August 22nd 2025_Catholic Standard

Friday, August 22nd 2025  Established 1905  27 Brickdam, Stabroek, Georgetown, Guyana  Year 120, No. 32

CEAMA holds first Assembly

AEC Delegates at the CEAMA Assembly in Bogota, Columbia; from left: Bishop Francis Alleyne OSB (Guyana), Bishop Karel Choennie (Suriname), Bishop Alain Ransay (French Guiana) and Fr. Joel Thompson SJ (Guyana)

(OSV News, Vatican News) — More than 90 bishops from different parts of the Pan-Amazon region gathered in Bogotá, Colombia, Aug. 17-20 to take a fundamental step in the implementation of some of the Amazon synod’s proposals.

The meeting was an occasion to analyze in detail the pastoral, social and environmental challenges of the region and was the first such high profile meeting of the Ecclesial Conference of the Amazon, known by the Spanish acronym CEAMA.

CEAMA is a permanent, representative ecclesial body for the Amazon region, created in 2020 to implement the commitments of the 2019 Amazon synod and give life to Pope Francis’ post-synodal exhortation “Querida Amazonia.” The Bogotá meeting was held in advance of CEAMA’s General Assembly in March 2026.

(Please turn to page 11)

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Pope to Amazon bishops: Proclaim Gospel, fight injustice, defend nature - p2 Famine officially declared in Gaza City - p3 A Christian Perspective on Social Issues - p4 Eleven baptised at Waipa - p4 Sunday Scripture - p5 Sweden saves historic church with massive move away from mine - p6 Burn with ‘fire’ of God’s love, pope says at Mass and lunch with the poor - p7 PBC Choir shines - p8 Children’s Page - p9 Growing in Grace Week 66 - p10 Catholic Memory Lane: Fr. Ignatius Scoles - p14 Vatican studying possible papal trip to Turkey, Lebanon - p14

Bishop’s Engagements Sunday, August 24th 09:00hrs – Mass at St. Joseph, Husband of Mary, Little Diamond, East Bank Demerara Tuesday, August 26th 16:00hrs – Attend Marian Academy Board Meeting Sunday, August 31st 08:00hrs – Mass to commemorate 80th Anniversary of St. Joseph Mercy Hospital at Sacred Heart – Main Street

Bishop Francis Alleyne OSB delivers a presentation at the CEAMA assembly on Aug. 19th (Please see page 10)

 Francis Alleyne OSB

CATHOLIC STANDARD Friday, August 22nd 2025

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Pope to Amazon bishops:

The Jubilee Prayer

Father in heaven, may the faith you have given us in your son, Jesus Christ, our brother, and the flame of charity enkindled in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, reawaken in us the blessed hope for the coming of your Kingdom.

May your grace transform us into tireless cultivators of the seeds of the Gospel.

May those seeds transform from within both humanity and the whole cosmos in the sure expectation of a new heaven and a new earth, when, with the powers of Evil vanquished, your glory will shine eternally.

May the grace of the Jubilee reawaken in us, Pilgrims of Hope, a yearning for the treasures of heaven.

May that same grace spread the joy and peace of our Redeemer throughout the earth.

To you our God, eternally blessed, be glory and praise for ever.

Amen

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VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Efforts to serve, defend and build up the Catholic community in the Amazon region must be centered on the proclamation of the Gospel, Pope Leo XIV said.

When the Catholic Church promotes “the right and duty” to care for the natural environment, it is not encouraging people to be “a slave or worshiper of nature,” since creation is a gift meant to lead one to praise God alone, said a message sent to the Amazonian bishops on the pope’s behalf by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state.

Three interconnected dimensions The pope asked the region’s bishops “to keep in mind three dimensions that are interconnected in the pastoral work of that region: the mission of the church to proclaim the Gospel to all; the just treatment of the peoples who dwell there; and

the care of the common home,” said the message, addressed to Peruvian Cardinal Pedro Barreto Jimeno, president of the Ecclesial Conference of the Amazon.

The message was published by the Vatican Aug. 18 as about 90 bishops from the 105 dioceses and other church jurisdictions in the Amazon region were meeting in Bogotá, Colombia, ahead of a planned general assembly of the ecclesial conference — which includes religious and laypeople — in March 2026.

The experience of the Synod of Bishops for the Amazon in 2019 demonstrated how essential it is for the church to listen to and involve clergy, religious and laity, the message said, but Cardinal Parolin said the pope hoped the Bogotá meeting would “help diocesan bishops and apostolic vicars concretely and effectively carry out their mission.”

‘With clarity and immense charity’ Jesus must be proclaimed “with clarity and immense charity among the inhabitants of the Amazon, so that we may strive to give them fresh and pure the bread of the Good News and the heavenly food of the Eucharist, the only means to truly be the people of God and the body of Christ,” the message said.

Access to the Eucharist, especially in remote villages in the Amazon, was a major topic at the 2019 synod, leading to discussion and debate about the possibility of ordaining married men who are proven leaders of their Christian communities.

