JAMSHEDPUR DIOCESE

                                                 

 

If I can stop one heart from breaking,

I shall not live in vain,

If I can ease one life the aching,

Or cool one pain, or help one fainting robin,

Unto his nest again,

I shall not live in vain.

                      [Emily Dickinson]

 

Engagements of Bishop Felix Toppo, S.J. – October, 2004

 

 

 

D I O C E S A N  - R O U N D –UP

 

Holy Father, Pope John Paul II has declared “Year of the Eucharist” from October 2004 to October 2005: The Holy Father invites all Christians to come closer to the Eucharistic Lord, Jesus Christ, to reflect and experience the richness of this great mystery of love and unity. All the Parishes and Institutions are requested to be part of the solemn commemoration during the year of the Eucharist.

 

St. Joseph’s Cathedral, Golmuri : With the hoisting of  flag in honor of Mother Mary  on August 29 the Parish became very active in preparing for the feast on September 08. Every Mass center had thematic homilies by different priests on all the nine days of the Novena. The Parish Priest, Fr. Jerome Pereira came back on 02^nd healthy, wealthy and wise after having been away for treatment for 2 months. He was surprised to see the grotto area cleared and all the fruit trees and plants cut off in preparation for the birthday celebration of Mother Mary. He reached too late to guide the people involved in the cruelty to the trees in the campus.

On September 08 Fr. A. Alphonse presided at the solemn Eucharist at the Cathedral, Fr. Cornelius Tigga at Gyan Deep and Fr. Sahay Thason at the Mercy Chapel. Bishop Felix Toppo had the pastoral visit of the Parish on September 05. He presided at the Concelebrated Eucharist in honor of Blessed Mother Teresa of Kolkata at 7.30 a.m. It was an occasion for the Bishop to meet the Parish Council, Area leaders, Mahila Sangh and the Youth immediately after the Mass. Bishop congratulated all the Parish organizations for their hard work and vision for the parish. Bishop commended that the Parish community kept up the dignity of the mission of the church by working together in unity and harmony with all people of God. Fr. Leo D’Souza made a quick visit to Mumbai to meet his Aunty who came from Austria and be with his family members for a few days.

St, Barbara’s Parish, Mosaboni : Pastor, Fr. Raphael Monteiro brought the Sunday School children on a picnic cum visit to Jamshedpur town on September 05 together with the teachers and Sisters of the Sunday School. They visited Telco, Golmuri , Jubilee Park and other various sites of importance before returning  back home. Fr. Leo welcomed them to SJWC with a special treat.

 

St. Mary’s Church, N. Road :  Fr. Edwin Coelho , Parish Priest made every possible effort to make the Parish Tamil Sabha understand that  hoisting just one flag in honor of Mother Mary is traditional , liturgical and meaningful  but ended up with nine flags on the same pole. Fr. Bipin Pani presided over the feast day Eucharist and Fr. Edwin blessed the big meal after the Mass. The local newspapers gave good coverage of the celebrations of September 08 elaborating how the feast helped the poor and helpless people in the past.

 

Church of Our lady of Nativity, Sini : Bishop Felix Toppo, S.J. presided at the solemn Eucharist in honor of the Nativity of Mother Mary and the Parish feast  on September 08 at 8.00 a.m. During the Mass the Bishop confirmed 12 members of the parish. The Parish Council had made elaborate arrangements to celebrate the feast meaningfully .The parishioners had the special privilege of having breakfast and lunch with their Bishop. The Parish extended a warm welcome to the Bishop with various cultural items after the Mass.

 

Holy Family Church, Kumardhubi : The solemnity of the Nativity of Mother Mary was celebrated on September 12. From August 29 to the feast there was daily prayers and Mass with different themes. Prior to the procession there was Benediction in the Church. The hour-long procession was well conducted and the weather supportive. Fr. George Manna presided at the concelebrated Eucharist at 6.15 p.m. The Mugma  Mass Center led the community in singing and giving praises to the Lord and Mother Mary. The solemn feast was celebrated in a very cordial and family spirit. Congratulations to Frs. Robert Toppo , Amatus Kujur and the Parish Council.

                                       Photo I]

Lupita Parish, Telco : The Parish Council organized various programs during the month to celebrate the feast of Blessed Mother Teresa on September 05 and the Nativity of Mother Mary on September 08. The poor people of the Parish were given a meal on September 05. Fr. Gilbert D’Souza presided at the Solemn Mass in honor of Mother Mary on September 08. The 56^th birthday Fr. Vijay Bhat was celebrated on September 19 with Con-celebrated Eucharist, felicitations and a special meal for the clergy in the evening.

