33rdWorldDayoftheSick ,
pope says in message for world’s sick
VATICAN CITY (CNS) While the Holy Year 2025 refrain, “Hope does not disappoint,” can be difficult for those suffering from illness to embrace, Christians are called to recognize God’s closeness even in moments of weakness or despair, Pope Francis said.
Sickness “becomes an occasion for a transformative encounter” when one is open to God, he wrote in his message for the 33rd World Day of the Sick, observed by the church Feb. 11, the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes.
In addition, the Vatican will host the Jubilee of the Sick and Health Care Workers April 5-6, an event that will close with a papal Mass celebrated in St. Peter’s Square.
“Suffering always brings with it a mysterious promise of salvation, for it makes us experience the closeness and reality of God’s consoling presence,” the pope wrote in the message released Jan. 27.
(please turn to page 7)
The Jubilee Prayer - p2
Goma in crisis: Congolese bishops call for urgent attention as full human cost emerges - p3
Prayer for Married Couples - p3
Prayer to end Human Trafficking - p3
Bishop’s Engagements - p3
A Christian Perspective on Social Issues - p4
Baptism at Plaisance - p4
Sunday Scripture - p5
Consecrated Life - p6
Baptisms and recommitment of EMHCs at Karaudarnau - p7
Journeying with the Word of God - p7
Pope Francis to take meetings at home while sick with bronchitis, Vatican says - p8
Pope’s February prayer intention - p8
Children’s Page - p9
Growing in Grace Week 51 - p10
Pope will prepare papal document to help church promote children’s rights - p10
All Sodalitium-linked movements are ended, Vatican envoy confirms in Peru - p11
Jesuitastronomerreleasesguidetothecosmos- p12
Jubilee 2025 Calendar of major events - p13
St. John Bosco Orphanage Feast Day - p14
Altar Server formation at Lethem - p14
Saturday, February 8th, 2025
Sunday, February 9th
“Hope does not disappoint” (Rom 5:5), but strengthens us in times of trial WORLD DAY OF THE SICK 2025 Tuesday, February 11th
Dear Editor,
There is a total disregard of the fifth commandment, “Thou shall not kill”.
I have read in the newspapers of brother killing brother, son killing father, father killing son, husband killing wife, wife killing husband, even children killing one another, also bandits killing their victims. It seems that to kill is no longer a Sin,
The Fifth Commandment
and that the fifth commandment is outmoded.
The ten commandments are not outmoded. The ten commandments are by no means the product of a particular time
They express man’s fundamental obligations towards God and neighbour, which are always and everywhere valid.
What is remarkable about the Ten Commandments is that all of human life is included with them. Indeed, we men and women are related at the same time to God (1-3) and to
our fellow men and women (4-10).
We are religious and social beings.
To disobey any of the Ten Commandments is a Sin. At Mass the priest prays, “Deliver us, Lord, from every evil and grant us peace in our days. In your mercy keep us free from sin, and protect us from all anxiety as we wait in joyful hope for the coming of our Saviour, Jesus Christ.
To live a life free from Sin is a humble and simple ambition, and a noble one.
Leon Jeetlall
Feast of the Presentation of the 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
CS Subscription, and include your name ❖
Last Sunday, February 2nd, the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord Mass was celebrated at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Brickdam, Georgetown. The Mass began with the congregation heading to the front of the church for the blessing of candles, followed by a procession into the church, singing “Christ Be Our Light” as a reminder that, in the midst of our darkness, Christ's light will shine through.
The Church also celebrated the World Day for Consecrated Life on that day. Religious Sisters from the orders of the Missionaries of Charity, the Ursulines, the Sisters of Mercy, and the Carmelites joined the parishioners for Mass.
In his homily, Assistant Parish Priest of the Cathedral, Fr. KP George, SJ, said, "Let us continue to pray for vocations to the religious life and
fidelity among all the religious who Jesus."❖ (Adapted from Catholic
Goma in crisis: Congolese bishops call for urgent attention as full human cost emerges
Red Cross team members proceed with the burial of victims of the fighting in North Kivu, Congo, Feb. 3, 2025, days after the M23 rebel group seized the city of Goma, forcing thousands to flee and triggering a wave of looting and deaths. On Feb. 4, the rebels declared a unilateral ceasefire Feb. 4 to allow agencies to respond to the unfolding humanitarian crisis. (OSV News photo/Arlette Bashizi, Reuters)
(OSVNews) - Asanuneasycalmreturned to the Congolese city of Goma, following a unilateral ceasefire declared by the rebels, people began burying the dead, and agencies rushed aid to thousands of displaced civilians, now camping in churches and schools.
Congolese bishops said Feb. 3 they’re following the situation “with great sadness and concern,” offering closeness and support for local pastors and consoling those that lost loved ones. They also urged people to follow the call they made in January, inviting “every Congolese and every Citizen of the Great Lakes Region to say and say each time the need arises: My priority is Peace and Living Well Together.”
The M23 rebels agreed to a ceasefire that started Feb. 4 to allow agencies to respond to the unfolding humanitarian crisis. The group also halted its advance toward the city of Bukavu, the capital of South Kivu province. With the ceasefire, people in Goma rushed to bury what locals say may be as many as 2,000 bodies of the victims of the fighting.
The United Nations confirmed at least 900 people died in the fighting and another million were displaced, but the full scale of the human toll is still
emerging. Many of those who died are women and children who fled villages and camps to Goma, as the rebels advanced on the city.
On Jan. 27, news broke that the rebels of the March 23 movement claimed they had seized the city after a deadly battle with the Congolese army, known by the French acronym FARDC. Goma is a humanitarian base of the eastern Congo provinces of North and South Kivu.
