amjad Yousaf, episcopal delegate, Fr. Rafhan Fayyaz, promoter of justice, and Fr. Patrick Samuel OFM Cap., notary. The original Acts, the transcript, and the public copy were presented, declared authentic, and entrusted to Bishop Germano Penemote, apostolic nuncio, who is to transmit the Acts to the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints in Rome, where they will be studied intensely.

The Eucharistic celebration was presided over by the archbishop, with Bishop Penemote, Bishop Joseph Indrias Rehmat of Faisalabad, and Bishop Yousaf Sohan of Multan as concelebrants. The parents and siblings of Akash Bashir were present. Priests from all parishes in the diocese, representatives of all religious congregations in the country, as well as seminarians, Salesian alumni, and students of the Salesian Institute devoutly participated in the solemn Eucharist.

In their remarks, Abp. Shaw and the other bishops praised Akash’s courage and unwavering faith, expressed gratitude for the completion of the diocesan phase, and assured prayers for the future.

The Catholic Church of Pakistan experienced this event with great participation; it is the first cause of beatification and canonization for a Pakistani Christian. The main promoter of the cause is the Salesian Congregation, led by its postulator general, Fr. Pierluigi Cameroni, SDB, and the vice postulator Fr. Gabriel de Jesus Cruz Trejo, SDB.

It is significant that in the intentions for the month of March, in which the Day of Prayer and Fasting for Missionary Martyrs is celebrated, the Pope dedicated the video released by the World Prayer Network to those who live the faith despite persecution and lack of freedom: their testimony “is a sign that we are on the right path.” In the video, in which the Pope tells the poignant story of a woman martyr in our times, there is also a reference to Akash Bashir. The Pope invites people to pray “that those in various parts of the world who risk their lives for the Gospel may infect the Church with their courage and missionary drive.”

Like the Servant of God Akash Bashir, today there are many hidden martyrs who lead ordinary lives with consistency and the courage to accept the grace of witnessing to the end, even unto death. They have not denied or forgotten their faith but have held it firm and demonstrated their fidelity to Jesus Christ. That is why they indicate the just path of the Church.

Salesians Bemoan Hellish Violence in Haiti

Salesians Bemoan Hellish Violence and Chaos in Haiti 

(ANS – Port-au-Prince, Haiti – March 14, 2024) – Armed gang violence dominates Haiti. The situation of instability that the country has experienced since the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in 2021 has degenerated in recent days, when Prime Minister Ariel Henry announced his commitment to hold elections before August 2025. Since then the situation has worsened, with assaults on prisons, mass escapes of dangerous criminals, shootings at and attempted assaults on the National Palace, damage to the port and airport, and finally, under pressure from criminal gangs, also the resignation of the Prime Minister.

The country was plunged into extreme poverty by the earthquake of 2010, from which it has never recovered. Then came the economic crisis, the impossibility of controlling violence in the streets, the assassination of the President, and another earthquake in 2021, together with tropical storms and the pandemic. All these disasters have thrown the population into a situation of continuous humanitarian emergency.

Almost two weeks ago, the announcement by Prime Minister Henry that elections would take place by August 2025 (while his term had already expired on February 7) threw the country into utter chaos. The criminal gangs, which dominate every neighborhood of the capital and the country’s communications, have raised the level of violence with threats of civil war and genocide if the Prime Minister, who was in Puerto Rico at the time, had not resigned. The leaders of the criminal groups launched assaults on the country’s main prisons, freeing more than 3,500 inmates, and concentrated their attacks in the area around the National Palace and the airport.

“The situation in Haiti is chaotic. There are no words to describe it. We are living in hell,” said the Salesians, who are still trying to make themselves useful in a country in disarray, and to assist the population subjected to an unprecedented wave of violence.

Haiti is awaiting the deployment of an international security support mission led by Kenya and approved by the United Nations last October. Meanwhile, the country survives amid institutional collapse, the inability of the police and army to deal with criminal gangs, and a population that has nothing to eat.

“We Salesians are currently well, but we cannot carry out any activity since February 29, when this situation began,” said the Salesians. Since then, armed gang violence has erupted. “The gangs ransacked police stations and everything they encountered, businesses, shops,” they continue.

In the capital, Port-au-Prince, there have been shootings between the gangs and with the police, and kidnappings are the order of the day. Since January, according to the United Nations, more than 1,200 people have been killed. The country is on the verge of collapse and paralysis, international agencies explain. This instability has already displaced about 300,000 people.

Criminal gangs control about 80% of the capital, hospitals are unable to treat the wounded, many shops have been looted in recent days, and the corpses of the victims remain unburied along the streets around the prisons, where last Saturday the mass escape took place, so much so that there have already been several cases of cholera.

