Aid Needed During the Coronavirus Pandemicstmaryschurch.org.au/wp-content/uploads/GIFT-PAPER-June... · 2020-06-27 · and things will pass. In Aleppo, our groups of volunteers are

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Aid Needed During the Coronavirus Pandemic

Our priests, brothers and religious sisters travel to and serve in some of the most remote, poor and at

times dangerous countries in the world. In these regions they are often as poor as the people they

serve, relying on the generosity of the Catholic community to provide for their own living costs. Due

to the coronavirus disrupting the world economy and causing the shutdown of multiple industries,

Catholic workers in poor countries and where Christians face persecution are left with little to support

their own families, let alone to give to the mission of the Church.

Compounding to this tragic reality is that with Masses suspended (in order to slow the transmission of

COVID-19) and with monasteries being closed to pilgrims for prayer and the sacraments – it means

that donations to the Sunday collections and to the work of the Church are no longer coming in as

they used to.

NIGERIA. Archbishop Kaigama distributes

palliatives to vulnerable Nigerians, 25 April 2020.

MOZAMBIQUE: A sister cares for the sick.

Existence help is needed for 3 Missionary Sisters

of Mary Help of Christians.

As a result, Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) have set up a special fund to collect donations for the

subsistence aid of religious sisters, brothers, priests and contemplative religious so that they can

continue their work.

If you are able to make an offering at this unprecedented time you can do so at the following

website: www.aidtothechurch.org/covid-19.

BURKINA FASO: A family listening to

the Holy Mass through a radio

broadcast.

Unfortunately, as families cannot

attend their local church they are

unable to contribute to the Sunday

offerings, this reality has left priests

wondering how they will survive.

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Messages of prayer,

thanks and love:

SYRIA - A message from Sister Annie:

“It is very painful what the world is passing

through at this time. In this situation of the

coronavirus, do not panic about the news.

Follow the instructions about healthcare. Our

faith is not like pressing a magic button and

expecting everything to be OK. The pain and

suffering is there but we must also not forget

the resurrection is there every day.

We need to help those who are most in need. We need to help each other, lift each other’s spirits

and things will pass. In Aleppo, our groups of volunteers are continuing, visiting homes (where it is

safe to do so) and taking great care. We are helping the old people, especially because so many of

them have no other support, and in Damascus our Sisters are helping some old people, buying what

they need so they will not have to go out. People have nothing to rely on. How will they survive?

To all our ACN benefactors, we say very sincerely: Thank you for your enormous generosity. May God

continue to bless you and keep you and your families safe and well."

NIGERIA - A message from Sister Juliane (The Dominican sisters):

“I am writing just to check on you at this time of devastating coronavirus pandemic in our world. I

hope you are keeping fine. On behalf of my sisters and our sister novices, we pledge our solidarity of

prayers with and for you, your families, colleagues, our benefactors and benefactresses and indeed,

all who are affected directly or indirectly by the pandemic. We continue to pray to God to put an

end to the pandemic, grant repose to the souls of those who have lost their lives in the pandemic

and console those left to mourn them. We have a few cases of the pandemic in Nigeria but so far,

none of us (Dominicans) is affected. Thank you very much for all that you have been and are to us.

We sincerely appreciate you.” Sr. Juliane

BULGARIA: Fatima parish of the Franciscans: Prayer

at the church during the coronavirus pandemic.

BURKINA FASO: Sisters of Our Lady of Sacred Heart in the diocese of Fada N’Gourma in coronavirus

times. Subsistence aid is needed for 36 nuns working in this diocese, 2020.

Aid to the Church in Need reaches out wherever the

need is greatest, bringing spiritual and material aid to

millions of poor, forgotten, and persecuted faithful

in more than 145 countries.

www.aidtochurch.org/covid-19

Sister Annie Demerjian RJM checking on the

welfare of an elderly Syrian woman.

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Racism a sin against life, says Pope

By Catholic News Service

Observing with great concern the social unrest unfolding in the United States, Pope Francis said no

one can claim to defend the sanctity of every

human life while turning a blind eye to racism

and exclusion.

Addressing all “dear brothers and sisters in the

United States” during his livestreamed general

audience June 3, the pope said, “Today I join

the church in St Paul and Minneapolis, and in

the entire United States, in praying for the

repose of the soul of George Floyd and of all

those others who have lost their lives as a result

of the sin of racism”.

“Let us pray for the consolation of their grieving

families and friends and let us implore the

national reconciliation and peace for which we

yearn,” he said in Italian.