Archbishop Fulgence Muteba Mugalu of Lubumbashi, president of Congo’s bishops’ conference, said that “the situation is so serious and the emotions so intense that they have required us to take a moment of silence to better understand the shape (of things) and discern the future prospects.”
In the Feb. 3 statement the archbishop highlighted the enormous loss of life in the fighting, extensive looting in Goma and the surrounding cities, and the increased displacement of the people of the region already impoverished by conflicts that have recurred for the last 30 years.
“When one member suffers, the whole body suffers. We reassure all our brothers and sisters in the disaster
stricken provinces of our communion in their sorrows and spiritual closeness,” Archbishop Mugalu said.
On Jan. 29, Pope Francis called for cessation of hostilities, protection of civilians in Goma and other regions, and a quick end to the violence.
Archbishop Mugalu said that the Congolese bishops reiterated the peace strategy the conference launched together with other Christian churches in January.
The peace road map titled “The Social Pact for Peace and Living Well Togeth” in Congo and the Great Lakes, invites the people of the region to interact and hold dialogue to build lasting peace.
Why are we no longer able to resolve our problems under the palaver tree as our ancestors wisely used to do?” asked Congolese church leaders, with Msgr. Donatien Nshole, secretary general of the bishops’ conference, and the Rev. Eric Nsenga of the Church of Christ in Congo signing the Jan. 15 document.
“Day after day, time is running out and the dark prospects of a humanitarian catastrophe, the incalculable consequences are becoming clearer,” the two leaders warned .
Catholic agencies are some of those responding to the crisis. An estimated 2,000 people camped at St. Francis Xavier Parish in Ndosho, on the outskirts of Goma, while another 1,600 have settled in a nearby school, according to Fides, the news agency of the Pontifical Mission Societies.
Caritas, the humanitarian arm of the Catholic Church, said Feb. 4 that access to food, drinking water and essential services had become arduous, with hospitals running out of medicines as the number of people seeking treatment swell. The agency reported extreme fear in Goma, following attacks including sexual violence.❖
Sunday, February 9th 2025
Prayer for Married Couples
Almighty and eternal God, You blessed the union of married couples so that they might reflect the union of Christ with his Church: look with kindness on them. Renew their marriage covenant, increase your love in them, and strengthen their bond of peace so that, with their children, they may always rejoice in the gift of your blessing.
We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen (USCCB)
Saturday, February 8, 2025
Prayer to end Human Trafficking
Loving Father,
We seek your divine protection for all who are exploited and enslaved.
For those forced into labor, trafficked into sexual slavery, and denied freedom
We beseech you to release them from their chains.
Grant them protection, safety, and empowerment.
Restore their dignity and provide them a new beginning.
Show us how we might end exploitation by addressing its causes.
Help us reach out in support of victims and survivors of human trafficking.
Make us instruments of your spirit for their liberation.
For this we pray through our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen
[USCCB ]
Sunday, February 9th
14:25hrs – Travel to Mexico to attend a meeting with Bishops of Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean.
Saturday, February 15th Return to Georgetown. Francis Alleyne OSB
By GHK Lall
Last week’s budget recognized the encouraging things in it, of which there are more than a few areas that are poised to do well with plentiful appropriations. This week’s offering steers the spotlight to those who ought to have done better, but didn’t. The poor of Guyana, the numerous poor that live, struggle to survive, amid a huge, arguably the biggest, contradiction. In one short phrase: Guyana is now among the richest countries in the world. According to statistics that are robust and credible, each Guyanese is now wealthy, economically healthy. The reality is that there are many that are not. Not even close, but as far from that rich condition as could be imagined, or computed. Their condition in this most hailed of societies is that of the many ragged among the few superrich, the numerous woeful before the handful of comfortably rich. When honest, hardworking citizens cannot afford to buy basic food items week after week, take care of their families, look after their needs, they need help. Urgent assistance and meaningful assistance, in that it endures. Another national budget that is another record has to see to that type of quality assistance. Its provisions for the poor would be the best testimony, the evidence that cannot be disputed. Where are those provisions in this year’s budget?
Five thousand dollars more monthly is not a drop in the outstretched hand of 76,000 elderly pensioners. Some are for $15,000 and $20,000 more monthly and immediately. I would settle for an increment of $10,000 monthly in 2025, with more to follow. With economic growth set to decline to 10.6% from that dizzying 43.6% level, the prospects past 2025 suddenly look dimmer. In a country where rising prices are a pestilence, there are minimum wage workers who somehow go from month to month on $60,147. The mystery to me is how do these citizens exist? How many meals do they miss? When is the last time that they had money to buy a pair of shoes, or a new dress or shirt?
I read in the media of record profits earned by the big companies in the private sector, which means that business is great, which means that their commercial customers are doing just as great, local circumstances
considered. Yet, there is this coldness, this callousness, of condition where the minimum wage has been frozen at $60,147 since July 1, 2022. And not a minute could have been spared in the lengthy budget presentation to address the intolerable condition of tens of thousands of minimum wage toilers in today’s resource rich Guyana. The same could be said of the unskilled, unemployed and underemployed local worker. These citizens are in dire need of help and a thoughtful budget would have had the tangible for them. A minimum wage increase will be announced soon. Many have been the estimates of what the level of a livable wage should be here, which ranges from anywhere between $150,000 to $200,000 monthly. I assert that the current minimums of $60,147 for private sector workers, and $94,000 for public servants, leave them stranded halfway in the month. Something encouraging and caring should have been said about this, but the budget minutes are silent. Yes, there was mention of billions for part-time workers. But the question and concern have to be about how many of them are there, and how many fall outside of that budgetary net? I hold in reserve any ideas [and any associated comments] about how politics operate on the ground in this country in the application and reach of budget billions for part-time workers. A budget positive, the one for children,
is a mixed one. The detail is that 200,000 children will benefit from an increase in the dollar provisions that make life more manageable for parents. My questions are how many children are they? How far does that specific cash grant increase go? And why not much more is done for this segment in the population, and other ones, when so much of the budget is set aside for building and readying for the next several decades? If Guyana cannot afford to do more with a staggering 43.6% economic growth, then when can it? Can it ever, with oil prices projected to decline, and the tearaway growth of the last few years slowing sharply?
