Acknowledging Joe Ensing MSC, turning 80

Joe Ensing has a Dutch family background, Queensland, student at Downlands. He made his first profession on February 26^th 1963, ordained 31^st May 1969.

Golden Jubilee of ordination, with Paul Cashen

Joe has spent most of his over 50 years of priesthood in Papua New Guinea, mission, catechetics, religious education, in recent times, the Community Leader. In a letter for New Years 2021, the Covid times, he wrote about Eastern Papua. It gives some idea of his life in PNG mission:

All continues to go well with me in Papua New Guinea, also known as the land of Paradise and it is surely living up to this name in regard to the Corona Virus Pandemic. My most recent official figures of 10/12/20 country wide is only 8 deaths and 720 confirmed cases out of a population of about 8 million. Even allowing for the low level of testing there are no reports of possible serious outbreaks at present. Our Capital City, Port Moresby has recorded the vast majority of confirmed cases at 360 out of the 16 Provinces, with my home province, Milne Bay at only 2 cases.

Milne Bay

Where ever I go, particularly to town, life is much as usual. Not much evidence of social distancing, and masks only in shops and places of business such as banks, with notices of warnings and advice to avoid the disease.

Pray that we may continue to be spared any major outbreak in this country which has very limited medical resources to cope.

I continue on at our Diocesan Pastoral Centre for the formation and training of local Church lay leaders in a variety of Ministries.

The rest of the time has been at home taking part in short courses and seminars, apart from 3 weeks last month, November, traveling around the islands to the East, from Misima to Rossel, on behalf of the Bishop. I was happy to do this as I spent about 20 years in that area at Nimowa Parish.

He is pictured with his co-author and fellow workers with their book: COUNSELLING BEST PRACTICE (Co-authored Joe Ensing MSC and Sr Valentina Pozzi SdR), TRAINING MANUAL FOR COUNSELLING IN PAPUA NEW GUINEA,

Family Care Sisters (The ‘Grey Sisters’) closing their house for mothers at Croydon 

MSC students and members of the Croydon Monastery community, Brothers and Priests, from the 1940s to the 1980s, will have had contact with the Sisters. And, the Sisters invited us to use their community house at Canterbury for Heart of Life, 1986-2002. We have had some strong bonds with the Sisters.

Now there are only two, Jill Harding and Michele Toussaint.

Their ministry for some years has been linked with the Sisters of Mercy. Many Mercy Sisters were present at the Mass.

Saturday August 19^th saw a Mass of Appreciation as the Sisters move from their house in Alto Ave, Kewn Kreestha. It was celebrated in the Croydon parish church – which was formerly the Monastery chapel.

Paul Castley MSC presided at the Eucharist.

Jill and Michele participated, Eucharistic ministers, thanking those who had come to celebrate with them.

Intercessions led by Lis Teggelove RSM and Sue Gesell, long associated with the Sisters.

Some mothers spoke of their times at Croydon and presented floral tributes.

Fr Gerard Dowling who lived in the cottage at Canterbury was present as were members of several Sisters’ congregations, a welcome to the ceremony by MSC Sisters Provincial, Tess Veenker.

After the Mass, quite an afternoon tea spread – in what used to be the community refectory, the solid tables and the strong chairs from the past still there.

Jill and Michele will live at Canterbury and continue their ministry.

Congratulations. Greg McCann 60 years professed today – and celebrating MSC Brothers.

August 5^th was one of the days for the profession of MSC Brothers in the past. Greg has had ministries in schools, both cooking and teaching, and spent years in China teaching English as a second language.

August 5^th is a good day to take note of our tradition of Brothers in the Australian Province. Especially, with the coming General Chapter. It is hoped you enjoy reading about the Brothers in Australia below.

Brother Bernard Mongeau MSC is attending the Chapter and is preparing propositions for the Chapter. He notes that in 2017, Pope Francis addressed to the members of the General Chapter the following message:

“[…] the brothers in a congregation are a grace of the Lord. I ask you not to yield to the temptation of clericalism that, as I have often remarked, alienates people, especially the young, from the Church. May your common life be marked by true fraternity, which welcomes diversity and values the gifts of all.”

He remembers Mark MacDonald saying the same thing. In the Documents of the 2017 General Chapter, it is written under the article number 49:

“We believe that our understanding of the life and mission of our non-ordained members has been evolving over the past few years, due in part to our recognition of the dangers of “clericalism” in a religious Congregation. The focus is now much more on the fact that as Missionaries of the Sacred Heart, we are all religious. This means that our “Brothers” are not a special category within our Congregation. (Cf. Const. 28) All topics considered relate to all of us since we all have the same vows, the same charism, the same mission and form one and the same family. All around the world, we still have much to do in relation to this question. We need to promote vocations not to priesthood or brotherhood but to the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart.”