 

 

St. Albert’s College, Ranchi :  Rector, Fr. C.R. Prabhu attended the Major Seminary Rector’s Meeting in Jabalpur  from the 20^th to 25^th September. Fr. Selva attended the Priest’s retreat at Jesu Bhavan from the 19^th to 25^th preached by Archbishop Henry D’Souza.

 

St. Vincent’s Ashram, Adra :  Bishop Felix Toppo,S.J. blessed and inaugurated the newly constructed and renovated convent building on September 10 during the solemn Eucharist. The children of the hostel and the members of the Home for the Aged and Helpless welcomed the Bishop with songs and dances. Later all shared a family meal prepared by the Sisters.

 

 

St. Joseph’s Church, Charbandia :  Fr. Augustine Topno   managed  alone the School and parish affairs while Fr. James Quadros was away for medical check up  in Bangalore-Mangalore from the 15^th August. The good monsoon signals good scope for the farmers of the area. The computers gifted by Mrs. Jobha Majih has helped the children to learn the basics of the modern subject.

 

Catholic Charities/ Samekit Jan Vikas Kendra : As the monsoon refrigerated the4 earth, CC & SJVK geared up with extra rhythm in various developmental activities like conducting health and community awareness programs, watershed , and women empowerment in the remote villages of Jamshedpur diocese. Formation and strengthening of  Self-Help Groups, literacy programs, Animal husbandry , agriculture etc. Vikas Bharati had Balwadi and Primary teachers training, entrepreneurship training, income generating programs, veterinary trainings and legal aid . Two workshops were held at the Vikas Bharati on Functional Vocational Training Forum and Logical Framework Analysis for the staff field workers of CC & SJVK. The 1^st batch of VT students passed out successfully with skills for jobs. The girls who were in training on Embroidery and Knitting are out with certificates of merit. Congratulations to Sr. Kevin for imparting skills to the batch. The Radio/TV repair and motor mechanics are busy mastering skills from their masters at the Vikas Bharati. Director, Fr. Bipin is on the look out for campus selection for the group. (Felix Crasta)

 

Pratiksha, Neeldungri :  Fr. Roque Cardoza lost his mother , Cecilia Cardoza [78]on September 01. Fr. Roque rushed home for the funeral and returned on 13. The 52^nd birthday of Fr. A. Alphonse was celebrated on 9^th with Mass, felicitation and family meal. Fr. Casimir is always busy taking care of the garden, cooking special dishes and guiding the seminarians in all their spiritual exercises. The garden and the animals attract many local and national visitors to Pratiksha.

 

Holy Family Mass Center, Rahargora :  September, 12 was a memorable day for the Catholics of  Rahargora - Bishop’s visitation . Bishop Felix was given a very cordial and solemn welcome on his arrival . During the solemn Mass Bishop Felix Toppo Confirmed 08 youngsters and gave Communion to 12 children. Immediately after the Mass there was felicitation and family meal for all. Congratulations to Pastors Fr. Gualbert Furtardo and Fr. Sahay Thason for guiding the people to grow in faith and unity.

 

Holy Cross Convent, Pramathnagar :  Bishop Felix Toppo presided at the feast day Mass at the Holy Cross Convent on September 14 at 6.30 a.m. Frs. Bipin Pani, Gualbert Furtardo, A. Alphonse, Edwin Coelho joined the Bishop for the con-celebration. The Pratiksha seminarians were at their best to sing praises to the Lord. All shared a sumptuous breakfast with the sisters. In the evening the clergy and religious of the town gathered to wish the sisters God’s special blessings and share the family meal.

 

Sacred Heart Church, Adra : The 47^th birthday of Fr. Edward Saldanha was celebrated on September 21 with Mass, felicitations and a special meal in the evening for the nearby communities. Recently somebody gifted an Alsatian watch dog to Fr. Edward for  campus security. The beautiful dog behaved well with everybody for a week and then one fine day it attacked the cook and another day terrorized the campus until the School Principal called up the Territorial Army men who eliminated the canine terrorist from the campus. Since then there is total peace and freedom in the campus.

 

Holy Cross Convent, Chandil : The feast of the  Triumph of the Holy Cross was celebrated at Chandil  with  special High Mass, felicitations and  family meal for all. Over 30 clergy and religious from the town gathered at the convent at noon to wish Sr. Daya and her community every blessing in the Lord.

