Catholic Viewpoint, Volume 30, Issue 11, Jul - Sept 2023

VIEWPOIN

special guest for clergy assembly

On September 5th and 6th, clergy members, including priests, deacons, and seminarians from the Diocese, gathered in Armidale for the Clergy Assembly. The assembly began with a sponsored dinner by ADIG on Monday evening, followed by a two-day event featuring guest speakers. The key topic was on Synodality, with His Excellency Archbishop Charles Balvo as the first speaker and a Zoom session with Professor Renee Kohler-Ryan from Notre Dame University for the second session.

The second day focused on business, featuring presentations from Monsignor Wilkes, Peter Maher (Chair of Armidale Catholic Schools Board), and David Smith (Diocesan Financial Administrator). In the afternoon, the focus shifted to professional standards and safeguarding, with Jennifer Harman, Chancellor of the Diocese of Armidale, leading this session.

We extend our gratitude to all who contributed to the success of this assembly.

HIS EXCELLENCY ARCHBISHOP CHARLES BALVO, APOSTOLIC NUNCIO TO AUSTRALIA ATTENDS CLERGY ASSEMBLY

L-R - Fr Sabu Pulimalayil, Fr Roel Llave, Fr Samson Koyipurath, Fr Paul McCabe, Fr Abmar Dumayag, Fr Joseph Armah, Fr Vic Ignacio, Fr Ross O’Brien, Fr Paul Anthony Aguilar, Deacon Paul Manvell, Fr Paul Chandler, Archbishop Charles Balvo, Monsignor Edward Wilkes, Fr Thaddeus Ike, Br Maximillian, Father Antony Vattakkunnel, Fr John McHugh, Fr Chris Onuekwusi, Fr Antony Deleep, Fr Max Davis & Seminarian, Linh Dang.

wORLD yOUTH dAY follow up

JOURNEYING TO JESUS WITH MARY

written by isabella smith (issy)

Our World Youth Day pilgrims returned to Australia on the 13th of August, filled with joy after an incredible journey of faith. Amidst the excitement of travelling overseas, making new friends and experiencing the food, history and sights of Europe, three main things marked our time together: being encouraged in our journey of faith, the witness of the saints and the power of prayer.

Spending time with other young people who shared our faith was so encouraging for many of us. In Lisbon we were part of a crowd of 1.5 million young people and the excitement of seeing Pope Francis

and meeting young Catholics from almost every country on earth was incredible!

We were also encouraged in our faith as we were touched by the witness of those who have gone before us: the saints. The experience of visiting the places where the saints had lived and being able to bring our intentions and ask them for prayers before their tombs was a highlight for many of us.

We crowded around St Catherine of Siena in Rome, went down to the excavations beneath St Peter’s Basilica to see the bones of our first Pope, prayed night prayer with friars at St Francis’ tomb in Assisi, brought many petitions to the 15-year-old Bl Carlo Acutis (also buried in Assisi), squeezed past crowds to be near Fatima saints Jacinta and Francesco, and had a stopover in Spain at the little town of Alba de Tormes so we could pray at the tomb of the great St Teresa of Avila.

Finally, the pilgrimage was a time where we got to experience the peace of God’s presence through prayer. We were blessed to have Mass celebrated everyday by our three chaplains, and in so many special places, such as St Peter’s Basilica, the hills above Assisi, outside the main Basilica in Fatima, the grotto in Lourdes where Mary appeared and at the

Rue de Bac, the site in Paris of her apparitions that gave us the Miraculous Medal.

We grew in love for Mary through visits to sites of her apparitions and by praying the rosary together each day, including at candlelit processions in Fatima and Lourdes. We became familiar with spending time before Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament through times of Adoration. We even had a chance to draw near to Him at night time, finishing our three-week journey by staying in pilgrim accommodation at the Basilica of Sacre Coeur and having the opportunity to participate in a vigil of overnight Adoration in this famous cathedral which overlooks Paris. We asked our pilgrims about their highlights; here are a few snapshots of what we received from the pilgrimage:

“I’m so grateful that I got to go on this pilgrimage. Some of the highlights were definitely the people that I met, and the spirit that I felt of God through them. I also loved all the places we went to! I knew going into the WYD week that it would be very hectic but everyone managed it really well and I’m super thankful to our leaders.”

- Lily, Armidale

“The majority of the accommodation was located at religious convents, near churches or hotels with chapels, which gave the authentic pilgrim experience and allowed me to stray away from any mindset that we were on a holiday or I was a tourist and into the perspective that we were travelling as pilgrims to locations were our Lord has poured out a unique grace.”

-

Emelia, Armidale

“My highlights were probably going to the Roman churches and basilicas, as well as my time in Assisi and Lourdes. I loved the time set out for prayer with Adoration and Mass daily, and the information we would receive about the places we would go to.”