Bernard Mongeau introduces himself.

I am a member of the local community of Quebec in Canada belonging to the Province of the Dominican Republic since November 2022. I am an MSC brother since 1980. Before being an MSC, I worked in the administration of a large commercial company for nearly three years. In the novitiate, in 1979, the master of novices did not know what to offer me as a job. After speaking with the provincial treasurer, he invited me to work with him. That's how it all started. After my novitiate, I took university courses in administration and accounting. From 1993 to 2000, I worked in a popular education organization in Quebec. I worked as local treasurer and assistant provincial treasurer from 1980 to 2008 at the service of the MSC mission. I was provincial treasurer of Canada from 2008 to November 2022. Since the canonical fusion of our Province with that of the Dominican Republic, I am the treasurer and secretary of local community and the civil corporation. Since 2008, I am a member and administrator of an association of treasurers of religious institutes in the province of Quebec called ATTIR. This association offers monthly training days in administration, civil law and canon law, psychology and restructuring. I have never been on a mission outside my country. However, I visited on several occasions a poverty reduction and popular education project that we had supported in Nicaragua. I was involved in the file of the canonical fusion of our Province and the possession of our Mexican mission in the Province of Central America. I am also part of the General Finance Commission of the Congregation.

We take the opportunity to pay some tributes to MSC Brothers, Australia.

At times there were 100 Brothers in the Province. Robert South was the first, professed in 1899. A number of men joined us for some time and did not continue. There are 108 Brothers listed in our Necrology. We have 14 Brothers in Australia and one in Vietnam. They are named at the end.

John Ehlefeldt

In the past the Brothers staffed colleges and houses like Kensington, Douglas Park, Scholasticates, later in parishes. Brothers cooked, cleaned, worked in farms and gardens, and in the Annals Office. With regret we look back at the separation because of first and second class status (and reinforced clericalism).

John Walker

Since the late 1960s a Brother has usually been a member of the Provincial Council. Brothers became Community Leaders in the 1990s, Peter Harvey Jackson, Douglas Park, Kensington, Melbourne, Phil Reilly Chevalier, Peter Curry Navarre House, John Walker Canberra, Barry Smith Douglas Park. Brothers have been bursars at provincial and community level, members of finance and building committees. From 1950 to 1990, Brothers were part of the General House community in Rome.

Gerry Burke

Tribute must be paid to the many Brothers missionaries in PNG and the NT, builders, boats, captains. Ted Merritt gained a pilot’s licence. Andy Howley was awarded a Churchill Fellowship in 1978 to study Native Americans in the US and was instrumental in setting up Alcohol Awareness and Family Recovery at Daly River (and later in Fiji, Kiribati and Samoa, and awarded Medal in the Order of Australia). Alan Kinnane was also involved. Alan was later ordained a deacon.

Barry Smith

In the 1970s, Brother began to teach and many to qualify in teacher training, moving into art, woodwork, dormitory supervision, infirmary, sport. Paul Brooks was Principal of St John’s Darwin. Education in English as a second language extended to China with Greg McCann. John Walker trained in nursing.

Peter Harvey-Jackson

Brothers have theology degrees, Peter Harvey-Jackson, John Walker, James Maher. Brothers have had overseas sabbaticals, for study, for experience. Since the late 1960s Brothers have worked in Formation, in recent times, Col Sinclair in the Pacific Islands Province, Peter Harvey-Jackson as Novice Master at Douglas Park.

James Maher was a noted musician and composer.

Since the 1980s, Brothers have appointed to particular ministries, hospital chaplaincies, prisons, AIDS ministry. Ken Clancy had a visiting ministry at Croydon and mission support at Chevalier (and had a book written about him).

Our Brothers today:

Barry Smith

Col Sinclair

Gerard Shanley

Greg McCann

Henk Bosman

Jac Boelen

John Frith

John Walker

Josef Senjuk

Paul Bowen

Peter Curry

Peter Harvey-Jackson

Phil Reilly

Reg Pritchard

And Hung leading the way in Vietnam

                                                             Col Sinclair and the Pacific Island pre0novitiate group

CRA President, Fr Peter Jones OSA.