Let there be no uncertainty about the thrusts of this contribution. For sure, it is about the care and mercy that are part of this Jubilee Year. Hope does not disappoint. In God, not man. It is also about hearing and aligning closely with that caution of Jesus in MT 25 about who was there and who cared. Then again, it is teachings that are grounded in compassion, about the rightness (even righteousness) of a position taken, and then standing immovably there.
Hundreds of thousands of Guyanese, a sizable segment of the population, need help. They got some morsels here and there. They were hoping. They are still waiting. I stand with them, and I speak for them.❖
Baptism at Plaisance
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
Counselling Services at Brickdam Presbytery
Carmelite Sisters are available for counselling on Mondays and Thursdays from 9:00am to 12 noon and 1:00pm to 2:00 pm, at theCathedral Presbytery. They are also available by appointment. Persons are encouraged to avail themselves of these services. Kindly contact the Cathedral parish office on tel. no. 226-4631fordetails.
Two children were baptised at St. John the Baptist Church, Plaisance, ECD on
FIRST READING Isaiah 6:1-8
Here I am, send me.
In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord seated on a high throne; his train filled the sanctuary; above him stood seraphs, each one with six wings.
And they cried out one to another in this way, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts. His glory fills the whole earth.”
The foundations of the threshold shook with the voice of the one who cried out, and the Temple was filled with smoke. I said: “What a wretched state I am in! I am lost, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among people of unclean lips, and my eyes have looked at the King, the Lord of hosts.”
Then one of the seraphs flew to me, holding in his hand a live coal which he had taken from the altar with a pair of tongs. With this he touched my mouth and said:
“See now, this has touched your lips, your sin is taken away, your iniquity is purged.”
Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying:
“Whom shall I send? Who will be our messenger?” I answered, “Here I am, send me.”
RESPONSORIAL PSALM
Psalm 137
Response: Before the angels I will bless you, O Lord
1. I thank you, Lord, with all my heart, you have heard the words of my mouth. Before the angels I will bless you. I will adore before your holy temple. Response
2. I thank you for your faithfulness and love which excel all we ever knew of you. On the day I called, you answered; you increased the strength of my soul. Response
3. All earth’s kings shall thank you when they hear the words of your mouth. They shall sing of the Lord’s ways: “How great is the glory of the Lord!” Response
4. You stretch out your hand and save me, your hand will do all things for me. Your love, O Lord, is eternal, discard not the work of your hands. Response
Our readings today remind us of the great privilege we have in calling ourselves both children and disciples of the most high God.
SECOND READING
1 Cor. 15:1-11
I preach what they preach, and this is what you all believed.
Brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, the gospel that you received and in which you are firmly established because the gospel will save you only if you keep believing exactly what I preached to you –believing anything else will not lead to anything.
Well then, in the first place, I taught you what I had been taught myself, namely that Christ died for our sins, in accordance with the scriptures; that he was buried; and that he was raised to life on the third day, in accordance with the scriptures; that he appeared first to Cephas and secondly to the Twelve. Next he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died; then he appeared to James, and then to all the apostles; and last of all he appeared to me too; it was as though I was born when no one expected it. but what matters is that I preach what they preach, and this is what you all believed.
GOSPEL
got into one of the boats - it was Simon’s - and asked him to put out a little from the shore. Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat. When he has finished speaking he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water and pay out your nets for a catch.” “Master,” Simon replied, “we worked hard all night long and caught nothing, but if you say so, I will pay out the nets.” And when they had done this they netted such a huge number of fish that their nets began to tear, so they signalled to their companions in the other boats to come and help them; when these came, they filled the two boats to sinking point.
Luke 5:1-11
They left everything and followed him. Jesus was standing one day by the lake of Gennesaret, with the crowd pressing round him listening to the word of God, when he caught sight of two boats close to the bank. The fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. He
The First Reading, from Isaiah, describes a vision of the prophet in which angels surround the Lord proclaiming, “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts! All the earth is filled with his glory!” Our God invites us to such deep intimacy and friendship with Him that sometimes we can forget just how majestic and unspeakably holy He truly is.
When Simon Peter saw this he fell at the knees of Jesus saying, “Leave me, Lord; I am a sinful man.” For he and all his companions were completely overcome by the catch they had made; so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were Simon's partners. But Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on it is people you will catch.” Then, bringing their boats back to land, they left everything and followed him.❖
In the Gospel passage, from Luke, Jesus instructs Simon to lower his nets for a catch despite an unsuccessful night of fishing. Peter is skeptical but obeys and is amazed at the catch of fish that he makes. He kneels down before Jesus in astonishment. This sense of awe and reverence before God should motivate us to deepen our stewardship way of life. As we contemplate the holiness of
God, we come to a heightened awareness of what a privilege it is that He has chosen to include us in His work of spreading the Gospel to others through the grateful sharing of the gifts He has given us. Aware of this privilege, we will then make the words of Isaiah our own: “Here I am Lord, send me!” ❖ [www.catholicsteward.com/blog/ ]
Consecrated Life Gospel Reflection
Our Gospel story is about the call of the first disciples. Jesus selected certain people to be his close disciples and it was to them that he left the task of carrying on his work in the world. He continues to call people because the need is just as great today as it ever was. For many of us, the question is how to respond in our own way as ordinary people to Jesus’ call to us. Many of us are just like Isaiah, Paul and Peter in today’s Readings. We are very reluctant to respond. We feel very inadequate. But all it requires is being Christian wherever we are in contact with others – in our homes, offices, factories, farms, schools, clubs, shops, markets, churches. In the final analysis, it is not so much our talents that matter but rather a joyful living out of our faith.