Salesians have been working in Haiti since 1935. Their educational works are distributed throughout the country, and each year they take care of over 22,000 children and youths through schools, vocational training centers, youth centers, and family homes.

Haiti’s future is complex. “We live in fear, because we don’t know what could happen from one minute to the next. This is our life in the last days: we ask you to pray and not to forget us,” conclude the Salesians of Haiti.

Source: Misiones Salesianas 

Homily for Wednesday, Week 4 of Lent

Homily for Wednesday
4th Week of Lent

March 13, 2024
John 5: 17-30
Salesian HS, New Rochelle

“My Father is at work until now, so I am at work” (John 5: 17).

The Pharisees Question Jesus (James Tissot)

Jesus opponents have just accused him of violating the law of sabbath rest because he healed a sick man.  They’re further upset because he calls God his Father.

Jesus responds to them by telling them that God continues to work on the sabbath.  When he created the world, it was perfect, and so he could rest on the 7th day.  Everything was done.  But after sin began to wreck that perfect creation, God has to resume his work of healing and restoration.  He does that thru Jesus, who says, “So I am at work.”

Jesus’ main work is to give life:  “The Son gives life to whomever he wishes” (5:21).  He does that in part by healing the sick.  He does it more fully by restoring dead people to life, as he did at least 3 times during his ministry.  By his own resurrection—which we celebrate at Easter—he offers to give real life, eternal life, to anyone who believes in him and follows him.  He can make that offer, that promise, because he is the Son of the God who creates and gives life:  “Whoever hears my word and believes in the one who sent me has eternal life” (5:24).

To receive that gift of eternal life—not the life we experience now, with all its sufferings and afflictions—but real, joyful, never-ending life, we attach ourselves to Jesus and try to live as he did, loving and respecting everyone and honoring God in our words and actions.

Homily for Tuesday, Week 4 of Lent

Homily for Tuesday
4th Week of Lent

March 12, 2023
John 5: 1-16
Ezek 47: 1-9, 12
Christian Brothers, St. Joseph’s Residence, N.R.

Christ Healing the Paralytic at the Pool of Bethesda
(Murillo)

Today, tomorrow, and Thursday we read thru John 5, which is about who Jesus is.  In today’s passage, Jesus heals a man who’s been sick for 38 years—on the Sabbath.  That riles up “the Jews,” which is John’s Gospel usually means those who don’t accept Jesus as the Messiah.  (“He came to his own people, and they didn’t receive him” – John 1:11.)  This chapter is about Jesus’ identity.  He’s more than a mere healer of bodies, a wonder-worker.  He works even on the Sabbath, and his works are works of salvation.  So he can speak to the man he’s just healed about avoiding sin in the future (John 5:14).  Sin’s penalty is far worse than bodily sickness.

The healing that Jesus offers is like the water in Ezekiel’s prophecy.  That water begins as a trickle flowing out of the Temple until it becomes a massive, life-giving flood that transforms even the Dead Sea.  The water that trickles from the temple of Jesus’ body on the cross, along with a trickle of his blood, becomes a massive, life-giving flood of sacramental grace that transforms and saves believers.  “There is a stream whose runlets gladden the city of God” (Ps 46:5), the heavenly Jerusalem, born from the side of Christ, in fact from his heart.

Christ's Side Pierced
(source unknown)

Homily for 4th Sunday of Lent

Homily for the
4th Sunday of Lent

Mar. 10, 2024
Eph 2: 4-10
John 3: 14-21
Villa Maria, Bronx
Our Lady of the Assumption, Bronx        
St. Francis Xavier, Bronx              

“God is rich in mercy.  Because of the great love he had for us, even when we were dead in our sins, he brought us to life with Christ.  By this grace you have been saved.” (Eph 2: 4-5)

In America and most of the Western world, we like to think we can pull ourselves up by our own bootstraps.  (I’m not sure anyone these days knows what bootstraps are.  But you’ve heard the saying.)  We think that if we work hard we can succeed in business, perhaps become rich, perhaps famous, perhaps highly respected.

There’s a variety of Christianity that preaches something like that:  that wealth and security will be the blessings awarded to us for sincerely and faithfully following Christ.  That’s called the “prosperity Gospel.”

Both of these beliefs—that hard work and solid faith lead to a kind of salvation—suggest that we can attain earthly or heavenly success by our own efforts.

A little observation of life tells us hard work doesn’t always lead to success.  The belief that our own efforts produce eternal salvation is a heresy, condemned at least since the days of St. Augustine.

The sacred Scriptures tell us we can’t save ourselves.  Salvation comes as an act of grace, as a favor from God.  God owes us nothing.

