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PRIOR PROVINCIALS NEWSLETTER
No. 32
1 Nov 2014
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Dear Brothers, Sisters and
Servite Family,
Warm hearted greetings in these
blustery late October days with
Autumn leaves now falling
abundantly to the ground, and
morning and evenings darker
In recent days I was struck by a
quote on a birthday invitation that
arrived here at our Priory in Benburb,
Ive learned, that it is not what I have in my life,
but who I have in my life that counts.
I see in its wisdom a powerful invitation to look
around and take stock of who we live with in our
Servite Communities and who we share ministry with
and who in our families who support us, and to
savour and cherish each other, in all our strengths and
talents, frailties, mistakes and weaknesses.
The recent 150
th
celebration in London and the
immensely positive feedback since was a visible
expression of our collective Servite story of the who,
that have enabled us to grow to where we are today in
the varying branches of our Order.
After this great celebration and Provincials
Meeting in St Marys University, Strawberry Hill,
London, Fr Souriraj, General Councillor, met with
members of the Servite Secular Institute in England
and also spent a week in Ireland meeting members
of the Secular Order here in Dublin and Benburb.
Knock With the help of frs Tim
Flynn and Jim Mulherin and the
Servite Secular Order, our annual
Servite Pilgrimage to Knock, Co.
Mayo, was a very life-giving
celebration for all who came.
Oratory Rathfarnham 25 Years
Around the same time, Tim and a
group of volunteers of our Servite Oratory and
Secular Order held the annual St Peregrine
collection in Rathfarnham Shopping Centre, which
to date has raised 7000 approx. Tim wishes to
remind us that the Silver Jubilee 25
th
Anniversary
of Servite presence in our St Peregrine Oratory in
Rathfarnham Shopping Centre. A week of
celebration will begin on 29
th
November with Mass
at 4.30pm.
London Priory in the
city centre 1864-2014
Famous faces from history - Servite Secular Institute
50th Jubilee of Aggregation to the Servite Order
Fr Colm McGlynn and Bro
Joe Whelan, Knock 2007
Ecumenical Society BVM
Last week in the Irish
Catholic newspaper, Fr Bill
McLoughlin OSM was
commended for his role in
organising the recent
Conference of the Ecumenical
Society of the Blessed Virgin
Mary in Magdalen College in Cambridge in England.
Thank you to the Friars and members
of the Servite Secular Institute who
attended the opening Mass of the
University academic year in Bath and
the 14
th
Meriol Trevor Memorial
Lecture on the just war given by
Lord Guthrie. Very apt in these
agonising days in Syria and Iraq and
Komboni on the Turkish border. Well done Bill and
thank you for your hospitality.
The ebola outbreak in Western Africa is reminding us
all how interdependent we all are in the face of
challenges to our health and well being. Lets do
what we can to reach out and help our brothers and
sisters trying to cope and the organisations that are
responding to ease their suffering.
AUDIT The Safeguarding Audit of the National
Board took place on the 6
th
and 7
th
October here in
Benburb. Their report will soon be publicly
published - suffice to say we have a fair bit of
restructuring of our safeguarding reality to do. Thank
you to everyone who helped, Dr Johanna Merry in
particular.
Health News
Please continue to pray for Paul Addison who is
gradually improving and Bernard Thorne who had a
pacemaker put in this week and Philip Allen and
Paddy OConnell in London, Andrew Walls and
Ignatius McCafferty in Dundee, Tom Robinson and
Steve Naughton and Gabriel Hooper in Kersal and
others who have been experiencing health difficulties.
Senior Moment Congratulations
to fr Steve Naughton, who passed
the 90 mark on 11 October, but
doesnt look a day over 70! His
family in Yorkshire took him
away for a big party! The
community in Kersal followed
with another one soon after
Provincial Council The Provincial Council held
its recent meeting in Kersal Priory, Greater
Manchester, with traditional Lancashire
hospitality. Fr Vincent Coyne was staying at the
Priory, on supply from London, while the local
prior, fr Peter Conniffe, was having a good break.