When it dawned on Peter that the Jesus who stood in front of him was no ordinary person but a holy man from God, he asked Jesus not to have anything to do with him because he was a sinner. Jesus response was to choose the same sinful Peter to be his close companion and later the leader of his followers. Clearly it was for sinners that he came. From this we have a clear understanding of our God who does not turn away from sinners but who wants to work with them to save them and give them a new start. It is a God who reaches out and enters into relationship with humans rather than a God who resides in splendid isolation away from and above us all, away from all human contact. ❖
[From: Journeying with the Word of God, The Religious Education Department,Dioceseof Georgetown, Guyana ]
Last Sunday February 2nd, the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, the Church celebrated the 29th annual World Day of Consecrated Life. Below is an article on Consecrated Life by Sr. Marie Harper, osu:
Consecrated Life
By Sr. Marie Harper, osu
Through the Sacrament of Baptism every Christian has a personal vocation - a call from God – to holiness and service. This Baptismal call can be lived out in three distinct ways - the call to marriage, the call to the single state, the call to the priesthood and Religious Life. A call to Holiness means: a call to enter into an intimate relationship of love with God.
Marriage is an example that expresses what this intimate relationship is like. Saint Paul speaks about this in the letter to the Ephesians: “For this cause a man shall leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife; and the two shall become one flesh.” This is a great mystery – I mean in reference to Christ and to the Church. (Eph 5:31-32).
The “Church” that is: “every Christian”, who is a member of the Body of Christ, that is the Church. God’s call is an invitation, an invitation that expects an answer from each baptized person. This call to holiness is lived out in different ways: by being married, ordained as a priest or deacon, or consecrated as a religious brother or sister. The Holy Spirit urges all of us to answer this call, to enter into this relationship of love with God. This answer is also made manifest by our love for our human brothers and sisters. The Holy Spirit invites all of us therefore to share our gifts, talents, and lives in service to others. God calls us from a silent voice deep within to “Come and follow me”. All states of life are to lead
to this relationship of love with God, the pursuit of his will, and the ultimate achievement of holiness and its eternal reward. The call to holiness, to love, is the same; only the way is different.
In Religious Life: Priests, Brothers or Sisters live in Communities that embrace the spirituality, the charism, and the teachings of the Community's founder call as their way of life Religious life. Members of these Communities take vows of poverty, celibacy/ chastity, and obedience. This process of deciding the way of life you will follow to answer God’s call is called discernment. This is a process that takes time. Your vocation as a Christian will be the particular way you live the universal call to holiness. Through prayer, conversation with others, a spiritual guide, study and reflection, you will be able to discover God’s plan for you. What will be your path to Heaven?
Remember your vocation is more than your career choice or occupation. It is God’s invitation to answer His love for you, to live out your commitment to holiness and service in a specific lifestyle that you choose. Throughout the centuries, men and women have responded to God’s call to commit themselves wholly to God and to God’s people through the consecrated life.
A question often asked by young people, “Can I be a Sister and have a profession, such as being a lawyer or doctor”. My answer always is yes. You could be a doctor or a teacher and still be a religious. After all married people do have a profession too. In fact, I was a qualified teacher before I chose this path of following the Charism of St. Angela Merici in the way of Religious Consecration. I have been a Religious. In fact, I began following this path 39 years ago. But do you know it took me quite some time to finally accept that
this was the path to my call to holiness? It took some time to discern, but my soul was restless until I came to this decision to become an Ursuline Sister. This choice did not stop me from teaching, although I had to take time for training and formation to be professed as a Religious Sister. I do give priority to Religious life, and never short-changing my professionalism as a teacher. In fact, being a Religious has enabled me to serve with a Christ-centered focus. One section of Scripture which speaks to me is the one Jesus used from Isaiah 61: 1-2 after his time spent in the desert, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me. He has anointed me to bring good news to the poor, to proclaim liberty to captives and new sight to the blind; to free the oppressed and to announce the Lord’s year of mercy.”
In Guyana, there are the Diocesan priests, Religious priests and brothers, and Religious Sisters, namely: The Missionary Sisters of Charity, The Order of Carmelites, The Sisters of the Virgin of Matara, The Ursulines of the Roman Union, The Ursulines of the Tildonk Union, and the Religious Sisters of Mercy.
Jesus is calling each of us to follow in his footsteps, “Come and follow me’. Is He calling you to follow him to holiness through Religious Life or Priesthood? Choose your path to holiness!❖
Baptisms and recommitment
Journeying with the Word of God
World Day of the Sick (From Page 1)
Despite the frailty felt “on the physical, psychological and spiritual levels” during times of illness, “we also experience the closeness and compassion of God, who, in Jesus, shared in our human suffering,” Pope Francis wrote. “God does not abandon us and often amazes us by granting us a strength that we never expected and would never have found on our own.”
Pope Francis said that suffering can also be accepted by Christians as a gift, for it “makes us aware that hope comes from the Lord.”
“Indeed, only in Christ’s resurrection does our own life and destiny find its place within the infinite horizon of eternity,” he wrote.