Pope Francis’ response, in his post-synodal exhortation, “Querida Amazonia,” was “to urge all bishops, especially those in Latin America, not only to promote prayer for priestly vocations, but also to be more generous in encouraging those who display a missionary vocation to opt for the Amazon region.”

Centrality of proclaiming faith in Christ Underlining the centrality of proclaiming faith in Christ, the message to the Bogotá meeting — published in Spanish, French, Portuguese and English — said the church’s history has confirmed “that wherever the name of Christ is preached, injustice recedes proportionally, for, as the Apostle Paul asserts, all exploitation of man by man disappears if we are able to receive one another as brothers and sisters.”

“Within this perennial doctrine, no less evident is the right and duty to care for the ‘home’ that God the Father has entrusted to us as diligent stewards,” the message continued.

The church’s defense of the environment, the message said, is “so that no one irresponsibly destroys the natural goods that speak of the goodness and beauty of the Creator nor, much less, subjects oneself to them as a slave or worshiper of nature, since things have been given to us in order to attain our end of praising God and thus obtaining the salvation of our souls.”❖

CATHOLIC STANDARD Friday, August 22nd 2025

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Famine officially declared in Gaza City

Palestinians, including children, who are struggling to access food due to Israel's blockade and ongoing attacks on the Gaza Strip, wait in line to receive hot meals distributed by the charity organization at Al-Mawasi area in Khan Yunis, Gaza on August 21, 2025. Photo by Abed Rahim Khatib/Anadolu via Getty Images.

(ICN) - A famine has been officially declared Frid. Aug 22nd in Gaza City and the surrounding neighbourhoods, by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) - a globally recognised system for classifying the severity of food insecurity and malnutrition.

More half a million people are facing "catastrophic conditions", the report states.

Dr Ramiz Alakbarov, Humanitarian Coordinator for the Occupied Palestinian Territory, said: "Today's confirmation of famine in Gaza governorate isn't just another wake-up call. It is the blaring siren after months of alarms, and it's a signal of what may soon engulf other parts of the Strip.

"This catastrophe is entirely humanmade. Despite repeated warnings, and tireless efforts to avert it, the political will to ensure unimpeded humanitarian operations by the UN and NGOs has tragically fallen short.

"Further escalation of the war will lead to more forced displacement, violence, and widespread destruction.

"It will further destroy remnants of health, water, sanitation and hygiene systems, and increase disease outbreaks, worsening the conditions that drive acute malnutrition.

"I call for the facilitation of swift and unhindered delivery of humanitarian aid and services and commercial supplies across the Gaza Strip through all crossings and land routes, including directly to the north and to Gaza city.

"I reiterate the urgent appeal for an immediate and permanent ceasefire. I call again for the immediate and unconditional release of hostages and those arbitrarily detained, who must all be treated humanely.

"Famine must be stopped at all costs.

Ending it is a race against time."

Katie Roxburgh, Christian Aid's Programme Manager for Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory, said: "The people of Gaza already knew that they were living through a famine. Our colleagues describe the physical pain of hunger after months of surviving on a single small bowl of lentil soup each day. They describe family members passing out from fatigue and how malnutrition is causing their hair to fall out in clumps.

"Israel's blockade of Gaza is responsible for this suffering and it is unconscionable that we are now seeing the start of military operations to take over a city in the grip of famine, pushing close to a million people from their homes and exposing them to immense danger.

"Already we have seen the numbers of people who have starved to death in Gaza jump to more than 269 people, including more than 112 children. Our greatest fear is that unless the war in Gaza is quickly brought to an end, and aid is finally allowed to flood into Gaza unhindered, we are on the precipice of seeing hundreds more unnecessarily perish."has Israel said the IPC report is based on "Hamas lies". It continues to restrict the amount of aid entering Gaza and has previously denied that there is starvation in the territory. This denial is in direct contradiction to what more than 100 humanitarian groups, including CAFOD partners, Caritas and Christian Aid - all witnesses on the ground, and multiple UN bodies - have said.

See: ICN 14 August 2025: 100 organizations call for end to Israel's weaponization of aid.

At the UN press briefing and Q&A in Geneva Aug. 22, Mr Tom Fletcher, Under-Secretary-general for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Co -ordinator said:

"Please read the IPC report, cover to cover. Read it in sorrow and in anger.

Not as words and numbers but as names and lives. Be in no doubt that this is irrefutable testimony.

"It is a famine. The Gaza Famine.

"It is a famine that we could have prevented, if we had been allowed. Yet food stacks up at borders because of systematic obstruction by Israel.

"It is a famine within a few hundred metres of food, in a fertile land.

"It is a famine that hits the most vulnerable first. Each with a name, each with a story. That strips people of dignity before it strips them of life.

That forces a parent to choose which child to feed. That forces people to risk their lives to seek food.

"It is a famine that we repeatedly warned of. But that the international media has not been allowed in to cover. To bear witness.

"It is a famine in 2025. A 21st century famine watched over by drones and the most advanced military technology in history.

"It is a famine openly promoted by some Israeli leaders as a weapon of war.

"It is a famine on all of our watch. Everyone owns this. The Gaza Famine is the world's famine. It is a famine that asks 'but what did you do?' A famine that will and must haunt us all.