The pope said he has “witnessed with great

concern the disturbing social unrest in your

nation in these past days, following the tragic

death of Mr George Floyd,” a 46-year-old man, whose last moments of life were recorded on a

widely disseminated video showing a white police officer in Minneapolis pushing down on his neck

with his knee on 25 May. Floyd was later pronounced dead.

Pope denounces riots as “self-

destructive and self-defeating”

“My friends, we cannot tolerate or turn a blind eye

to racism and exclusion in any form and yet claim

to defend the sacredness of every human life. At

the same time, we have to recognise that the

violence of recent nights is self-destructive and self-

defeating. Nothing is gained by violence and so

much is lost,'” he said, quoting Archbishop Jose

Gomez of Los Angeles, president of the US

Conference of Catholic Bishops.

“Nothing is gained by violence

and so much is lost”

The pope prayed for the intercession of Our Lady

of Guadalupe, Mother of America, to assist “all

those who work for peace and justice in your land

and throughout the world. May God bless all of

you and your families.”

Source: www.catholicnewsagency.com

Pope Francis speaks during his weekly general

audience in the library of the Apostolic Palace at

the Vatican on 3 June, 2020.

Our Lady of Guadalupe, Mother of

America – Pray for Us.

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Finding joy in a crisis

By Dr Justin Coulson

Life is less cluttered. It’s slower-paced. We have more time

for one another.

This was the consensus during a family dinner conversation

last week. I had asked my family what was working for us

due to the pandemic and associated isolation and

government regulations. While not everyone can say this

(and many are struggling like never before), our family was

finding the silver lining and suggesting they didn’t want to

go back to how things were. They wanted more of the life

where we had more family walks, bike rides and evenings

together. We felt that those things will be some of our most

sustaining and important joys from this period.

I shared this with my Facebook community and while many families have reported to me that there

have been challenges, many, many others have also felt that the requirement to stay at home has

been a surprisingly positive experience.

In having these discussions, I have no intention of being dismissive of the obvious pain that the

disease has brought around the world in terms of loss of life and health, as well as economically or

psychologically. But as the responses to my post have shown, there have been some positives for

many people.

Slowing down is good for us.

The current crisis has forced us to slow down. Slowing down is good for us. It’s good for our family

relationships, our health and our well being.

“SLOWING DOWN IS GOOD FOR US. IT’S GOOD FOR OUR

FAMILY RELATIONSHIPS, OUR HEALTH AND OUR WELL BEING.”

People are saying things like, ‘It feels wonderful to have minimal demands. Younger children are

falling to sleep easier, sleeping through the night, and I’m hearing a lot more giggling and laughter.’

Another mum said, ‘We are embracing the small parts of life we used to just rush past. Doing our

daily walk we notice beautiful trees, flowers and patterns in the sky. We’re having more hugs. I’m less

stressed, less tired.’

‘I have cherished our time together’, said another mum. ‘It hasn’t been without its challenges but for

the most part it’s brought us closer together.’

Adversity leads to growth.

Tough times are a necessary part of life and a necessary part of growth. In tough times, we learn.

We’re forced to adapt and change. So, we grow. Australian parents are seeing this in themselves,

in their children and in the wider community. ‘We’ve all learnt to make more food from scratch and

are using up every last bit of things instead of being wasteful and throwing out’, one parent said.

‘I have loved not being able to go out. To just make do with what you already have’, said another.

And yet another, ‘Yes we loved the slow down and the chance and time to connect with our kids

more. But at the same time it also highlighted that we have a lot of things in our family life that have

‘I have cherished our time together.

It hasn’t been without its challenges

but for the most part it’s brought us

closer together.’

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become negative habits, and the things we need to be a lot more conscious of, and want to work

together as a family to change. For example, how we deal with stress, conflict and discipline.’

“AS A COMMUNITY WE’RE GROWING AS WELL.”

One mum said, ‘I’ve noticed that generally people are a lot friendlier. There is kindness and giving

way in the supermarket, and nods and greetings to everyone we see on our walks. I think there is a

real sense of comradery in the community that I’m loving. I hope we can all be a little more kind to

each other after this is done.’

And another said, ‘I’ve also loved watching Australia “find a way” – find an alternative way to enjoy

moments’.

We’ve experienced an increased sense of gratitude.

In the midst of our busy, full lives, we sometimes miss the chance to be grateful for all that we have.

