ACKNOWLEDGING FR JIM LITTLETON MSC. AT 90.

Jim Littleton has been a significant member of the Australian Province for 65 years or more.

His main ministry has been in Education, teaching at the Apostolic School when ordained, serving as Principal at Downlands College, Chevalier College and Daramalan College.

He also served as Provincial Superior, 1987-1992.

He compiled books on Deceased MSC, and for the last 15 years, he has written quite a number of monographs on significant MSC personalities and MSC formation houses and parishes.

In more recent years he has lived in Canberra at the Daramalan Residence.  At the beginning of 2020, he moved to Kensington Monastery.

YOUNGER MSC MEETING, INCLUDING THOSE RECENTLY ORDAINED.

With thanks to Kimi for the photos.

The group recently gathered for days of reflection, but also the chance to meet and spend some community time together.

The gathering included those from the Australian Province who did their formation here – and they include those who originally came from Singapore, Fiji and Vietnam.

Then there were those who did their formation in Vietnam and were able to come to Australia. Thang is stationed at the Retreat Centre at Douglas Park and Danh at Bathurst Island. Quy is appointed to Henley Beach.

Then there was a group from the India region who are stationed in parishes in Australia, Randwick, Kippax and Nightcliff.

Also attending, Frank Dineen, responsible for Formation and Chris McPhee, Provincial.

COMMISSIONING OF NEW PRINCIPAL OF MONIVAE COLLETE, JONATHAN ROWE

We include his address at the ceremony.

Welcome everyone

I am humbled to be standing here in front of you today.

As the incumbent Principal of Monivae College I start this exciting journey with you all knowing that the foundations are strong and that the 11 principals before me have contributed in their own unique way to making this school what it is today. It is now my turn, my opportunity to contribute.

You can’t get to this career point without spending a little time reflecting on the journey. The people and influences along the way, the incredible support you receive from your family, the sacrifices, the study, the rigorous and often harrowing job interviews, the success and joy, the disappointments and your ability to bounce back, those who instilled in you the belief  that you had something worthwhile to contribute. I am now starting to imagine what my next journey as principal will be. No one is however, more important to me or has been more supportive, than Rachael my wife. I owe her a great deal of gratitude. We are a great team.

Both of my parents are here today and I think it is safe to say they are both very proud of my achievements but couldn’t have imagined that I would be standing here today.

In my office, behind the door, hidden out of sight is a quote on an A4 piece of paper. Not one that is an inspirational or motivational quote that we often see but rather a reminder to me every day. It is a quote by a man called Alan Turing. He was a mathematician and a pioneer in the world of computer science. He is best known for building a decoding machine to decode Nazi messages in WW2. The quote reads – Sometimes it is the people who no one imagines anything of who do things that no one can imagine.

I’m certain there is some truth here where my parents are concerned. And how wonderful it is to surprise and delight them occasionally!

This quote reminds me every day of the potential of every single one of you. The paths that you take can lead to great and rewarding careers, amazing feats and lives. And it reminds me that it is my job to make sure, here at Monivae, that you are able to be the very best person you can be. As a Catholic school and in a Christian context this is defined as the Fullness of life for all. This is my mission.

Welcoming and Commission, including new Deputy, Fiona Mulhall

I am going to finish with an undertaking. A pledge to the students of Monivae. As principal I will endeavour to support you in becoming the very best person you can be. I will ensure you will be surrounded by the love of Christ. The Sacred heart of Jesus will be present in your lives through your teachers and through your compassion and kindness for others.

Your teachers and I will continue to provide you with the very best education we can. Every day we will try to be a little bit better than the day before. The decisions that I make together with the Board and Leadership team will always have you the student as the focus and at the heart of everything we do.

Danny Franc

Year 10 boys who asked to appear on the site!

Dare to dream, to imagine and you never know what your journey will be. Six years ago, I could never have imagined I would be standing here, Principal of a wonderful school in the Western districts.

I am extremely excited to be sharing this journey with you all.

Thank you

Altar cloth and college colours

SILVER JUBILEE OF PROFESSION, GERALD WARBROOK MSC.

Br Gerald Warbrook MSC, 25 Years Anniversary of Religious Profession.

Thanksgiving Mass led by Fr John Fong MSC and reflection led by Fr Gabirieli Dulunaqio MSC.

Gerald belongs to the Pacific Union, has worked in the Chevalier Hostel and is known to many MSC around the world. During the MSC worldwide meeting on Media in Issoudun 1998, he renewed his vows in the Basilica.

He is now stationed in Wailoko.

For some years he worked in the Secretariat in the MSC General House in Rome.