"It is a predictable and a preventable famine. A famine caused by cruelty, justified by revenge,

enabled by indifference and sustained by complicity.

"It is a famine that must spur the world to more urgent action. That must shame the world to do better. It is a famine that therefore also asks '… and what now will you do?'

"My ask, my plea, my demand to Prime Minister Netanyahu and anyone who can reach him: "Enough. Ceasefire. Open the crossings, north and south, all of them. Let us get food and other supplies in, unimpeded and at the massive scale required. End the retribution. It is too late for far too many. But not for everyone in Gaza. Enough. For humanity's sake, let us in."❖

CATHOLIC STANDARD Friday, August 22nd 2025

A Christian Perspective on Social

Drawing near

By GHK Lall The noise levels rise. The heats intensify. The furious energies spread, suck in, reach near and far, low and high.

It is time for the final push, the fastest gallop on the straightaway, in this last week before general and regional elections. I have done something never done before. In the perspectives of the last several weeks, beginning on Sunday, July 27th, I raised the bar on myself, dipped my toes into waters that are usually not touched in these pages. Elsewhere, yes; not in these pages usually. I have dragged the politics of elections right here. Some may have flinched. Others may have recoiled in horror. Jesus didn’t back away, and since he is my model, then I don’t have that luxury, that escape valve.

What has been offered has highlighted how each one of us should be. As a Catholic, as a citizen. A Roman Catholic who is of the spirit of Jesus in testing times is the best of citizens, a lawful, conscientious Guyanese wanting the best for this country. We all have something to recommend us relative to these attributes, regardless of our differences. To be the salt of

the earth. To be the light of the world. Catholics have an obligation to set standards, the higher the better.

One such standard is not to get embroiled in the negatives that characterize Guyana’s elections. Not to get so passionate that it makes us prejudiced.

How to be so, how to avoid that when the times are so inflamed, emotions run sky-high? There are the teachings of Scripture, the teachings of the Church, and they are not the formality of existence. They must be lived, and there is no better time than when elections grab too many by the scruff of the neck, and shake to the will of men. No Christian can afford to be weak, when the expectation, the demands of the season, is that each be at his or her strongest. The environment is shaky, the atmosphere is filled with uncertainty. Let Jesus be the rock on which we rest, the refuge where we seek shelter.

I must hear his voice calling and calming through the storms that lash all and sundry. When Jesus is with us, the stings are not felt. Elections are vital and important, but they are not that important for the believer. Elections are not, and should never be, a matter of life and death. As the campaigns of the competitors power forward, now on high octane fuel, each citizen, each member of the flock does well to remember that there are matters better left in the hands of God, to his Holy Will. When elections engage past certain points, compel to the extremes, then the grasp that is had on the hem of his garment suffers from more distress than may be safely managed.

To be a citizen and a participant is healthy. To be a believer who embraces the values and the virtues, there are certain depths to which the feet and the mind do not travel. Elections can drive into the mud, then drag through it. In this last full week before polling day in Guyana, limits will be breached, with caution thrown to the winds. We all should be mindful not to get caught up in crosscurrents such as those. A Catholic doesn’t have to be reckless to prove citizenship.

Always, it must be remembered that the first loyalty and the greatest fidelity belongs to God, Father in heaven, and Jesus his Son. May we conduct ourselves as true sons and daughters of God. Men and women of peace, of truth, of selfcontrol. Though the heavens may be called to be witnesses, and the environment shatters, this is when the grace of the Holy Spirit must be appealed for, reached and touched and welcomed. Finds a home in us.

When all the voices are going one way and at fever pitch, the words that come out of us must bind and unite.

Tomorrow that neighbor, that parishioner, fellow worker and striver must be lived with, respected. Let elections neither poison nor taint. Let the way of Jesus be the light that guides, the path that is walked. Politics in this country has a history of what is obscene and profanes. The path of Jesus commands that the right choices be made. In how we walk, how we talk.

Above all, let us walk with Jesus, while holding head high and linking arms with fellow citizens. It’s the only way that a better Guyana can be achieved. ❖

Eleven baptised at Waipa, Reg. 8

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Prayer for our Priests

Gracious and loving God, we thank your for the gift of our priests.

Through them, we experience your presence in the sacraments.

Help our priests to be strong in their vocation.

Set their souls on fire with love for your people.

Grant them the wisdom, understanding, and strength they need to follow in the footsteps of Jesus.

Inspire them with the vision of your Kingdom.

Give them the words they need to spread the Gospel.

Allow them to experience joy in their ministry.

Help them to become instruments of your divine grace.

We ask this through Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns as our Eternal Priest. Amen

Last Sunday August 17th, St. Francis Xavier Church, Waipa, Region 8, Essequibo, Guyana, joyfully celebrated eleven baptisms. (Adapted from Catholic Media Guyana Facebook Page)

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CATHOLIC STANDARD Friday, August 22nd 2025

FIRST READING: Isaiah 66:18-21 They will bring all your brothers from all the nations.