The Council will hold its November meeting in
the Redemptorist Monastery at Kinnoul,
Perthshire not far from Dundee. This will provide
the opportunity of celebrating an evening Mass at
reception at the Wellburn Convent, with frs
Andrew Walls and Ignatius McCafferty and the
ever-loyal Friends of Servites from Dundee.
Servite Sisters
Congrats to Sisters Michelle OReilly, Frances
Farrell and Catherine Ryan on recent elections.
The following letter arrived from Sr Michelle:
Dear Friars, SSI and friends,
I am pleased to give you the results of the elections for the 2
Assistants in the UK Community which took place on Friday
17th October, 2014 at St Julianas Convent in Bognor Regis:
Sr. Francis Farrell: Named Assistant who will replace Sr.
Michelle in her absence.
Sr. Catherine Ryan. I know I can rely on you to keep Sr.
Francis, Sr.Catherine and the UK Community in your
prayers. Blessings, Sr. Michelle osm
Provincial Council meets in Kersal, including new
Councillor fr Gabriel Bannon OSM, now prior in Benburb
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RENEWAL
Soon we will have Sr Joyce Rupp OSM
among us in Benburb on 15
th
- 16
th
Nov
and High Leigh in England on 24
th
- 27
th
November to look forward to both
Servite moments to gather and give each
other fresh heart in our daily living of
Servite life.
SYNOD The soundings and stirrings from the recent
Synod of Bishops in Rome suggest a
new spirit of more honest dialogue in
the process of reflection on a Gospel
response to the realities of our world
today. It has been heartening to hear
Pope Francis suggest a more merciful
and inclusive vision for those who
have felt on the fringes and excluded
from our Christian Community.
DEATH OF JUNE EDWARDS SSI
Correspondence with Rosemary McCloskey SSI
11 October 2014
It is sad to have to now inform you all that June died on
Saturday at 16:20 in a fairly peaceful manner considering all
the suffering she has had to contend with over the last ten
years since here original diagnosis June's Funeral will
take place on Wednesday 29th October 2014 at St Mary's
Dunstable, LU6 1BY 11.00am
Paul Addison to Rosemary McCloskey 15 October 2014
Dear Rosemary,
thank you for the lovely letter about dear June and her long-
awaited journey home to the Father. What a long Calvary
road she has been walking, and you with her, as I said
before, like the Mother of Sorrows. Yes, it's a privilege to be
near those who bear the cross, but it certainly takes it
out of you.
God bless you, dear good companion on the road. I
am accompanying you prayerfully through these
difficult days - yes, plenty to organise, but deep down a
tremendous emptiness... that emptiness is where God
loves to reside, so I am begging the Almighty to rest in
your spirit and fill you with gratitude for being a good
Servant of Mary.
For June, may she now come to life in the New Life,
like last Sunday's reading about the splendid Banquet
(of the Lamb of God) where every tear is wiped away
and death is vanquished for ever, and the mourning
veil is lifted from all peoples. May June bubble with
that new life, in the exotic robes of the Risen, in the
company of those she loves, most especially the
Mother of Hope, gathered around the Risen Christ.
These thoughts flow out of my soul towards you, and I
know you will have a peace beyond all expectation.
in brotherly love, Paul
Rosemary McCloskey to Paul Addison 16 October 2014
Dear Paul, first of all thank you for St Juliana's Holy
Communion.. I began using the Sacred Host in the Pyx
with June for all the days left to her. Sometimes on her
heart, and often holding the pyx in her hand. I told her
that you had sent this inspiration to aid her reception of
the Holy Eucharist and I think she understood by the
way she grasped the pyx. I said the prayers for Minis-
tering Eucharist to the Housebound and shortened to
the essential prayers said slowly.
On the day she died we did just that in the morning and
again later.