Missionaries of the Sacred Heart: 2020 Vision

For everyone 2020 vision is desirable!

St Mary’s Towers, Douglas Park – 3 - 6 February 2020, MSC Provincial Gathering.

PROVINCIAL SUPERIOR, CHRIS McPHEE MSC WRITES:

Martin Luther King, Jr. said, "I have a dream," and what followed was a vision that changed a nation.

That famous speech is a dramatic example of the power that can be generated by a person who communicates a compelling vision of the future.

Two years ago we sat here at Douglas Park and shared our dreams and our vision – we laid out the vision – and said that instead of it being a motto – we transformed it into our Vision: May the Sacred Heart of Jesus be everywhere loved… forever!”

As we said, this vision sets before us our guiding principles and is a symbolic image of our MSC contribution to society at large and within the Catholic tradition of our time. If our MSC constitutions are the "blueprint" for our organization's work, then the vision is the "artist's rendering" of what our founding fathers put together that later evolved into the formulation of our MSC Constitutions. It is a description in words that conjures up, hopefully, a similar picture for each member of the MSC of the purpose of our work together – of being on mission together.

There is one universal rule of planning: You will never be greater than the vision that guides you.

No Olympic athlete ever got to the Olympics by mistake; a compelling vision of his or her stellar performance inevitably guides all the sweat and tears for many years.

Our MSC vision statement – May the Sacred Heart of Jesus be everywhere loved – forever! - should require our MSC’s to stretch their expectations, aspirations, and performance – to be like Jesus who loved with a human heart; that Jesus is our inspiration and driving force; that we free people from fear; and central to all of this is justice and concern for all especially the very poor... Without this powerful, inspirational, encouraging, strong, desirable, attractive, positive and valuable vision, why bother?

By Susan Daily IBVM

Why do we do what we do?

What are you looking for? What do you want? John 1: 34-39

A vision is "more important as a guide to implementing our approach to our Mission at hand than it is to be formulating it." This is because the development of our approach to the year ahead [strategy] is driven by what we are trying to accomplish, our purposes. Our desire to make known and loved everywhere the Heart of God.

A mission statement answers the questions: Why does our organization exist? Why are we MSC? What is our mission?  To put into a commercial context – what business are we in? What values will guide us? Whose values will guide us?

A vision, however, is more encompassing, more embracing for us as MSC. It answers the question, "What will accomplishment/mission or better still, our contribution to Society look like?" It is the pursuit of this image – and our image/symbol is of the Sacred Heart – symbolically a heart on the outside… a heart that we hope all will come to know, love and believe in… for God has first loved us –  this is what really motivates us in to mission together.

In a way this is the why? As a statement; ‘May the Sacred Heart of Jesus be everywhere loved’; as a symbol; as a vision – our path then is realistic and credible, if we keep our focus on Him – to keep our focus on the Sacred Heart. As Jules Chevalier put it: Christ before my eyes; Christ in my heart; and Christ in my hands.  Objectively this leads us together into the future.  

Our MSC Vision is well articulated and easily understood; it is right for our time; probably more than ever. It’s the reason why we mission together. But, more to the point, our vision is essentially open to and responsive to change – not the vision itself – but our response to it… to be able to read the signs of the times and to respond and change as necessary …to keep alive our Vision… for it has to be and it has been open to change ever since the time of Chevalier.

Our MSC Vision orients all of us MSC as well as energising us and becomes for us our inspiration and driving force – at its core it is our guide to action; it sets our values; as well as challenging us and inspiring us to accomplish God’s mission… to be on earth the Heart of God.

Now, to us as a Provincial Leadership Team; we, as Provincial and Council, do we live this vision – May the Sacred Heart of Jesus be everywhere loved – forever!  ...are we servants of the dream, the bearers of its truth; do we tell and re-tell the story wherever we go; do we keep re-iterating our dream, our vision for the future???

"It is the idea (vision) that unites people in the common effort, not the charisma of the leader or the leadership team," writes Robert Greenleaf in Leadership Crisis. He goes on to write:

“Optimal performance rests on the existence of a powerful shared vision that evolves through wide participation to which the key leader contributes, but which the use of authority cannot shape.... The test of greatness of a dream is that it has the energy to lift people out of their moribund ways to a level of being and relating from which the future can be faced with more hope than most of us can summon today.”

Tonight, as part of our process: over the past two years, as we have tried to live out our vision:

Reflect, even write down your own values, your own journey, struggles to live out of our Universal Vision… 

Then to share our commonality and differences in how we have seen and have experienced this over the past two years… and hopefully as we share together we can become more daring and appreciative to our common dreams and visions -- dreams of changing the world for the better – as Chevalier says: I see a whole new World emerging.