In the first days of his pontificate, Pope Francis was asked who he was; how would be describe himself.  He told his interviewer, “I’m a sinner.”  He continues to say so, and he goes to confession every 2 weeks seeking God’s grace.  I echo the Holy Father:  I’m a sinner, and I need the sacrament of Reconciliation regularly.  You, too, are sinners and need God’s forgiveness.

God loves us.  He created us out of love, and he redeems us in Christ out of love.  “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son so that everyone who believes in him … might have eternal life” (John 3:16).

In our 1st reading (2 Chr 36:14-23), the author we call the Chronicler summarized Israel’s history as one of repeated infidelity and disobedience to God, which led to the destruction of the kingdom of Judah and exile in Babylon.  Then God had mercy on Israel and sent them a secular savior, Cyrus the king of Persia, who set them free, allowed them to return home, and helped them rebuild the temple for sacred worship.  God forgave, and God restored them.

Confession (Giuseppe Molteni)

Jesus Christ does that for us on the spiritual level.  He doesn’t condemn those who come to him confessing their sins.  “Whoever believes in him will not be condemned” (3:18).  Moses held up a bronze serpent for the healing of sinful Israelites on their way toward the Promised Land.  Speaking to Nicodemus, Jesus compares himself to that bronze image.  Looking to him “lifted up” on the cross brings us healing for our sins and the promise of eternal life (3:14).  When we come repentant to the sacrament of Reconciliation—confession—we’re looking at Christ lifted up for our redemption, and he pours upon us the grace of his mercy.  As St. Paul says today, God raises us up with Christ and seats us alongside him in heaven (Eph 2:6).

Jesus also speaks to Nicodemus about the possibility of preferring darkness to light (John 3:19).  Have you ever gone into a kitchen or pantry, turned on the light, and seen cockroaches scurrying away, back into some dark corners?  The light of Christ exposes our sinfulness—our lies, our slander, our greed, our offenses against human life and human dignity, our offenses against chastity.  We have the option of running away from his light, condemning ourselves to darkness because our works are evil. (3:20).  When we do that, it’s not Christ who condemns us; we do it ourselves.

On the other hand, “Whoever lives the truth comes to the light,” comes to God with our Lord Jesus.  “Because of the great love God has for us even … in our sins, he brings us to life with Christ.  By grace we’ve been saved.” (cf. Eph 2:4-5).  Thanks be to God!

Meeting to Study Salesian Missionary Volunteer Programs

Meeting to Study Salesian Missionary Volunteer Programs

(ANS – Rome – March 8, 2024) – A meeting of Salesian Missionary Volunteer programs, a collaborative effort between the Missions and Youth Ministry Departments, began with 2 days of profound engagement and learning. Participants from around the world gathered to deliberate on the Salesian Congregation’s volunteer programs, with more updates anticipated as the meeting unfolds.

Day One: Delving into the Salesian Volunteer Identity

The 1st day was dedicated to exploring the identity of the Salesian missionary volunteer. Anchored in the Congregation’s core documents and enhanced by insights from a doctoral thesis encompassing feedback from 428 Salesian volunteers, the attendees engaged with the “Volunteering in the Salesian Mission Manual.” This segment fostered a deeper understanding of what it means to embody the spirit and values of a Salesian missionary volunteer.

Day Two: Formative Experience and Synergistic Partnerships

On the 2d day, the focus shifted to the formation of all stakeholders involved in the volunteer program. The session spotlighted the long-standing success of Ecuador’s volunteer program, which has been active since 1972 and sends about 80 volunteers annually. This discussion inspired a rich exchange of best practices and reflections on the formative aspects of the program.

Later in the day, the interaction between laypeople and Salesians was examined. A panel of lay members and SDBs shared their partnership experiences, which led to an open forum in which participants discussed their concerns, successes, and commitments related to their collaborative efforts in missionary work.

The Symbolic Salesian Missionary Volunteer Cross

The 2 days of dialogue concluded with the presentation of the Salesian missionary volunteer cross. This emblem serves as a symbol of unity and commitment, encapsulating the shared dedication of the young volunteers who are central to the missionary volunteer experience.

As the meeting called forth by the Mission and Youth Ministry Departments continues, further insights and developments are expected to emerge. These initial days have set a strong foundation for continued exploration and growth in the Salesian missionary volunteer initiatives. Additional information will be shared upon the conclusion of the meeting, highlighting the collective wisdom and future directions gleaned from this remarkable gathering.

The New Rochelle Province was represented by Adam Rudin (in photo, top row, 4th from left), and the San Francisco Province by J.C. Montenegro, both well-seasoned veterans of lay missionary programs.