What struck me so forcefully is the power and deep
meaning of the daily prayers that slip of the tongue
lightly and often - the Lord's prayer and the Hail Mary
when said in the context of utter powerlessness. Above
all I have come to appreciate the SSI Member's prayer,
'O Lord Jesus, you always choose the weakest instru-
ments for your greatest work' During these last weeks
June has done her greatest work!..grant that what we
have undertaken in Your Name and in the service of
Your Mother, may be duly fulfilled in accordance with
the desire of your heart........teach us so to live that we
may draw many souls to You and to this Institute which
your Mother has founded......Is this then in the power-
lessness and pain the breath of the Spirit calling and
inspiring others?
The parishioners who read your reflection on the Ban-
quet of the Lamb wrote how they longed for June to be
at that banquet asap- and she was.
Thank you and may you be richly rewarded for all your
help. Love
Rosemary McCloskey
High Leigh Conference Centre
The Times
There will be a 2nd session
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UGANDA A Parish for the Servants of Mary
All the friars from the East Africa
Delegation of the Order were
invited, coming from Uganda and
Kenya, to a celebration last 5
January, the first Sunday of the Year. This was the
official handover day for the new parish to the
Ugandan Servites by the Archbishop of Kampala,
Cyprian Kizito Lwanga.
The local area, about 2 miles from the city centre,
had been quite unpopulated until recently, but a
big building programme is under way there. It has
been cared for as a sub-parish of the large city
parish of St Charles Lwanga, famous Ugandan
martyr. The Archbishop wanted to entrust the new
and promising zone of the city to the Servants of
Mary who have been experiencing a beautiful
Spring growth in recent years. Indeed, there are
now around 20 Solemn-professed friars (men who
have made final vows in the Order) and another 40
aspirants moving towards permanent membership
of the Order. All these young friars were hoping
for some specific apostolic service in their
country, and the Archbishops plan was just what
they were looking for.
The parish is supervised by fr Francis M. Kawuki
OSM (33 years old), with two generous young
New roof for new Servite parish church in Uganda January 2014
collaborators, including fr Aloysius, who was
ordained priest just recently on 1 March 2014. The
pastoral plan of the parish will be based on the basic
Servite charism: a community focused service
destined to build up the Christian community.
Archbishop Lwanga came in person to Ndejje to hand
over the parish to the Servants of Mary. While he was
there he conferred the Sacrament of Baptism on 98
children, a sure sign of the need for a lively presence
of the Church in that local area. Two days later, on 5
January, the building work began to put a roof on the
church; only the walls had been there up to that day.
Local people and many benefactors are helping the
Ugandan Servants of Mary to bring the dream to
fulfilment in the form of a beautiful and welcoming
new church.
Article from MISSIO Magazine Oct.2014 by
Venetian Provincial fr Lino M. Pacchin OSM
Letter from fr Francis Kawuki OSM in Uganda
16 October 2014
Thank you Fr Paul for the lovely Email that you you sent. Thanks for the best wishes and prayers you have for our new mission here in
Kampala. It is a promising parish with many new people beginning to settle our areas. I am sure in five years it will be a very good suburb of the
city with serious settlements and families.I will always put our Order as the priority to see that it grows steadily and becomes a vicariate as you
suggested. We are very serious with formation of the young friars. We have over 54 students in formation in Europe and East Africa. We pray
for us to have serious vocations and commitment
For the system that I requested for, I will try to check on the market something good that will fit our new church which has a capacity of 1500
seats on completion, I will send you the quotation. We have done the roofing, fixing windows and doors , now we are going to put the floor.If the
sound system is catered for then it will be a good step forward. Did you find Fr. Lutaya Emmanuel? [for Mr John Taylor in Kersal]
I wish a good day.
From Francis OSM
Servite Pilgrimage to Knock 2014
May All Saints of our Servite Order pray for us
all. Their feast on 16 November is not celebrated
because its a Sunday (same for Saint Margaret of
Scotland!), but we will celebrate their Mass at St
Josephs Wellburn Convent with frs Andrew
Walls and Ignatius McCafferty.
Your brother, Collie
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Provincial Newsletter No. 32 produced & printed by Servite Friars Secretariate - Servite Priory - 500 Bury New Road - Kersal - SALFORD - England M7 4ND