Some thoughts:  How do we want our MSC communities to be? What will it look like at the end of our term – To taste the wine – what is its flavour? What role do we have to play in our Province? What will our Contribution/accomplishments look like?

Welcome back to our third year of being on our Province Leadership Team.

Chris MSC

Monday, 3 February 2020

CONGRATULATIONS TO FR BILL CUNNINGHAM MSC, 95.

Acknowledging the life and ministry of Fr Bill Cunningham MSC as he turns 95.  For those who wished him 'Ad Multos Annos', they have had their blessing fulfilled.

His ministry, for many decades - he was ordained in 1951, almost 69 years ago - was in Eastern Papua, in mission work and with a commitment to religious education.

He wrote a book about the mission. Here is a description:

FROM MISSION to the DIOCESE of ALOTAU-SIDEIA. 75 years of Building the Church, Milne Bay-Eastern Papua, 1932 to 2007.

Nelen Yubu, Sydney, 2008. Pp. x and 280. Foreword by Francesco Panfilo, SDB, Bishop of Alotau-Sideia.

The first chapter, The Foundation of the Catholic Church in Eastern Papua was written by Anthony Arthur MSC. After this initial chapter, book moves in chronological order through the foundations, beginning with Sideia in 1932, followed by Ladava, the Trobriand Islands. After World War II there was expansion to a Nimowa, Rossel Island, Goodenough Island, Bolubolu, Fergusson Island, Normanby Island. The diocese was erected in 1975. Already the Sacred Heart Secondary School had been established in Hagita, 1970 and in 1985 St Pauls Pastoral Centre, Leaders Training Centre.

In the early years of the 21^st-century, several other parishes were founded. There is a chapter on Catholic Youth as well as Communications and Publications. There are several small illustrations throughout of various MSC personnel who worked in Eastern Papua. Some Documentary Sources are listed and there are five pages with lists of MSC personnel who worked in Eastern Popular, 1932-2007 with the years in which they worked there. (The author himself is listed for 1970, 1972 – 1985, 1987 – 2007.)

A GOOD NEWS STORY FROM ST MARY'S TOWERS, DOUGLAS PARK.  AFTER THE FIRES, THE RAIN  

With thanks to Fred Stubenrauch, Dominic Gleeson, Robyn Reynolds.

A ROAMING CATHOLIC,  LAUNCH OF ADRIAN MEANEY'S MEMOIR, MSC MISSION OFFICE

THE BOOK

The memoirs of Fr Adrian Meaney msc launched on Friday 14th February 2020 at the Sacred Heart Monastery in Kensington.

With thanks to the MSC Mission Office, Roger Purcell and Sean Donovan, photos and text.

Colourful Australian MSC priest Fr Adrian Meaney passed away just twelve months ago following a ministry in Papua New Guinea, Northern Territory and the MSC Mission Office spanning some 57 years.

Now his memoirs have been published covering all his adventures in life from growing up in Queensland, experiences as a priest in Alice Springs and Papua New Guinea, organizing two Papal visits by John Paul II, and finally founding the MSC Mission Office to help works across the Pacific, Asia and Africa.

Now is your opportunity to buy "A Roaming Catholic" to commemorate and remember this unique individual.

THE LAUNCH - at lunch

Fr Roger Purcell msc was MC for the launch of "A Roaming Catholic", the memoirs of Fr Adrian Meaney msc.

The launch of the Memoirs was with the sharing of a meal, which was very much in the way of Adrian.

Fr Purcell made some opening remarks followed by some words from Fr Chris McPhee, Provincial Superior of the Australian MSC province.

Fr Purcell then introduced Sean Donovan from the MSC Mission Office to do the formal launch.

Sean Donovan - Words at Launch

Thank you, Roger.

As Henry the Eighth said to his wives: "I won't keep you long."

It is truly a joy to be here with you today for the launch of Adrian's memoirs.

I am sure that you all know Adrian very well, and probably a lot better than me.

Adrian worked on this book literally until his last breath at the hospital.

So many people have helped to massage it into the form that it is as you see today.

And, of course, being a book by Adrian it does have a donation page.

He was very fond of saying his favourite quote in the Bible was "God loves a cheerful giver". And so we must make it very easy for people to give so that they are more cheerful.

So on that note I will launch Adrian's book and hopefully you all get some wonderful reading out of it and enjoy reading it as much as we enjoyed putting it together.

God bless everybody and thank you for coming.