The forthcoming launch of Our Stories , Our Lives, Our Mission at the 2023 National Assembly is a significant exercise in sharing something of who we are as religious in Australia and that we are doing so together, writes CRA President Fr Peter Jones OSA. 

The resource, attentively prepared under the oversight of the team at the CRA Office, represents a humble yet confident celebration of the gift we seek to offer the broader Church and Australian society. Its use among young people will hopefully deepen appreciation of the particular shapes and colours we offer in the larger mosaic which is the community of Christ’s disciples in our place and our time. 

Each part of the title has meaning. 

Our… it is wonderful that we have worked on this together. One of the joys for myself in the present responsibilities I have with CRA is the appreciation of how we work together. Differences of charism, experience, perspective … yet we need each other in our common witness to the religious vocation. Anyone reading this resource will sense a unity of purpose in the midst of a diversity of gifts. 

Stories…. none of us live in the abstract but through what happens in encounters, events and experiences. We share stories of our strength and weakness, sin and grace, our fears and hopes. All of that is part of who we are. Our stories are grounded in place and time. 

Lives… the stories have meaning because of the lives behind them and our way of life as religious. Relationship is key to our influence and the stories are grounded in people’s  connection with religious over time. The resource will help us as we share what is important to us both personally and communally. 

Mission… this resource is anything but an inward looking exercise. Mission links us with the whole. Our vocation humbly and courageously offers a gift to others. We in turn are constantly nourished, enriched and transformed through the grace of all with whom we share mission.  

This resource is as much an account of what we have received as well as given. Our stories are not just about us but about many who are part of our common journey. 

I commend this wonderfully prepared resource to you and those whom you serve.

Here is the entry for the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart

Some Significant Days for the Chevalier Family, August 2023

Baining Martyrs

 NOTE:

this is an amplified version of Significant Days, combining the list made originally by Cor Novum, Issoudun, now with the addition of dates from Father Jan Bovenmars MSC’s book, Jules Chevalier, Daily Readings. His book was published in 1993 – so, more recent just from all around the congregation and the Chevalier family would be most welcome.

34 new Significant Days have been added for August

See August 1^st, 14^th, 27^th, 30^th, Mother Marie Louise Hartzer

1 August, 1879

The Italian Annals of OLSH are from now on published in Rome instead of Osimo, Italy.

1 August, 1887

The first four FDNSC Sisters arrive at Yule Island, PNG

1 August, 1967

The Irish MSC and their first project in Venezuelan, the parish of Our Lady of Coronato in Maracaibo

3 August, 1899

First community of MSC Sisters is established in Hiltrup, Germany: two Sisters of Divine Providence and one MSC candidate. Sister Servatia, one of the Divine Providence Sisters, is appointed first Superior General of the MSC Sisters, Hiltrup.

3 August, 1950

Fr L. Koppert MSC dies in Rome. He had been in charge of the International MSC Scholastic that since 1924.

4 August, 1859

The saintly Curé d\'Ars, Jean-Marie Vianney, dies, shortly after the visit of Father Chevalier on 14 July, 1859.

5 August, 1951

Inauguration of the new parish of Our Lady of Fatima in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

5 August, 1982

MSC Sisters open a Novitiate in Bangalore, India.

6 August, 1930

Fr John Doyle MSC, Australia, arrives in Sideia/Samarai, Eastern Papua. He will later become the first Bishop of Sideia

6 August, 1986

The Canonical Erection of the UAF (Union of French-speaking Africa) on June 18 becomes effective. Father Karl Hofer is the first superior.

6 August, 1988

St Pauls National seminary for Late Vocations, founded at Kensington in 1968, has its 200^th ordination to the priesthood.

10 August, 1928

Fr Karl Laufer MSC, German province, is ordained a priest at Paderborn. He gained fame as missionary and anthropologist in New Britain, PNG.

11 August, 1905

MSC General Chapter at Louvain, in Belgium. Decisions taken were:  to revise the Constitutions of Father Founder, to move the Generalate to Rome, and to drop the \'fourth\' vow. This \'Vow of Stability\' could be taken by individual members to stay in the congregation until death, and also included being willing to be sent on mission anywhere in the world by the Pope or religious superior.

11 August, 1908.

Arrival of the first eight MSC sisters from Germany in the US.

12 August, 1855

After a retreat in a Trappist monastery, Father Charles Piperon decides “to live and die as a religious”.

13 August, 1890

Blessing of the new MSC House in Tilburg, Holland.