The Lord says this: I am coming to gather the nations of every language. They shall come to witness my glory. I will give them a sign and send some of their survivors to the nations: to Tarshish, Put, Lud, Moshech, Rosh, Tubal, and Javan, to the distant islands that have never heard of me or seen my glory. They will proclaim my glory to the nations. As an offering to the Lord they will bring all your brothers, on horses, in chariots, in litters, on mules, on dromedaries, from all the nations to my holy mountain in Jerusalem, says the Lord, like Israelites bringing oblations in clean vessels to the Temple of the Lord. And of some of them I will make priests and Levites, says the Lord.

Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 116 Response: Go out to the whole world and proclaim the Good News.

1. O praise the Lord, all you nations, acclaim him all you peoples!

Response

Today’s readings show us that it is not enough to be Christ’s disciples in name only. To be a real disciple, we must live for Christ every day and in every aspect of life. This kind of life takes strength and discipline.

2. Strong is his love for us; he is faithful for ever.

Response

SECOND READING: Hebrews 12:5-7 The Lord trains the one that he loves.

Have you forgotten that encouraging text in which you are addressed as sons? My son, when the Lord corrects you, do not treat it lightly; but do not get discouraged when he reprimands you. For the Lord trains the ones that he loves and he punishes all those that he acknowledges as his sons. Suffering is part of your training; God is treating you as his sons.

Has there ever been any son whose father did not train him? Of course, any punishment is most painful at the time, and far from pleasant; but later, in those on whom it has been used, it bears fruit in peace and goodness. So hold up your limp arms and steady your trembling knees and smooth out the path you tread; then the injured limb will not be wrenched, it will grow strong again.

Intentionally and consistently offering the Lord the best of our Time, Talent, and Treasure through a stewardship way of life is a form of spiritual discipline. These spiritual disciplines teach us to become ever more aware of God’s constant provision for us and they keep us on the narrow path towards the Kingdom of Heaven. The more we embrace this way of life, the more we can be “trained” by the Lord in the ways of true discipleship.

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GOSPEL: Luke 13:22-30 People from east and west will come to take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God. Through towns and villages Jesus went teaching, making his way to Jerusalem. Someone said to him, ‘Sir, will there be only a few saved?’ He said to them, ‘Try your best to enter by the narrow door, because, I tell you, many will try to enter and will not succeed.

‘Once the master of the house has got up and locked the door, you may find yourself knocking on the door, saying, “Lord, open to us” but he will answer, “I do not know where you come from”.

Then you will find yourself saying, “We once ate and drank in your company; you taught in our streets” but he will reply, “I do not know where you come from. Away from me, all you wicked men!”

‘Then there will be weeping and grinding of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and yourselves turned outside. And men from east and west, from north and south, will come to take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God. ‘Yes, there are those now last who will be first, and those now first who will be last.’ ❖

Though difficult, these disciplines become a source of spiritual strength.

Our Lord Himself speaks of the difficult path to the Kingdom of Heaven in today’s Gospel passage from Luke. He is asked, “Lord, will only a few be saved?” Jesus responds, “Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I tell you, will attempt to enter but will not be strong enough.” Showing up for Mass on Sunday while living as if Christ is an afterthought the rest of the week does not make us disciples. What’s

more, this approach to our faith is an unjust and unloving response to our good God who has given us all that we have and are.

Jesus does not want us to merely go through the motions of faith. He wants much more from us and for us.

He wants to know us deeply and for us to get to know Him so that we become His holy disciples. This is not a burden; it is a privilege. But it does take discipline, the discipline of a stewardship way of life.❖

CATHOLIC STANDARD Friday, August 22nd 2025

Gospel Reflection

It is sometimes remarkable how some people can take others for granted. You begin doing someone a favour out of the goodness of your heart and soon what you have done is seen as your duty and responsibility.

For example, you notice that the church needs a good cleaning so you organise to get it done. Afterwards whenever the church needs a cleaning you are expected to get it done. Or, you live in a yard with a few other families and you decide to weed the grass and clean up the place. Now if you do not do this regularly, they see you as slacking in your duty. Today’s Gospel points out the danger of taking God for granted. All that mattered to the Jews was that they belonged to the right race.

Jesus pointed out that this was not enough. God did call them his Chosen People, but Jesus explained that they would not benefit from this. They had to strive and make sacrifices to enjoy the fruits of the kingdom.

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Narrow doors or wide gates, these are the choices we are faced with as disciples of Jesus.

He recommends that we choose the narrow door but many times we prefer to head for the wide gate because it is the easier route. What might “wide gates” be as a symbol for us today? Certainly it is the easy way from which all challenge is absent. What might narrow doors represent in discipleship terms? Perhaps making courageous decisions in the face of opposition? Or maybe weighing the pros and cons of a problem in the light of the Gospel? The narrow door could represent not being afraid of accepting opportunities to witness for Christ. It may mean something different for each of us but it is always a challenge. Let us all hope that when we come to use the narrow door we do not find it bolted. ❖ [From: Journeying with the Word of God, The Religious Education Department, Diocese of Georgetown, Guyana ]

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Sweden saves historic church with

(CathNews) - A Swedish Lutheran church on Wednesday concluded a carefully choreographed crawl across an Arctic mining town, completing a two-day, 5-kilometre journey that successfully saved the 113-year-old landmark from destruction. Source: CNA. The mammoth move has seen the wooden structure, weighing over 545,000 kilograms, transported on specialised trailers travelling at about 500 metres per hour.