Fr Purcell then distributed special copies to the Province, Sacred Heart Monastery, MSC Library, and Chevalier Press.

To Jac Boelen MSC for the Kensington community

To Peter Macinante for the Library and Archives

SOME MSC EVENTS, KOREA, INDONESIA, BRAZIL - ORDINATIONS, PROFESSIONS...     

KOREA

Congratulations to our newly ordained MSC priests from our MSC Korea Province: Fr. Richard JunJeong Kim and Fr. Jinho Pius Kim! They were ordained last January 13, 2020.

INDONESIA

We give great thanks to God for grace of vocations to our confreres in Indonesia who have been ordained to the Sacred Order of Presbyters: Fr. Rudolf Dayu Wicahyo, MSC (January 24, 2020), and Fr. Yoseph Baag Donald Rahanubun, MSC and Fr. Samuel Fangohoi Anitu, MSC. 

BRAZIL - PROFESSIONS

On February 1, 2020, our Brazilian confreres from our three Provinces there (São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Curitiba) welcomed seven new members to the congregation as they professed their Religious Vows as MSC for the first time.

They were:
Frt. Aldiclei Oleivera Lima, MSC
Frt. Douglas Da Silva Silveira, MSC
Frt. Izaias Oliveira da Silva, MSC
Frt. Jose Adriano Moraes da Costa da Silva, MSC
Frt. Leonardo Henrique Agustinho, MSC
Frt. Leonardo Machado de Araijo, MSC
Frt. Thiago Henrique Soares da Silva, MSC

BRAZIL - NOVITIATE

Many congratulations to (L-R) Witalo Souza de Jesus (Rio de Janeiro Province) Erick Bryan de Mattos (São Paulo Province) and Miguel Ibarra (Irish Province - Venezuela) who all began their noviciate in Itajubá, Brazil, today. You are in our prayers, brothers, for the year ahead.

TRIBUTE TO BOB IRWIN MSC AS HE COMPLETES HIS TERM AS DIRECTOR OF MSC EDUCATION.

The Chevalier Institute began during Fr Bob’s time developed from his recognition of the need for faith formation for adults in Spirituality of the Heart. Both as Director of the Institute and Director of MSC Education, Bob’s visionary leadership has guided the Institute. As he passes on the role of Director of MSC Education into lay hands it is fitting to pay tribute to this inspirational man, from some of those who worked with him.

Thank you, Fr Bob from the hearts of so many who have been touched by your vision …

Fr Bob Irwin is the visionary who consulted, collaborated and gave life to Chevalier Institute. His deep faith and profound spirituality; his leadership, inspiration, trust and belief in those entrusted to give the Institute ‘wings’ is a great testament to him.

Julie Taylor

Fr Bob’s vision and foresight in establishing the Chevalier Institute in the first instance and his subsequent, significant involvement in it over so many years, inclusive of his ‘guiding hand’ offered to all who have come and gone from it as time has gone by, has enabled MSC schools to continue in their Mission and Vision - to truly be places where the Heart Spirituality that flows from the charism of Jules Chevalier is deeply embedded, thanks to the marvellous opportunities for meaningful spiritual formation that are afforded to staff in the colleges via the Chevalier Institute.

Anne McAtomney

Bob is what I would consider the stereotypical MSC. From the time I first met him, it has been his hospitality and humour that has stood out the most. Always on for a chat, always having a laugh. He has always been a good help with everything I have done during my time at Monivae College. Well done Father Bob, good luck for the next part of your journey.

Danny Franc

Bob opens his heart and inspires others to do the same. He leads with authenticity, love and compassion. In search for the truth always he is a beacon of strength and wisdom. He empowers others to listen to their heart, to live out the vision of Jules Chevalier in a contemporary and individual way.

Fiona Mulhall

Bob’s vision and support for the work of the Chevalier Institute has assisted in all the schools having an emphasis on Heart Spirituality at the core of their mission. Because of the wonderful work of the Chevalier Institute under Bob’s guidance, Monivae College in recent times was able to face the prospect of having no professed MSC in the school with the calm assurance that Monivae would remain true to its MSC charism.

Mark McGinnity

Bob epitomizes the charism of the MSC as expressed in MSC Constitutions. His leadership style is one of inclusiveness marked by kindness and understanding, compassion and forgiveness. Bob in conjunction with a wonderful sense of humour has this generosity of spirit that invites others into the MSC family in a welcoming, affirming way. He is an inspiring leader and a wise mentor and guide to others he empowers to take on leadership roles. And most importantly Bob is a man of deep faith, a lover of others and of life.

Philip Fitzgerald