And gratitude is fantastic for our wellbeing. This crisis has given us a chance to remember those

things that we’re grateful for. In our home, we’re

grateful for our family, our safe community, our

employment that keeps us fed and sheltered, and so

much more.

One parent also said, ‘I think we are also much more

appreciative of our home and yard and all feel very

grateful that we have a comfortable place to live’.

‘I’ve been very grateful for the time I’ve had to

reconnect with my 13 year old’, said another mum. ‘It

has been a real blessing as we were struggling a lot

before lockdown.’

What will we take with us when this

time is over?

We can’t be 100% sure. But I hope we take the

important things – the deep and meaningful

conversations we’ve been able to have with our loved ones, the increased kindness and sense of

gratitude, the understanding of what is important in our lives and the joy we’ve felt in slowing down

and taking the time to connect with each other.

It can sometimes feel like bad news follows us around. Phones, social media and WiFi make news

spread like wildfire, and when something bad breaks, it’s tough to unplug. It’s totally normal to feel

overwhelmed by the news, especially when good news stories often seem hard to come by. So, if

you’re feeling down about the world, we’ve got some tips for you.

Dr Justin Coulson is one of Australia’s leading experts in the areas of parenting,

relationships and wellbeing. He is an international speaker, podcaster, and author of

three books. He and his wife Kylie are the parents of six daughters.

Source: catholicweekly.com.au

‘I think we are also much more appreciative of

our home and yard and all feel very grateful

that we have a comfortable place to live’.

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through the eyes of those He impacted.

The Chosen has grown to become the largest

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from over 19,000 people.

Translated into over 50 languages and completely

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“The Chosen” has been downloaded and streamed

in over 180 countries!

A charismatic fisherman drowning in debt. A

troubled woman wrestling with real demons. A kind,

gifted young man ostracized by his family and his

people for working as a publican.

In this ground-breaking first season of “The Chosen”

see how Jesus reaches each of these and more as

He works His first miracles and embarks on His ministry

to change the world. See Him through the eyes of

those who knew Him.

“If you can encounter Jesus from the eyes of

those who met Him, you can be impacted in

the same way that they were.”- Dallas

Jenkins (Director of “THE CHOSEN”)

A DELIGHTFUL GOSPEL ADAPTATION. . .

www.thechosen.tv

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Jesus’ untold years

By Msgr. Charles Pope

Question: Why do the Gospels

omit so much of Jesus’ life? It would

have been edifying to see how he

lived as a child, teenager and

adult. As a parent I would love to

show my daughter, “See, this is how

Jesus handled such and such a

matter.”

— Miriam Lane, via email

Answer: The stated purpose of

the Gospels is not to write a

complete biography of Christ’s life.

Rather they are written that we can

know what is needed to draw us to faith in Jesus. St. John says at the end of his Gospel: “Now Jesus

did many other signs in the presence of his disciples that are not written in this book. But these are

written that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through this

belief you may have life in his name” (Jn 20:30-31).

St. Luke says something similar: “I too have decided, after investigating everything accurately anew,

to write it down in an orderly sequence for you … so that you may realize the certainty of the

teachings you have received” (Lk 1:1-4).

Thus the purpose of the Gospels is not to be an exhaustive history, but to provide us with what is

needed to understand and believe that Jesus is Messiah and Lord. They are less biographies and

more in the form of what the ancient world called a “bios” or a “life.” This genre would select events

and utterances of a person to provide illustrative snapshots of a person’s life. They do not report

everything a person did, but emphasize who they were and their significance through the use of

epitome (or summary).

Given the expense of written documents, such a form makes sense. Parchment and skins were costly

and every individual document had to be handwritten. Thus exhaustive biographies were, in the

modern form, very rare.

The hidden years of Christ intrigue us due to the mysterious quality of them. But the Holy Spirit

determined that much of what we needed to know was not in those years, but in the final years of

Jesus’ public ministry, his passion, death and resurrection.

There is an ancient source of the early years of Jesus that has some credibility you might consider

reading. It is called the Protoevangelium of James. While it has a legendary style, many things that

we assume today are contained in its pages. For example, that Joachim and Anne are Mary’s

parents; that Mary served in the temple and gave birth miraculously, remaining a virgin perpetually;

that Joseph had been chosen for her by the priests in the temple, was an older widower, and so

forth. The Protoevangelium of James is not a heretical book, but it is not Scripture either, and care

must be taken to remember that the events described are more in the form of legend than verifiable

history.

Source: www.osvnews.com