The pope compared the journey of the ill to that of the disciples on the road to Emmaus, who, by sharing their anxieties and disappointments with Jesus, came to recognize his presence, enabling them to “sense that ‘greater reality’ which, by drawing near to us, restores our courage and confidence.”
Suffering, Pope Francis added, develops a profound sense of sharing and encounter. Those who tend to the sick realize that they are “angels of hope and messengers of God for one another,” be it at home or at a clinic, nursing home or hospital.
“We need to learn how to appreciate the beauty and significance of these grace-filled encounters,” he wrote. “We need to learn how to cherish the gentle smile of a nurse, the gratitude and trust of a patient, the caring face of a doctor or volunteer, or the anxious and expectant look of a spouse, a child, a grandchild or a dear friend.”
Such gestures are “rays of light to be treasured,” the pope said, which even amid adversity “give us strength, while at the same time teaching us the deeper meaning of life in love and closeness.”
Those who care for the sick during the Jubilee year “play an especially important part,” the pope said in his message. Their dedication has an impact “far beyond the rooms and beds of health facilities” in promoting charity and are “capable of bringing light and warmth wherever they are most needed.”
“The whole church thanks you for this!” he wrote. “I do as well, and I remember you always in my prayers.” ❖
MAKING THE WORD OF GOD YOUR OWN
Step 1: Lookattoday’sReadingsprayerfully.
1st Reading: When Isaiah was called by God to be a prophet, his first response was to declare his unworthiness. However he went on to become one of the greatest of God’s prophets.
2nd Reading: Paul defends the belief in the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. At the same time he insists that he is the least of the apostles. Gospel: We read of the miraculous catch of fish and the call to Peter to share in the work of Jesus. His initial response was similar to that of Isaiah.
Step 2: ApplyingthevaluesoftheReadings toyourdailylife.
1.“Failure is not the falling down but the staying down.” What is this statement saying to you in the light of the call to discipleship?
2.Why do you think people’s first reaction to the challenge of something new is usually one of feeling unworthy? Why can such an attitude be a good one?
3.“The Gospel story is not so much about fishing as it is about trust.” Do you agree with this statement? Whydoyouthinkitisimportanttohavetrust?
4.“God is not a God who shuns sinners but a God who wants them to be saved.” What does this statement say to you about God?
Step 3: Accepting the message of God’s Wordinyourlifeoffaith.
Two boats are at the point of sinking because of the heavy load of fresh fish. The fishermen had worked hard all night and caught nothing. Now a huge catch. It is a sign of the future for those willing to answer the Lord’s call. From Peter’s boat, a symbol of the Church, Jesus continues his mission through those he has called. The call is to be more than a follower; it is to be a doer.
Step 4: Somethingtothink&prayabout
1.Moving into “deep water” is many times necessary while being at the same time frightening. Recall a time in your life when you had to make changes that were both necessary and frightening. Why was the change necessary? Did you turn to someone for help? Were you tempted to turn back?
2.What do you understand by the word “selfesteem”? What would you consider your selfesteem to be? What can be the results of having low self-esteem?
3.Pray that you will be ready to recognise and to respond to God’s call in your life even though you may feel inadequate.❖
[From: Journeying with the Word of God, The Religious Education Department, Diocese of Georgetown, Guyana ]
entered the Church to present
Adapted from St Ignatius
Pope to take meetings at home while sick with bronchitis, Vatican says
(CNA) - Pope Francis will hold the next few days of meetings in rooms at his Vatican residence while sick with bronchitis, the Vatican said Thursday.
“Due to bronchitis, from which he is suffering at this time, and in order to continue his activities, on Friday, Feb. 7, and Saturday, Feb. 8, Pope Francis’ audiences will be held at Casa Santa Marta,” the Feb. 6 message from the Holy See Press Office said.
The 88-year-old Francis’ meetings with an association of Italian midwives and with Eastern Orthodox priests and monks on Feb. 6 were also held at his Santa Marta home instead of the Apostolic Palace as planned. The pope also did not read aloud his prepared speeches for those audiences.
Due to the light illness, the day prior, the pope had an aide to read his catechesis at his weekly public audience in the Paul VI Hall.
On Sunday, Feb. 9, the pontiff is scheduled to preside over a Mass in St. Peter’s Square for the second special weekend of the 2025 Jubilee of Hope: the Jubilee of the Armed Forces, Police, and Security Personnel.
Pope Francis also kept his schedule while remaining indoors when he had a cold
right before Christmas. His Angelus prayer and message on Dec. 22, 2024, were livestreamed from the chapel of the Casa Santa Marta.
The pope, who has been suffering from visible breathlessness during recent meetings, has more and more frequently declined to read his prepared remarks to
audiences or opted to have the remarks read by a priest aide.
He has faced several health challenges in recent years, including knee problems requiring a wheelchair, respiratory infections, and a fall resulting in a forearm contusion. ❖
Pope’s February prayer intention: priesthood,religiouslife’
(Vatican News)“Let us pray that the ecclesial community might welcome the desires and doubts of those young people who feel called to live Jesus’s mission in life: either through the priestly life, or religious life.”
Pope Francis made that appeal for prayers in The Pope Video, which was released on Tuesday to accompany his prayer intention for February 2025.
Drawing on his own vocational experience, the Pope recalled that at 17 years old he had other plans for his life that didn’t include becoming a priest.
“But one day, I went into the church and God was there, waiting for me!” he said.
The Holy Father recalled that God calls many young people to serve His people through a vocation to the priesthood or religious life.
“God still calls young people even today, sometimes in ways we can’t imagine,” he said.