13 August, 1904

The Baining Martyrs: Father M. Rascher, together with three MSC confreres, a Trappist Brother, five MSC Sisters and seven Catholic Bainings, are killed in the Baining Mountains, East New Britain, PNG.

14 August, 1895

Arrival of the first FDNSC in Nonouti, Gilbert Islands (Kiribati).

14 August, 1905

Foundation of the mission station at Merauke, Irian Jaya, Indonesia.

14 August, 1981

The first MSC novitiate of the South African Region, entrusted to the Irish province, opened in Ofcolaco with three novices.

15 August, 1905

Fr E. Meyer is elected superior general (1905-1920).

15 August, 1919

Erection of the Dutch MSC province.

15 August, 1946

Arrival of the first nine Italian MSC in Pinheiro, Brazil.

15 August, 1945

MSC Sisters in PNG are released from Ramale Camp, New Britain.

16 August, 1869

The Archbishop of Bourges blesses the MSC novitiate at Montlucon, a distance of five minutes from the church of St Paul where Father Guyot, the first novice Master, his parish priest.

18 August, 1920

Father Adrian Brocken, Holland, is elected Period General (1920-1932)

19 August, 1923

Archbishop Louis Coupe, Vicar Apostolic of Rabaul from 1890-1923, retires.

20 August, 1848

This date remembers the death of Jean-Charles Chevalier,  the father of Jules Chevalier.

20 August, 1926

Fr Bernardus Weidenbrugge, one of the 14 Trappist who joined the MSC in Belgian Congo, Zaire, in 1926, makes his first profession.

21 August, 1882

Fr Andre Navarre and his two companions arrive in Sydney on the way to the mission of Melanesia. They are welcomed by the Marist Fathers. A week later they are able to leave for Port Breton with a ship of the Marquis de Ray.

21 August, 1988

Three Kiribati Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart leave from Majuro, the first foundation in the Marshall Islands.

22 August, 1985

Two MSC sisters of the Peruvian Province depart for the Dominican Republic to start a new mission

24 August, 1863

In the presence of the notary public, Brinet, an act is signed by M, de Champgrand stating that Fr Jules Chevalier has obtained possession of the whole property at its centre.

24 August, 1946

Fr Andre Sorin MSC consecrated in OLSH church Randwick as the Vicar Apostolic of Moresby.

25 August, 1905

Erection of the French province.

25 August, 1985

Fathers Arguillas and Ceniza, Philippines, take possession of the first MSC house in Seoul, Korea.

26 August, 1902

Erection of the first MSC house in Switzerland, at pre-Borg

27 August, 1837

This date recalls the birth of Marie-Louise Mestmann (Hartzer) in Wissembourg, France.

28 August, 1901

Fr Chevalier asks Rome to accept his resignation as Superior General and to grant him a decree of “secularisation pro forma” for as long as the situation demands. Both requests were granted.

29 August, 1920

The Apostolic Prefecture of Dutch New Guinea, Irian Jaya, Indonesia, becomes an Apostolic Vicariate.

29 August, 1965,

Fr Cadoux MSC, France, appointed Bishop of Koalack, Senegal, ordained at Issoudun.

30 August, 1874

Foundation of the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart by Father Chevalier in Issoudun, as a Sister Congregation to the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart.

30 August, 1948

Arrival in Argentina of the first two MSC fathers, Chelsea Megiddo and Bonito Camino, Spain.

30 August, 1983

The Congregation for Religious approves the updated version of the Constitutions of the FDNSC – Constitutions originally drawn up by Fr Chevalier himslef.

31 August, 1960

Erection of the Australian Province of the MSC Sisters.

MSC Formation, Cuskelly House, Blackburn

Daniel and Trieu for MSC Vocations' promotion

Yesterday we featured formation in our Indonesian Province. Today, we present our local formation group,

During the mid-year break, Trieu and Daniel were involved in Final Vows preparation with sessions with Khoi, Philip Malone, Alo Lamere, Peter Carroll, focussing on vows and ministry. Kevin Hennessy CP directed them on retreat at Shoreham.

In the meantime, Vincent and Hoa went to Randwick, Vincent continuing his work at St Canice’s from earlier in the year.

Hoa worked at the Mission Office Conference. Pat Mara, PP of Randwick hosted them – and with Michael Nithin and Bang, they seem to have gone to an alternate religious venue.

This year, Vincent and Daniel have been participating in Clinical Pastoral Education programs and all are studying at the Yarra Theological Union, Box Hill where most of our MSC students have studied since 1972. If you go to our Ministries heading on this site and go to MSC books, you will find photos and memories from 1972 to the present. Click the image in that section and the book downloads. 