- Claire, Gunnedah

Thank you to all those who made this pilgrimage possible, especially our sponsors Centacare and ADIG. Their financial support made a huge difference and helped make the pilgrimage affordable so that many of us could have this amazing experience.

mission & evangelisation

LOCALS BUOYED BY YOUNG PEOPLE’S OPENNESS TO JESUS

Chris Da Silva, Mission & Evangelisation Support Officer

ON the 25th of August the Diocese’s third Mission and Evangelisation event for 2023, titled Youth & The Church, attracted almost 100 parishioners from local hubs in Armidale, Gunnedah, Inverell, Moree, Tamworth and Quirindi.

Harnessing the enthusiasm from our freshly returned World Youth Day pilgrims, attendees were treated to a highly interactive presentation via Zoom from Justine Hughes and Huw Warmenhoven of Alpha Youth Catholic.

The presentation unpacked the promising findings of a 2021 international study called The Open Generation, that interviewed 28,000 youth about their attitudes toward Jesus and the Bible, and found a majority of young people to be increasingly open and interested. The group was also treated to testimonies from local World Youth Day pilgrims Clare Canham (Gunnedah) and Jerick Perez (Tamworth) who are keen to spearhead a sustainable model of youth ministry in their local parish and school communities.

The event was particularly unique in that a crossgenerational dialogue between youth, young adults, middle-aged and elderly parishioners was begun, with a focus on how parishioners and parish communities can orient themselves to meet and engage spiritually open youth where they’re at.

As shown in the Open Generation, much of the challenge to parishioners lies in the fact that while youth are open to Jesus and the Bible, they do not necessarily see the institutional Church as a trustworthy exponent of the truth about theses

things. No silver bullet was provided, but the study was very encouraging in showing significant numbers of youth would give church a go if someone invited them. And so, becoming more invitational communities became one of the most practical takeaways from the event.

Another wonderful opportunity presented by Justine and Huw was for any parish and/or school community to be trained in sustainable youth ministry strategies using Alpha Youth as the catalyst - free of charge. This opportunity has already been taken by Holy Trinity Inverell and REC Mary-Jane Guest shared from the Inverell hub about the positive impact Alpha Youth was having on the Year 10 students.

Some of our attendees’ reflections on the night provide further encouragement and food for prayerful thought and reflection:

“There’shope.Youngpeopleareopen.Theywant relationships.Theywanttoseepeoplethatwalkthe talk-thatreallywitnessthefaith.Ithinkthatifevery memberoftheparish(regardlessofage)comestogether andreachesout,thenthere’ssomuchpossibilityfor youngpeopletohavethatencounterwithJesus.”

“Ithinkthattonight’seventwassuccessfulintheareaof connectingmembersofourParish/Diocesei.e.toclose thegapbetweengenerations.Whatyoungpeoplewant isauthenticity.Peoplewhoreallyliveoutwhattheysay, peoplewholoveGod.IfweloveGodandareauthentic inourfaith,wewillbeabletoconnectandreachoutto youngpeople.”-anonymous

The final Diocesan Mission & Evangelisation event will be a day-long in-person event on Saturday 18 November. Please check your parish bulletins in the coming weeks for further details.

Jerick Perez from Tamworth addressing the youth from St Nicholas’ Parish Tamworth and surrounds.

celebrating 40 years

MONSIGNOR WILKES CELEBRATING 40TH ANNIVERSARY OF ORDINATION

31st August 2023

Monsignor Edward Wilkes celebrated his 40th anniversary of Ordination on the 31st of August. He was ordained a priest on 31st August 1983 at Sacred Heart Catholic Church Inverell by Most Rev Henry J Kennedy, Bishop of Armidale. Monsignor has served in many parishes across the Diocese in his 40 years including East Tamworth, Gunnedah, Moree, Armidale, Wee Waa, Guyra, Bundarra, Uralla and Walcha.

A celebration was held for Monsignor at St Joseph’s School Hall on Saturday September 2nd with parishioners from the local area attending. A local parishioner Tim Bower said “Mons is a leader in the community; a man from the area who understands floods and fires. A visitor to all faiths at McMaugh’s Gardens (Nursing Home in Uralla) a quiet achiever who works hard for anyone doing it tough and that he is particularly skilled with listening to and supporting the dying – in summary, he is a humble man”.

Judy Elks, the principal of St Joseph’s Primary Uralla spoke on behalf of the teachers and children at the school who receive support from Monsignor. She said “He says Friday Mass for the children who do really love him. He is a ‘sounding board’ for the staff of the school which is much appreciated.”

Parishioner Ian Hamilton read a letter from the Avery Clan from Wee Waa where Monsignor spent 7 years as Parish Priest, “It is with deep gratitude today that we thank God for the inspiring gift of you. We send our very sincere and heartfelt congratulations on your 40 years of service”. Heather Hamilton spoke of her deep appreciation as she entered the Catholic faith at Wee Waa which has continued to inform and support her family and friends.