“Sometimes we don’t hear because we’re too busy with our own things, our own plans, even with our own things in the Church.”
Yet, added Pope Francis, the Holy Spirit reveals God’s plan for our lives by speaking to the heart of young people.
The task of Catholics, he added, is to accompany their spiritual journey, so that they will be willing and able to welcome the call to a religious vocation.
“Let’s trust young people!” concluded Pope Francis. “And, above all, let’s trust God for He calls everyone!”
Accompanying young people on their vocational journey
The Pope Video, released by the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network, depict scenes from the early life of Jorge Mario Bergoglio, now Pope Francis, along with images from the daily lives of young people today.
The effect, according to a press release, is to tie the youth of the future Pope to contemporary young people, whom God calls to a priestly or religious vocation in a similar way.
According to Archbishop José Gómez of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, which helped produce the video, God takes the lives of young people seriously.
“The Church’s mission,” he said, “is to walk with young people to help them grow in their faith and to work to build this world into the Kingdom that God wants for His people.”
Fr. Cristóbal Fones, SJ, International Director of the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network, said God’s vocational invitation always respects the full freedom of those whom He calls.
“This requires an approach to vocation ministry that truly values dialogue and accompaniment, while also welcoming and accepting the concrete concerns, questions and aspirations of young people as an important component in the vocational process,” said Fr. Fones.
The press release concludes with a reminder that one of the conditions for receiving a plenary indulgence by passing through one of the Holy Doors in Rome is the “pray for the intentions of the Supreme Pontiff.”❖
Pope Francis meets with Eastern Orthodox priests and monks on Feb. 6, 2025, at his Santa Marta home in the Vatican instead of in the Apostolic Palace as planned. (Vatican Media)
Dear Boys and Girls,
Today's Gospel Reading is about the day when Jesus chose his disciples.
Jesus was standing by the sea of Galilee and a large crowd of people began to gather around him. He saw some fishermen nearby who were cleaning and mending their nets so he climbed into one of the boats which belonged to a man whose name was Peter.
Jesus told Peter to put the boat out a little way from the shore. Peter did as Jesus instructed him and Jesus sat in the boat teaching the people.
When he had finished teaching, Jesus said to Peter, "Put the boat further out into the deep water and let down your nets to catch some fish."
"We've been fishing all night long and haven't caught a thing, but if you say so, we will let down the nets one more time," Peter answered.
Do you know what happened? They started pulling the nets up and there were so many fish that the nets began to break. When they pulled the fish into the boat, there were so many fish that the boat began to sink. When Peter and his fellow fishermen saw this, they were afraid.
Jesus said, "Don't be afraid," Jesus said. "From now on, I want you to go fish for people."
The Bible tells us that they pulled their boats up onto the shore, left everything, and followed Jesus to "go fish" for people.
Jesus wants us to "go fish" for people too. If we will be faithful in telling people about Jesus and his love, we can trust Jesus to bring in the catch!
Heavenly Father, Jesus has told us to go fish for people. We will go and tell others about Jesus, and trusting him to bring them into the boat. Amen.
Pope will prepare papal document to help church promote children’s rights
Pope Francis delivers his closing remarks at the world leaders’ summit on children’s rights at the Vatican Feb. 3, 2025, as former U.S. Vice President Al Gore listens. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)
VATICAN CITY (CNS) Wrapping up a Vatican summit on the rights of children, Pope Francis announced he was going to publish a papal document dedicated to children.
He called the Feb. 3 summit venue in the frescoed halls of the Apostolic Palace, a kind of “open observatory” in which speakers explored “the reality of childhood throughout the world, a childhood that is unfortunately often hurt, exploited, denied.”
Some 50 experts and leaders from around the world, who shared their experience and compassion, he said, also “elaborated proposals for the protection of children’s rights, considering them not as numbers, but as faces.”
“Children are watching us,” he said, “to see how we are going about living” in this world.
The pope said he planned to prepare a papal document “to give continuity to this commitment and promote it throughout the church.” Those in attendance applauded the pope and his brief closing remarks and gave him a standing ovation.
The one-day world leaders’ summit titled, “Love them and protect them,” discussed several topics of concern including a child’s right to food, health care, education, a family, free time and the right to live free from violence and exploitation. It was organized by the recently created Pontifical Committee for the World Day of Children, headed by Franciscan Father Enzo Fortunato.
The invitees included Nobel Prize winners, government ministers and heads of state, leaders of international and nonprofit organizations, top Vatican officials and other experts.
Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007 together with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, said in his talk, “The threat of ecological devastation which encompasses the climate crisis and also the biodiversity crisis is a terrible burden that we are placing on our children.”
He praised the pope for highlighting “the spiritual crisis we face as stemming in part from the willful blindness
that prevents so many from seeing the way in which our economic system is driving us toward the exploitation of both people and the planet at the expense of our moral values and the future of children.”
“Those that hold power today must alter our ways of thinking; and our new thinking must result in deep changes that transform our current systems of economics and politics, giving way toward a more just and ecologically-minded system that puts environmental and social justice at the center of our plans and efforts,” Gore said. “We have all the solutions we need.”
Kailash Satyarthi of India, co-winner of the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize and activist campaigning against child labor in India and advocating for the universal right to education, said in his talk that while he trusts everyone’s concern for children, he also feels ashamed.
“I am ashamed because we are failing our children every day. I am ashamed to listen to all these data and statistics that I have been listening” to and talking about for the past 45 years, he said.
“We know the problems, we know the solutions,” he said, but so far, everything has just been rhetoric and words.
The problem-solvers of the world “are not really honest (with) the problemsufferers,” he said, when they lack any sense of “moral accountability and moral responsibility.”