And here is the group with their director, Mark Hanns.

You may be interested that the University of Divinity, of which YTU is a member, won an award for 2022, # 1 for overall student experience. Heart of Life is also affiliated with YTU,

University of Divinity #1 in Australia for overall student experience

The University of Divinity has once again been voted by students as having the highest quality overall educational experience of any university in Australia.

The Vice-Chancellor, Professor Peter Sherlock, said

The University of Divinity’s results in the 2022 Student Experience Survey are absolutely outstanding and testify to our ability over many years to deliver the best student experience of any University in Australia.

These results are attributable to the quality of teaching provided by our dedicated staff, our commitment to small class sizes in which every student is known by name, and the effectiveness of our engagement with church and agency partners that enables us to  provide students with the educational outcomes they need to flourish in a variety of professions, vocations and ministries.”

The annual Student Experience Survey (SES) took place over August to October 2022. The SES is part of the Federal Government’s Quality Indicator of Learning and Teaching (QILT) program and provides a national architecture for collecting data on key aspects of the higher education student experience.

The University of Divinity has seen a significant increase in ratings from 2021 to 2022, returning to claim the ‘top spot’ in ratings of the overall quality of educational experience for universities, which it also achieved in 2017, 2018 and 2019. In 2022, University of Divinity students reported particularly high satisfaction in the key areas of Learning Resources (90.6, 92.0), Student Support (89.9, 89.0) and Teaching Quality (88.9, 88.3).

The University of Divinity’s response rate was 47.8% of students, well above the national average response rate of 37.0%.

Acknowledging John Franzmann MSC

John Franzmann turns 85 today. He has been a Missionary of the Sacred Heart for 65 years and a priest for 58 years.

John is a Queenslander and went to secondary school at Downlands College, Toowoomba. He made his first profession on February 26^th 1958. Studies for priesthood took place at the Sacred Heart Monasteries, Croydon, Victoria, and Canberra. He also studied Arts at the Australian National University. He was ordained on July 21^st 1965.

Almost all of his MSC ministry has been in education. His first appointment was to Daramalan College, Canberra. He has taught at Chevalier College, Bowral, and St John’s College, Darwin. He served as Principal at both of these last two colleges. For some years, he was part of the administration of the Diocese of Darwin.

Two tangible results of his work can be seen in his history of Chevalier, This Many Faceted Gem, and history of Monivae College.

John’s education forte is Maths, teaching and coaching students for more than half a century. One of his students is Geordie Williamson, Professor of Mathematics at Sydney University.

In recent decades, John has lived at Chevalier College, continuing his dedication to students and maths.

Cathedral Mass, Days of meetings, Open Day – MSC Mission Office 25 years’ celebrations

Report from The Catholic Weekly, by Marilyn Rodrigues

Papua New Guinean Cardinal John Ribat MSC presided over the colourful and heartwarming Mass on 9 July, which brought together faithful from all over the world—especially the office’s regional partners Papua New Guinea and the Pacific Islands, Indonesia, India, the Philippines, Vietnam and Africa.

Choirs from Sydney’s Filipino, Indonesian and Vietnamese communities led the singing, and hymns and prayers including parts of the Eucharistic prayer were prayed in different languages.

The offertory procession was led by Samoan dancers in traditional costume and the Gospel was processed by representatives of the Papua New Guinean community, accompanied by drums and the blowing of a conch shell.

The late Fr Adrian Meaney MSC established the office in 1998 to support a lay movement of outreach and support locally and internationally.

Speaking to supporters after the Mass, the current director Fr Roger Purcell MSC said that the understanding of mission had changed along with the church’s growth in developing countries.

Mission today means “to be more the church that we are supposed to be, a church of communion, unity and diversity, respect and love.”

“It’s no longer out there amongst people who haven’t heard it,” Fr Purcell said.

“Many of the people we went out to on mission are no longer a mission, they’re a church.

“And the MSC mission office is to encourage a missionary spirit among the faithful encouraging all to become mission-minded.

“That’s what we’re here for. If the church is not on mission, if we’re not evangelising, then we’re not church.

The Mass was also an occasion to celebrate the 7 July feast day of Papua New Guinea’s Blessed Peter to Rot.

Directors of the seven regional offices then came together for three days of conference and in-service.

Celebrations conclude with an open day at the Kensington mission office and monastery on 15 July.