Located 145 kilometres north of the Arctic Circle in Sweden’s Lapland region, Kiruna is not only the northernmost city in Sweden but also sits atop one of the planet’s richest iron ore deposits, which has been mined continuously since the 1890s.

The relocation is part of Kiruna’s broader urban transformation, required because of subsidence – the gradual sinking of the ground triggered by the nearby iron ore mine.

More recently, Europe’s largest deposit of rare earths was located in the area.

Lena Tjärnberg, vicar of the Protestant parish, blessed the beginning of the historic relocation on Monday morning, acknowledging both the necessity and heartbreak of departing the church’s original site after more than a century of ministry.

“The church is leaving from a place where it truly belongs,” Rev Tjärnberg told the BBC, which covered the unprecedented engineering feat.

“Everyone understands that it must be moved: We live in a mining community that depends on the mine.”

The red wooden church — voted Sweden’s most beautiful building constructed before 1950 in a 2001 national poll — was designed by architect Gustaf Wickman between 1909 and 1912 as a gift from LKAB, the state-owned mining company, to the local congregation.

LKAB’s expanding mining operations created the crisis requiring the church’s relocation.

The company announced in 2004 that mining near Kiruna’s city centre threatened to damage inhabited areas and infrastructure in the coming decades.

The relocation required extensive engineering preparation spanning eight years and costing an estimated 500 million Swedish kronor . ❖

CATHOLIC STANDARD Friday, August 22nd 2025

with ‘fire’ of God’s love, pope says at Mass and lunch with the poor

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Journeying with the Word of God

MAKING THE WORD OF GOD YOUR OWN Step 1: Look at today’s Readings prayerfully.

Pope Leo XIV shares a laugh with guests assisted by the Albano diocesan Caritas agency during a luncheon at the Borgo Laudato Si’ in Castel Gandolfo, Italy, Aug. 17, 2025. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez) ROME (CNS) — Spending the day with the poor, Pope Leo XIV prayed that Catholics would make sure their parishes are welcoming of all people and would be “on fire” with God’s love.

“We are the church of the Lord, a church of the poor — all precious, all active participants, each one bearing a unique word from God,” the pope said Aug. 17 as he celebrated Mass at the Shrine of Santa Maria della Rotonda in Albano Laziale, Italy, with about 110 clients and volunteers of the Diocese of Albano’s Caritas programs, including people experiencing homelessness and residents of its shelter for families.

“Let us not leave the Lord outside of our churches, our homes or our lives,” the pope said in his homily at the Mass. “Rather, let us welcome him in the poor — and then we will make peace even with our own poverty, the kind we fear and deny when we seek comfort and security at all costs.”

After the morning Mass, Pope Leo returned to Castel Gandolfo — less than two miles away — to lead the recitation of the Angelus prayer and then to host lunch for the Caritas clients and some of the volunteers.

The luncheon was held in the Borgo Laudato Si’, a project for education and training in integral ecology begun by Pope Francis in the gardens of the papal summer villa. Waiters in white shirts and black trousers served the guests a meal that included vegetable lasagna, eggplant parmesan or roast veal, fruit salad and dessert provided by local restaurants.

Cardinal Fabio Baggio, director general of Borgo Laudato Si’, welcomed the pope said the

lunch with the poor was a beautiful way to celebrate Pope Leo’s first 100 days in office and affirm Catholic teaching that “unites care for creation with care for every person.”

Pope Leo was seated at a round table placed at the junction of two long tables that formed an “l” under an awning to protect guests from the sun. At the table with him were: Rosabal Leon, a migrant from Peru, whose husband and two children were seated nearby; and Gabriella Oliveiro, 85, who lives by herself on the outskirts of Rome.

Before blessing the food, the pope said the setting was a reminder of the beauty of God’s creation, especially God’s creation of human beings in his image and likeness — “all of us.

Each one of us represents this image of God. How important it is to always remember that we find this presence of God in every person.”

In his homily at the Mass, the pope had said that whether seeking assistance or providing it, in the church “each person is a gift for others. Let us tear down walls.”

Pope Leo thanked the people in Catholic communities around the world who “work to facilitate the encounter between people of different origins and economic, psychological or emotional situations: only together, only by becoming one body in which even the most fragile has full dignity, do we truly become the body of Christ, the church of God.” The day’s Gospel reading, Luke 12:49-53, began with the words, “Jesus said to his disciples: ‘I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing!'”

The fire Jesus was speaking of, the pope said, was “not the fire of weapons, nor the fire of words that burn others down. No. But the fire of love — a love that stoops to serve, that responds to indifference with care and to arrogance with gentleness; the fire of goodness, which doesn’t cost like weapons do, but freely renews the world.”

The price may be “misunderstanding, ridicule, even persecution, but there is no greater peace than having his flame within us,” the pope said.