“The solution lies in the genuine feeling and connection” to every child as if he or she were one’s own, he said. It is only when people feel genuine compassion will they feel “an honest urge to take urgent action.”
“We have to fight this menace (of child labor and poverty) and all other crises through compassion in action. We have to create a culture of problem-solving. Let us globalize compassion because they are all our children,” Satyarthi said. ❖
By Renika Anand
The plank in your own eye
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a German pastor once said that “By judging others we blind ourselves to our own evil and to the grace which others are just as entitled to as we are.”
Young people often turn to observe the world in order to learn from it and define themselves. This natural inclination is complemented by our ability to differentiate between what is right and wrong. This means that although we often learn from the world around us, we know not to repeat certain words and actions because we understand that they are incorrect. As such, judgement can be a useful tool. However, it can also easily become a weapon with which we measure each other and forget about our own errors.
During the course of our lives, we may meet individuals who say or do things that we do not believe are correct. Yet, we are called to treat them with the same respect and kindness that we hope others will treat us with. This is because all human beings are dynamic, and we are all capable of making mistakes. We must strive to create a world where we do not define an individual by their mistakes, but by who they are capable of being when they are treated with love.
“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?”
Matthew 7:3. ❖
All Sodalitium-linked movements are ended, Vatican envoy confirms in Peru
Father Jordi Bertomeu Farnos, a member of a Vatican-appointed team that has investigated clerical sexual abuse in Chile, talks to media upon arriving at the airport in Osorno, Chile, June 14, 2018. Along with Archbishop Charles Scicluna of Malta, adjunct secretary of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, Msgr. Bertomeu was sent by Pope Francis to Peru in July 2023 to investigate allegations of sexual, psychological and physical abuse in Sodalitium Christiane Vitae. (OSV News photo/courtesy of Archdiocese of Santiago)
(OSV News) - An official of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith said Pope Francis’ decision to suppress Sodalitium Christianae Vitae was based on the fact that there was no authentic charism, or spiritual gifts, in the controversial lay movement founded by Luis Fernando Figari in 1971.
The decision came along with ending “everything that Figari founded,” the official,Msgr. Jordi Bertomeu, said.
Concelebrating Mass Feb. 2 at the Church of Our Lady of Reconciliation, a Sodalitium-run parish in Lima, Peru, the priest told parishioners the pope charged him with overseeing the dissolution of the controversial lay movement back in December.
The Vatican envoy confirmed all four branches of Sodalitium were also ended in the process: Christian Life Movement, the Association of Mary Immaculate, the Marian Community of Reconciliation, known as the Fraternas because of its name in Spanish la Fraternidad Mariana de la Reconciliación and the Servants of the Plan of God.
“‘I ask you to please accompany me in this process of suppression of Sodalitium and of all that Figari founded because I’ve come to the conclusion, after a long period of discernment, that there was no initial charism,’ meaning that Figari did not receive a special grace,” Msgr. Bertomeu recalled the pope telling him.
“But(thepope) told me explicitly, andI would like to begin the Mass with these words, ‘Tell them (the members of Sodalitium) that first and foremost, this is not a punishment. It is the opposite! I want the best for them, I want the best for all these people of good faith, of good will who have taken this path for many years,'” he recounted.
However, Sodalitium distanced itself fromcriticismsagainsttheVaticanofficial
“The Sodalitium disassociates itself from any publication and/or public statement that goes against the Holy Father or the delegates appointed by the Holy See,” it said. “We would like to remind everyone that the Sodalitium provides information only through official statements published on its official channels and is not responsible for any other publication issued outside these channels.”
Addressing members at the Sodalitium -run parish, Msgr. Bertomeu said that he was hesitant at first to accept the role the pope entrusted to him, especially after “a very difficult, very complicated special mission of gathering information and listening, above all, to victims.”
While he understood that the suppression is a time for personal crisis for the group’s members, Msgr. Bertomeu said he was encouraged to view the process as a time of much-needed purification “with a gaze of faith and accompanied by Peter.”
“I do not come here as a sociologist, as a politician, as an economist. No. I
come as a priest who is trying to do his work by looking at the Lord and from the point of view of these brothers and sisters. With this look of mercy that only God gives us. That is why I am sure that we needed to pass through this crisis so that the Lord may give us something much better,” he said. He also said that while the process of suppression may “provoke a certain insecurity and unease,” life “is not about looking for false securities” and that “our security comes from the Lord whoalwaysaccompaniesus.”
“Today, I want to transmit this message of the Holy Father at the start of this process of suppression of Sodalitium and other entities founded by the layman Figari. At the end of this process, we must find ourselves more rooted in Christ and accompanied by the Blessed Virgin Mary. That is what we must find.”
The decision to suppress all Sodalitium movements will affect thousands of members across North and South America at the peak of membership it counted some 20,000 members across South America and parts of the United States.❖
In a brief statement published on its website Feb. 1, Sodalitium announced Msgr. Bertomeu’s appointment as pontifical commissioner and said the process of its dissolution would “begin in the coming days.”
“Once again, we express our acceptance and adherence to the decisions of the Holy Father, and we will collaborate in the best possible way in this process,” the movement said.
Along with Archbishop Charles Scicluna of Malta, adjunct secretary of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, Msgr. Bertomeu was sent by Pope Francis to Peru in July 2023 to investigate allegations of sexual, psychological and physicalabuse in Sodalitium.
Dubbed as a “special mission,” the investigation included meetings with victims of Sodalitium, the movements’ leaders as well as journalists who uncovered the abuses within the group. The findings of their investigation resulted in the expulsion of high-ranking members of the group, including its founder, Figari.