Thank you Monsignor for your 40 years of dedication to the Diocese of Armidale.

AROUND THE DIOCESE

CATHOLIC WOMENS LEAGUE

cwl tAMWORTH branch - HOPE KITCHEN FUNDRAISER

The Catholic Women’s League Tamworth Branch hosted its annual fundraiser raising $1800. All funds were donated to the HOPE Kitchen which runs out of Mary Help of Christians Catholic Church in South Tamworth offering meals and financial support for the less fortunate.

The day was a huge success with a full house sharing a lunch of delicious winter warming soups followed by an afternoon screening of Andre Rieu in concert. The afternoon was one of generosity, fellowship, food, and lots of fun.

Pictured are some of the ladies from the Tamworth branch of CWL presenting a cheque to Deacon Paul and Father Paul.

Thank you, ladies, for your amazing contribution!

SEMINARIAN NEWS

wELCOME sAJINLAL & LINH!

We welcomed another two Seminarians to the Diocese, Sajinlal Lazar Sudha from India and Quang Linh Dang from Vietnam in June & July.

Sajinlal & Linh have been spending time contributing to our Armidale, Narrabri & Moree Parishes so far and will be continuing their studies at the Good Shepherd Seminary in 2024.

We welcome Sajinlal and Linh to the Diocese and pray for them as they enter this important phase of formation. In further seminarian news, Isaac Forson was installed as a Lector in the Cathedral Parish on Wednesday 20th September. Congratulations Isaac!

Pictured are some of the ladies from the Tamworth Branch of CWL with Deacon Paul Manvell and Fr Paul Aguilar

L-R - Sajinlal, Fr Ross O’Brien, Isaac Forson & Linh exploring Armidale upon arrival to Australia.

congratulations bob!

PAPAL KNIGHTHOOD AWARDED TO BOB LOCKE

16th August 2023

Robert James Locke (Bob) was invested as a Knight of the Pontifical Equestrian Order of Saint Gregory in a special Mass on Wednesday 16th August 2023. This honour has been granted to Bob by Pope Francis and he is the 6th recipient of the award from our Diocese, Mr. Karl Schmude was the last awardee, presented in Armidale in 2017.

The award recognises his great witness and contributor that Bob has made to the Catholic Church in the Diocese of Armidale. He has demonstrated a deep commitment to the Catholic Church and to his Catholic faith. Bob has been an active member of Saint Joseph’s Parish Uralla as reader, member of the parish finance council and an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion while also involving himself in parish social and fundraising events. At a Diocesan level, Bob is a current member of the Diocesan Finance Council and the Armidale Clergy Fund, providing both with invaluable professional advice. In the past Bob was the accountant to the Diocese and a member of the Bishop’s Commission for Catholic Schools, Armidale Diocesan Investment Group Board and the Secretary/Accountant of the Armidale Diocesan Superannuation Fund.

Bob has played a key role in the success of the ADIG for the Diocese of Armidale. His expertise, steady influence, humble demeanor and generous gift of his time and talents, has been an extraordinary contribution to ADIG. The Diocese of Armidale would not have had financial stability except for the success of ADIG and this is primarily due to Bob’s leadership, guidance, hard work and dedication.

Monsignor Edward Wilkes states: “I am delighted that the Holy Father has accepted Bishop Michael Kennedy’s nomination of Robert Locke for this Papal Honour. It is a justly deserved honour for someone who has made a large contribution to the life of the Church in the Diocese”.

An excerpt from Bishop Michael Kennedy’s nomination read “Bob is highly regarded and deeply respected by all who know him, be they fellow parishioners, Bishops and priests, or people in the business community. His humility, unassuming character, sense of humour, love of the truth and love for the Church, endear him to many. I have no hesitation in recommending Robert James Locke (Bob) to be recognised by the Holy Father as a Papal Knight.”

Thank you Bob for your invaluable contribution to the Diocese of Armidale, you are truly one of a kind!

REV FATHER JOHN WILLIS CELEBRATES 50TH ANNIVERSARY

23rd August 2023

A Mass of Thanksgiving for the Golden Anniversary of the ordination of Rev Father John Willis was held at the Holy Family Chapel in Nazareth House Tamworth on Wednesday 23rd August.

Fr Willis was ordained a priest on 23rd August 1973 at Our Lady Star of the Sea, Watsons Bay NSW. He held many appointments in the Diocese including Gunnedah, Tamworth, Armidale & South Tamworth.

He was awarded a Papal Blessing to mark the special occasion presented by Bishop Les Tomlinson Emeritus bishop of Sandhurst VIC. Congratulations and thank you for your contribution to our Diocese Fr Willis.

SOCIAL MEDIA