The Shrine of Santa Maria della Rotonda is built in the round on the site of a first-century pagan temple. The shape, Pope Leo said, “makes us feel welcomed into the womb of God.” “From the outside, the church, like every human reality, can appear rigid. But its divine reality is revealed when we cross its threshold and experience its welcome,” the pope said. “Then our poverty, our vulnerability, and above all our failures — for which we may be despised and judged, and sometimes we despise and judge ourselves — are finally welcomed into the gentle strength of God, a love without sharp edges and without conditions.”

“Mary, the mother of Jesus, is for us a sign and foretaste of God’s maternity,” he said. “In her, we become a motherly church, one that generates and regenerates not by worldly power, but by the virtue of charity.”

Pope Leo prayed that Catholics would allow Jesus’ fire to burn away “the prejudices, the caution and the fears that still marginalize those who carry the poverty of Christ written into their lives.”❖

1st Reading: Unlike what was expected by the Jews, Gentiles will also have a share in God’s blessings.

2nd Reading: Suffering is part of our training.

These are hard words to hear. Our hope lies in the belief that when God allows us to suffer, we are being treated as deeply loved children.

Gospel: The kingdom of God is being offered to peoples everywhere. However, conduct, not race or religious tradition, is the key to salvation.

Step 2: Applying the values of the Readings to your daily life.

1. The Second Reading is all about suffering and punishment. What do you think it is saying to us?

2. Isaiah presents us with an image of all nations gathered in unity. In what way do you personally experience a feeling of unity in your family, in your workplace, in your neighbourhood, in your church community?

3. On the other hand, in what way do you experience disunity in your life? What do you think is the reason for this?

4. The word Gospel means “Good News”. Do you think today’s message is “good news” or is it “hard news”?

Step 3: Accepting the message of God’s

Word in your life of faith.

The Good News we hear in the Scriptures is in reality sometimes “hard news” which invites us to live the Christian life without compromise and with a commitment beyond words.

Salvation belongs not to any one race or religion but to those who accept Christ and what he stands for. Baptism is no guarantee that we will automatically achieve the salvation that Christ offers.

Step 4: Something to think & pray about 1. Reflect on the ways you as an individual contribute to unity (and to disunity) among those in your home, your workplace, in your church community.

2. Speak to others with whom you come into daily contact about unity and disunity and their effects on your activities – at home, at work, at church, etc.

3. Name one concrete way you hear yourself being called to live the Gospel this coming week. Is there any change you feel you need to make in your life in order to better live out the Gospel?

4. Pray that you will always strive to be an instrument for unity in all your relationships.❖ [From: Journeying with the Word of God, The Religious Education Department, Diocese of Georgetown, Guyana ]

CATHOLIC STANDARD Friday, August 22nd 2025

The renowned Presentation Brothers College (PBC) Choir of Grenada was in Guyana from Thursday July 24th to Sunday August 3rd.

Hosted by St. Pius X church, the talented boy’s choir performed two uplifting concerts here. The first was held on Sunday July 27th at Our Lady of Fatima Church, where the choir entertained a sizable audience at the ‘A Ray of Hope’ concert. The choir sang both traditional and contemporary spiritual songs.

The concert, which also featured local talent, was thoroughly enjoyed by those present.

On Thursday July 31st, the choir performed the ‘Echoes of Freedom’ concert at the National Cultural Centre.

This event, held on the eve of the Emancipation holiday, was a lively performance filled with powerful harmonies, Caribbean rhythms, and messages of hope and liberation.

The PBC choir also sang at mass at St. Pius X church on the morning of Sun. July 27th. On Sat., August 2nd the choir joined Bishop Francis Alleyne OSB for Mass at the Cathedral. Later that evening, the choir was graciously hosted for dinner at Bishop’s House.

As the evening drew to a close, the boys offered a heartfelt musical tribute, serenading Bishop Francis with their beautiful voices in a gesture that deeply touched everyone present.❖

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CATHOLIC STANDARD Friday, August 22nd 2025

Dear Boys and Girls, We hope that you are enjoying the August holidays, and, as the holidays begin to come to an end, are starting to prepare for the new school year.

In today’s Gospel, when someone asks Jesus how many will be saved, he answers by using the image of the narrow door.

Those who do not remain faithful to him will be left outside. Jesus is warning people of faith not to take their salvation for granted. Just because we go to Mass every Sunday, we cannot assume that we can squeeze through the narrow door. We may be surprised to discover that some who seem less worthy will enter the kingdom before us.

Jesus reminds us that we are not to judge others as "worthy" of the kingdom or not.

