NewsletterNewsletterNewsletter
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AVERIAN
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ISSION
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AVERIANAVERIANAVERIAN
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ISSIONISSIONISSION
Make of the World One Family
Volume 60
—
No 1
●
February 2012
Website: xaviermissionaries.org
● Mission Blog: www.global
-catholic.org
WW
ELCOMINGELCOMING
CC
HRISTHRIST
ININ
THETHE
MIGRANTMIGRANT
T
he United States Conference of Catholic Bishops(USCCB) designated the second week of January asNational Migration Week.
Welcoming Christ in theMigrant
was observed in dioceses throughout the nation.
“Just as on the road to Emmaus, Christ's disciples met
him in the guise of a stranger, this year's theme helpsremind us that Christ makes himself present to each of usin the lonesome traveler, the newcomer, and the mi-
grant,” said Archbishop José Gomez of Los Angeles, the
chairman of the USCCB Committee on Migration.The observance of National Migration Week was begunover a quarter century ago by the US bishops to provideCatholics an opportunity to acknowledge the wide diversi-ty of peoples in the Church and the ministries servingthem.Pope Benedict XVI expressed concern for the millions ofmigrants around the world, "I entrust to the Lord allthose who, often forcibly, must leave their homeland, orwho are stateless," the pope said at his noon blessing lastDec. 4. "While I encourage solidarity for them, I pray forall those who are doing their utmost to protect and assistthese brothers and sisters in emergency situations, evenif it means exposing themselves to serious hardships anddangers."
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Xaverian Mission Newsletter
▪
February 2012
Welcoming Christ...
Xaverian Missionaries
Provincial Headquarters
12 Helene CourtWayne, NJ 07470-2813Tel.: (973) 942-2975Fax: (973) 942-5012Email:
missionmedia@xaviermissionaries.org
Xavier Knoll Mission Center
4500 Xavier DriveFranklin, WI 53132-9066Tel.: (414) 421-0831Fax: (414) 421-9108Email:
franklin@xaviermissionaries.org
Global Youth Mission ServicesFatima Shrine
101 Summer StreetP.O. Box 5857Holliston, MA 01746-5857Tel.: (508) 429-2144Fax: (508) 429-4793Email:
holliston@xaviermissionaries.org
Xaverian Mission Newsletter
Official publication of the Xaverian Missionariesof the United States
Publisher
Fr. Carl Chudy,SX
Editorial Team
Fr. Tony Lalli, SXFr. Joseph Matteucig, SX
Editor
Mary Aktay
Printing
AlphaGraphics,
Totowa, NJ
Email & Web:
missionmedia@xaviermissionaries.org
www.xaviermissionaries.orgwww,guidoconforti.comwww.global-catholic.orghttp://www.facebook.com/catholicmissionarieshttp://www.twitter.com/worldcatholic
Donation:
$5.00
per year
Please Help the Global Mission of the Church. Contact:
Fr. Frank Grappoli, SX
12 Helene CourtWayne, NJ 07470Tel: 973-942-2975or visit: www.xaviermissionaries.org for online donations
Dear Xaverian FamilyIn
Traveling Together in Hope,
their Pastoral Letter on Immigration, the Cath-olic Bishops of Wisconsin state:Over the course of two thousand years, the Catholic Church has developeda special expertise in the area of immigration. Our universal Church hasobserved and participated in migrations all across the globe. We havehelped millions of immigrants
–
Catholic and non-Catholic
–
to prosper innew lands. We have done so and will continue to do so because we seethe image and likeness of God in every human being. From the Prophetsto recent papal teaching, the Church has a consistent message:
“Welcome the stranger.” (Mt 25:35).
As missionaries we are the “strangers” in foreign lands who are welcomed into
the homes and hearts of the people there. Here at home we recognize thatCatholics, all in good conscience, hold differing views about immigration re-form. We also know that many are dissatisfied with the status quo and arelooking for a workable solution. Our Catholic teaching provides importantprinciples to guide us.Pope Benedict XVI proclaimed the theme for the 98th World Day of Migrants
and Refugees celebrated on January 15, 2012: “Migration and the New Evan-gelization.” In his message the pope said the present time calls upon the
Church to intensify its missionary activity both in the regions where the Gos-pel is proclaimed for the first time and in countries with a Christian tradition.
“Proclaiming Jesus Christ the one Savior of the world ‘constitutes the essen-tial mission of the Church’…Today we feel the urgent need to give a fresh im-
petus and new approaches to the work of evangelization in a world in whichthe breaking down of frontiers and the new processes of globalization are
bringing individuals and peoples even closer.”We can only echo: “Amen!”
In Christ, through the intercession of St. Guido Conforti,
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Xaverian Mission Newsletter
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February 2012
Xaverian Missionaries in the World
Building the Living Church
T
he mission entrusted to the Xaverians continues to bear fruit. It is agreat joy and challenge ministering the Philippines.I have been present in this country since 1994 in different stages ofmy life. First I was a student of Theology who also shared time in St.Francis Xavier Parish, working with choirs and children. After myordination I was assigned to Vocation ministry. Then I was asked to servein the Conforti Formation House. All these years were full of joys andchallenges indeed.At present I am one of the confreres who form the Pastoral Team of thenew parish we accepted. This parish is consecrated to Our Lady ofGuadalupe. Most Rev. Gabriel V. Reyes, D.D. Bishop of Antipolo openedthe parish and installed me as its first parish priest on May 9, 2009. It wasa great moment of joy.The parish began its mission with a lot of vigor and enthusiasm. We immediately worked withsix communities and around 300 people committed themselves as lectors, altar servers,choirs, and parish leaders. They
walked
from the different cornersof the parish to receive biblical, liturgical and musical formations.Our enthusiasm was challenged by the flood of Typhoon Ondoy onSeptember 26, 2009, just four months after the inauguration of theparish. The water affected the entire parish destroying houses andproperty. It was a total desolation after the flood.As parish priest I tried to reach the different chapels and thehouses of our leaders but it was impossible due to the damagecaused by the typhoon. At one moment I did not know where I wasso I decided to go back to the main chapel and clean it. I knew thiswould become the center to accept goods and distribute them: Iwas right. By the grace of God we survived the flood and thereconstruction period.Building our Parish Church would be a great help. We are workingwith some small chapels where the sacraments are celebrated. Wealso rent two houses, one used as the house of the priest and thesecond as the Parish Office. We are planning to buy a lot where wecan build our parish center and the church for the proclamation ofthe gospel.We are already working in nine communities and ready to open the tenth which will be named
after our founder “St. Guido Ma. ConfortiCommunity.” The number of people ministering
our parish is also increasing; I believe they arearound five hundred lay people working in ourparish. We have no money, but we have faith.We have no gold or physical building, but wehave hope and unity. After all, we are buildingthe living church.This is really a hard task but we know that themission is not ours. God, in His own ways, willcontinue supporting us and leading us to thegreen pastures of His promised land.
Fr. Javier Mexicano Ferrer, SX
(Editor’s note: Yet another typhoon devastated
the Philippines in December 2011.)
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Xaverian Mission Newsletter February 2012
The first issue of the new year focuses on the US celebration of the canonization of our founder, St. Conforti, along with news from our missions globally and in the US.
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