Although the Vatican has yet to publish an official statement, news of Msgr. Bertomeu’s appointment was confirmed most recently by José Enrique Escardó, the first member of Sodalitium Christianae Vitae to denounce abuse within the movement 25 years ago, during a Jan. 24 meeting with Pope Francis.
Among those critical of Msgr. Bertomeu was Peruvian journalist Alejandro Bermudez, who was among those expelled from Sodalitium by the pope last year. In an interview with OSV News Jan. 19, Bermudez said the investigation “was deeply flawed, marked by a blatant violation of due process, disregard for the truth and ideological bias of Msgr. Jordi Bertomeu Farnós.”
astronomer releases guide to the cosmos
How can faith and science be compatible?
Jesuit Brother Guy Consolmagno in a lab on May 10, 2014 by Robert Macke. Brother Consolmagno, the head of the Vatican Observatory, recently wrote the book “A Jesuit’s Guide to the Stars: Exploring Wonder, Beauty and Science.” (CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons)
VATICAN CITY (CNS) A nerdy love of science fiction, a yearning for adventure, a passion for science and a foundation of Jesuit education all helped in some way to lead a man from Detroit, Michigan, to become a master of meteorites and the head of the Vatican Observatory.
Jesuit Brother Guy Consolmagno, who has led the observatory since 2015, shares his journey of becoming a Jesuit astronomer, explains the compatibility of science and faith and guides readers on how to look at the heavens in a new book released Feb. 4 by Loyola Press.
Titled, “A Jesuit’s Guide to the Stars: Exploring Wonder, Beauty and Science,” the book also features full-page color astrophotographs taken by astronomers of the Vatican Observatory and NASA.
Brother Consolmagno, who has authored hundreds of scientific publications and several popular books, uses the new guide to describe his journey of faith and academic and professional pursuits through the lens of Jesuit spirituality.
“Ignatian spirituality emphasizes engagement with the world and ‘finding God in all things,'” he wrote.
“This aligns exactly with the work of a scientist because scientists find joy in studying things; to find joy is to find God.”
“If we believe that God created this universe, and if we believe that God so loved it that he sent his Son to become a part of it, then science becomes an act of growing closer to the creator. In that way, it becomes an act of prayer,” he wrote.
A common question the Jesuit astronomer gets is how faith and science can be compatible, and he wrote that the topic came up when he just happened to be chatting with William Shatner, the actor who played Captain Kirk in the original Star Trek.
“How I wound up talking to William Shatner,” he wrote, “is too long a story to go into here. But when I told him I was a Jesuit astronomer, he was flabbergasted.”
“He saw religion and science as two competing sets of truths. Two big books of facts. And what should happen if the facts in one book contradict the facts in the other?” Brother Consolmagno wrote.
Science is not a big book of immutable facts about everything, he wrote. Science comes up with insights and “laws” to help explain phenomena, but that knowledge is always incomplete and always open to revision. And, he wrote, Shatner thought faith was a kind of “blind faith” that meant “accepting something as certain without looking; or worse, closing our eyes to the facts and proceeding on emotion.”
“But that’s not faith at all,” the Jesuit wrote. “It’s proceeding even when we can’t see every thing we wish we could see. We never have all the facts, and so faith is how we make essential choices anyway.
“All of life is making crucial decisions on the basis of inadequate or incomplete information,” he wrote. But “what does Jesus constantly command in all the stories after the Resurrection? ‘Do not be afraid.'”
‘Don’t be afraid’
“Don’t be afraid of poor people; don’t be afraid of freshman physics. Don’t be afraid of death; don’t be afraid to be alive. Don’t limit yourself with the lies you tell yourself: I can’t do that,” he wrote.
“Of course we’re inadequate! But that is precisely what forces us to make room for God to enter in and help out,” he added. “If we knew it all, there’d be nothing left to learn. If we could do it all, there’d be nothing left to do. If it weren’t hard, it wouldn’t be an accomplishment; it wouldn’t be any fun.”
Brother Consolmagno used Scripture, poetry, Ignatian insights and nuggets of scientific discoveries in the book to show readers what makes a Jesuit astronomer tick and to encourage them to become curious about discovering one’sownneighborhood:Earth’sgalaxy
“‘A Jesuit’s Guide to the Stars’ is my way, as a Jesuit and an astronomer, of introducing a wider audience to the nighttime sky,” he wrote.
“Encountering this universe with the mindset of a Jesuit means going beyond just looking up and thinking, ‘Oh, wow, look at the Moon,'” he wrote.
“Engaging the universe with the heart means not only appreciating its beauty but also recognizing the love that lies behind that beauty and feeling the joy that is the sure sign of the presence
of God in his creation,” he wrote.
“A Jesuit’s eye on the sky means beholding it with both nostalgia and amazement, familiarity and mystery, awe and joy in everything. That’s why they call it the Universe. It is the ‘all things’ where we find God,” he wrote.❖
St. John Bosco Orphanage celebrates Feast
The teachers, matrons, Sisters, and boys of the St. John Bosco Orphanage, located at Plaisance, East Coast Demerara, celebrated the Feast Day of St. John Bosco
Day
Lethem Altar Server formation
would have been much more popular than just one woman and one man living together. And yet some of them seemed to be attracted to the Christian faith. But obviously the church thought that marriage was very sacred between one man and one woman for their life and that it was to be encouraged. And so it immediately presented the problem to the Christian church of what to do about this. The idea of encouraging them to marry within the Christian church was what Valentine was about. And he secretly married them because of the edict.
Valentine was eventually caught, imprisoned, tortured, and beheaded for performing marriage ceremonies against the command of the emperor.
St. Valentine is the Patron Saint of engaged