Our human judgment is faulty. We only see so much. God sees the entire person, heart and soul, past, present, and future. Some who seem to be "last" ("losers") may well be "first" with God. And some we look up to as "first" (the winners in our world) may turn out to be "last" in the kingdom. We just don't know. And where others are with God is really not our concern. The question is: where do YOU want to be with God? How can YOU stay close to Jesus? ❖

LUKE 13:22-30 [ NFC - Sources: http://www.sdc.me.uk , http://www.catholickidsbulletin.com/, http://www.sermons4kids.com , http://www.salfordliturgy.org.uk & https://thekidsbulletin ]

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CATHOLIC STANDARD Friday, August 22nd 2025

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Bishop Francis shares Synodality

By Renika Anand

A point in time

On Tuesday, August 19th, during Day 2 of the CEAMA (Ecclesial Conference of the Amazon) meeting in Bogotá, Columbia, Bishop Francis Alleyne OSB delivered a presentation entitled “The Diocese of Georgetown, The Episcopal Ministry and Synodality in the Amazon.” He outlined the growth of the Diocese of Georgetown, highlighting the establishment of a Diocesan Pastoral Council, renewed focus on intercultural bilingual education, ecological initiatives, lay formation, youth ministry, and higher education partnerships for Indigenous communities.

In his remarks to CEAMA, Bishop Francis stressed that the Jubilee Year offers an important moment for Amazonian bishops to discern ways of being Church together. He expressed both appreciation for the Indigenous communities that enrich the Church and deep concern over the exploitation and neglect they face.

Bishop Francis was accompanied by Fr. Joel Thompson SJ, Parish Priest for 14 Deep South Rupununi communities, who also served as a theologian at the meeting. ❖

John C. Maxwell, an American author once said “Life is a matter of choices, and every choice you make makes you.”

There will come a point in time in every individual’s life where they will be face-to-face with a choice that demands more from them than they may have ever expected to give. In some cases, this choice may be in relation to their own future, or perhaps the path that they are meant to take. However, more often than not, it will be a choice that changes the course of others’ lives as well. This point in time marks not only an important choice, but the intersection of our own lives with that of others.

In moments like these, we may discover that even if we do know what is right, we are held back by the fear of breaking the rules that we have learned to live by. How can something that is right involve crossing every line that we have been taught to never cross?

The truth is that there is no rule that we must refuse to break if it means that we can do right by those around us - to help people and give them a voice when they are voiceless.

After all, there can be no greater wrong than failing to make the right choice even when you had the power to make it.

The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me? - Psalm 118:6 ❖

CATHOLIC STANDARD Friday, August 22nd 2025

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CEAMA holds Assembly

Bishops, lay Catholics, Indigenous leaders The Bogotá meeting was promoted by the Latin American and Caribbean Episcopal Council, known as CELAM, and brought together the Amazonian bishops and CEAMA’s members, including lay Catholics and Indigenous leaders.

According to Mauricio López, CEAMA’s lay vice president, the meeting’s main goal was to offer to the Amazonian bishops the opportunity to actively learn about CEAMA and reflect on the ways it can better serve each particular church in the region.

“Over the past years, we noticed the need to strengthen the connection between CEAMA and the dioceses. It’s something complex, and we had limitations in the process of establishing those ties,” López told OSV News.

CEAMA was created a few months after the 2019 Amazon synod, as an unprecedented ecclesiastical organization conceived to help the church to deal with the many challenges presented by the Amazonian bishops, working for integral ecology and promoting synodality.

Unlike ordinary episcopal conferences, CEAMA includes not only bishops but also priests, consecrated men and women, lay people, catechists, lectors, indigenous representatives, and Church organisations such as Caritas and REPAM. This reflects the vision of

Aparecida, which called for the participation of the laity in discernment and decision-making in the Church’s mission.

Founded during COVID-19 pandemic “It was founded during the COVID-19 pandemic, a time when we not only had to go back to our duties but also had to face daily emergencies. That crisis made CEAMA remain a bit shadowed,” Italian-born Bishop Flavio Giovenale of Cruzeiro do Sul, in Brazil, told OSV News.

CEAMA used to be “a great mystery,” he said. Until the Bogotá meeting.

“Over the past few days, we had the opportunity to understand its role and discuss how it could help us. We’re now excited about the things that can be done,” Bishop Giovenale said.

During the encounter, the bishops — many of whom were not present at the Amazon synod — had a chance to express the problems and challenges they face in their mission of evangelizing the Amazonian peoples. That’s a multifaceted reality, which encompasses traditional populations living in the rainforest, rural workers and massive urban populations.

Time to talk about ‘multiple difficulties’ “They had time to talk about their multiple difficulties, topics that had

been largely discussed during the Amazon synod, like financial hardships and the lack of personnel,” López said.

The vast distances in the Amazon many times transform simple pastoral visits to each community into an enormous challenge. The costs of fuel for the boats or even for the small airplanes that have to be employed is a continuous burden for the finances of many dioceses.

A chronic lack of priests in the Amazon ends up overburdening the existing ones and leaving many communities insufficiently accompanied. On top of it all, there are never-ending attacks to the rainforest by illegal miners, illegal loggers and ranchers who invade natural reservations, devastate them and expand their farms.

“We debated those problems and also made suggestions to deal with them.

We resumed some of the proposals that emerged during the 2019 Amazon synod, like the creation of an Amazon fund that could finance part of our operations,” Bishop Giovenale explained.

Mission of serving Amazonian church CEAMA’s role as an organization that has the mission of serving the Amazonian church opened the bishops’ minds. They realized that CEAMA can be organized as a platform for the exchange of experiences, for the dissemination of information and for

the mobilization of advisers, who can get involved in specific projects, López said.

“We have to make progress in concluding and implementing the synodal plan, looking for an adequate organizational structure,” he added.

When CEAMA gathers for its assembly next March, the encounter will mark a new chapter for the conference, according to the organizers.

“We’re a church always being reformed. The synodal dynamic brings permanent renovation. CEAMA is part of that process,” López affirmed.

Synodality a fundamental aspect Synodality indeed has been a fundamental aspect in the Amazonian church’s recent developments. The Amazon synod’s discussions were mostly based on a working document prepared after thousands of the region’s residents talked to missionaries and shared their visions regarding integral ecology and the church.

During August’s meeting, one of the most remarkable moments, according to López, was the group discussion of CEAMA, in which the bishops expressed their views and learned with each other.

“It was important to see how that dynamic can help to address complex subjects,” López said.❖

CATHOLIC STANDARD Friday, August 22nd 2025

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CATHOLIC STANDARD Friday, August 22nd 2025

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CATHOLIC STANDARD Friday, August 22nd 2025

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Saint of the Week

By Francis Canzius

Fr. Ignatius Scoles – Architect of City Hall

In 1887 at the suggestion of the Mayor of Georgetown, Mr. G.L. Forshaw, the Town Council - as it then was - made a public call for a design of a Town Hall. The prize for the chosen design would be $50. The design of Fr. Ignatius Scoles SJ was chosen. Fr. Scoles did not accept the prize money but instead he offered to supervise the construction, an offer that was immediately accepted by the Council.

The foundation stone was laid on December 23rd 1887 by the Governor, Sir Henry Irving. The construction work was carried out

by Messer’s Sprostons Limited.

August 28 - St. Augustine of Hippo

The Town Hall was opened on July1st 1889 by the then Governor Viscount Gormanston. The Mayor at the time - Mr. James Thompson - at the opening of the building, in his remarks said “The talent of Very Rev. Ignatius Scoles has in many ways helped to elevate the standard of our taste in architectural art”. At the time of Independence the title of the edifice was changed to “City Hall” and the Council became the City Council.

Fr. Scoles came to British Guiana in 1868. It was he who had designed the 160 ft. tower of the previous Cathedral. He showed Guyanese what splendid effects could be achieved by the skillful use of our own woods – Greenheart, Crabwood and others. He served in various parishes and for many years as Administrator of the Cathedral (the previous one) and for a time was appointed as Vicar General.❖

papal trip to Turkey, Lebanon

Pope Leo XIV receives a gift from Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople during a meeting in the library of the Apostolic Palace at the Vatican May 30, 2025. (CNS photo/Vatican Media) VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- A plan for Lebanon "by the end of the year."

Pope Leo XIV to visit Lebanon as The cardinal said that preparations well as Turkey in late November had already begun but that the and early December is being dates for the visit had not been studied, a Vatican official said. confirmed.

Lebanon's Cardinal Bechara Rai, The Vatican press office did not patriarch of the Maronite Catholic respond to a request to comment Church, told Al Arabiya television on Cardinal Rai's announcement.

Aug. 19 that the pope could visit The visit to Lebanon could be part

of a trip Pope Leo said he hopes to make to Turkey in late November.

In July, Pope Leo had told a Catholic-Orthodox pilgrimage from the United States that he had hoped to travel to Turkey to mark the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, which first developed the common Christian creed.

Pope Francis had been planning to travel in May to Iznik, the modern site of the ancient city of Nicaea, to mark the anniversary with Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople.

Because it would be his first trip to Turkey as pope, Pope Leo's November trip is likely to include a stop in the capital, Ankara, for meetings with government officials and a visit to the Phanar, the patriarchate's headquarters in Istanbul.

St. John Paul II, Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis all made visits to the patriarchate to join in the Nov. 30 celebrations of the feast of St. Andrew, the patron saint of the patriarchate. ❖

Augustine was born in North Africa in 354 AD. A Christian at 33, a priest at 36, a bishop at 41: Many people are familiar with the biographical sketch of Augustine of Hippo, sinner turned saint. But really to get to know the man is a rewarding experience.

There quickly surfaces the intensity with which he lived his life, whether his path led away from or toward God. The tears of his mother, the instructions of Ambrose and, most of all, God himself speaking to him in the Scriptures redirected Augustine’s love of life to a life of love.

Having been so deeply immersed in creaturepride of life in his early days and having drunk deeply of its bitter dregs, it is not surprising that Augustine should have turned, with a holy fierceness, against the many demon-thrusts rampant in his day. His times were truly decadent— politically, socially, morally. He was both feared and loved, like the Master. The perennial criticism leveled against him: a fundamental rigorism.

In his day, he providentially fulfilled the office of prophet. Like Jeremiah and other greats, he was hard-pressed but could not keep quiet. “I say to myself, I will not mention him,/I will speak in his name no more./But then it becomes like fire burning in my heart,/imprisoned in my bones;/I grow weary holding it in,/I cannot endure it” (Jeremiah 20:9). ❖ [http://www.americancatholic.org ]