 

St. Mark’s Parish, Toklo : Bro. Bene Kichingia, S.J. toured the villages of Jomro and Lanchi for weeks to be with the people and strengthen their faith. He returned home with malaria and proceeded to Jesu Bhawan for the Catechists seminar. Fr. Valerian rushed him to Mercy during the seminar and Bene had to be in the hospital for a week. Later he took rest at the Mother Teresa Nivas under the special protection of Msgr. John Bodra for another week before getting back into the action field at Toklo.

 

Bishop’s House, Golmuri :  Cardboard boxes are seen in front of Bishop Joe Rodericks’ Room either filled up or empty. He started packing up his belongings from August and still continues. He hopes to shift to his official residence [Lupita Hall ,Telco ] shortly with all his bags and boxes. Any day you can expect an invitation to participate at the ‘Happy Hour’ vigil and send off meal from the Minister of the BH.

Holy Child-Mission Sunday calendars have arrived and the same will reach to all the parishes and institutions in October. We need your co-operation to be part of these common programs of the Church.

Fr. Jerry Cutinha directed the ‘Regents Recollection’ in the month of August [ 28-29] at the Bishop’s House. It was an enriching experience for our six young men in ministry in different parishes.

Catholic Ashram, Purulia : Parish Priest, Fr. Manu Horo, popularly known as ‘Santhal Missionary’ is  busy in reaching out to the people to strengthen their faith and to make aware of their own culture. He celebrated his 55^th birthday on September 7. The hostel children greeted him with special affection immediately after the Mass. The Hatikunder school children welcomed him with a special felicitation program on his surprise visit to them on that day. Fr. Henry has already cultivated paddy in the land he acquired recently at Balarampur. He hopes to move over shortly and be among the people he plans to work with.

 

 

St. Joseph’s School, Golmuri :  St. Joseph’s School received an award from the Government of Jharkhand for the best result in  the district of East Singhbhum. Sr. Marie Therese SSH received the award on September 05 from the Education minister at Ranchi. The award consists of a Citation, Shield and Rs. 5000.00.

Mrs. Chandra Dibar of St. Joseph’s was honored with ‘The best Teacher’ award on September 05 in Jamshedpur by the district administration. The students of St. Joseph’s presented a cultural item at the  function on the same day and came home with the 1^st prize. At the inter school debate –2004 organized by “Jyoti’, Miss Priya Priyadarshani of Std X received the 2^nd prize.  Congratulations to the Staff and Students of St. Joseph’s.

                                 Photo II]

Christ the King Parish, Chakradharpur : The Nativity of Mother Mary was solemnly celebrated on September 08 with much enthusiasm and devotion. Bishop Felix Toppo, S.J. presided at the solemn Mass at 5.00 p.m. in the Church. Faithful from all mission stations and nearby parishes came in full strength for the celebrations.

 

Infant Jesus Parish, Sonari : Bishop Felix Toppo, S.J. visited the Parish on  September 18 from 10.00 a .m to 5.00 p.m. Bishop had meetings with the Parish Council, St. Vincent de Paul, Mahila Sangh and Youth  and discussion on various issues concerning the faith life of the community as well as the future plans for the Parish. Pastor, Fr. Bernard Surin made sure that all his parishioners got sufficient time to be with the Bishop.

 

St. Robert’s Parish, Parsudih : The feast of St. Robert Bellarmine , the Parish Feast was celebrated on September 17.Bishop Emeritus Joe Rodericks presided at the solemn Mass at 9.00 a.m. in the Church. Immediately after the Mass there was felicitation and later all shared the family meal with the parish community of 1200 plus. On Sunday, September 19 Bishop Felix Toppo, S.J. presided at the solemn Eucharist and Confirmed 53 youngsters and gave 1^st Communion to 36 children of the parish. Since it was the official pastoral visit of the Bishop to the parish he had meetings with the clergy, religious, Parish Council , CAJ[P],Mahila Sangh and Youth. The clergy and the religious of the town had a special vigil celebration on16^th at the presbytery.

 

St. Xavier’s Church, Chaibasa : The Kolhan-Porahat Deanery meeting was held on September 12, Sunday at St. Xavier’s Parish Hall, Chaibasa. Forty plus Priests, Religious and Parish representatives attended the sessions. Bishop Felix Toppo, S.J. was present for the meeting. The forthcoming Khuntpani pilgrimage was the main agenda. Various committees are formed to manage the annual feast with devotion and solemnity.  

On September 13 Fr. Alex Misquith rushed Fr. Valerian Lobo to Mercy with high fever and headache. Valerian stayed over a week in Mercy and got treated for Malaria and Typhoid. He had few days rest at Mother Teresa Nivas before getting back to the schedules of Divya Bharati, Chaibasa.

 

St. Theresa’s Church, Sindri : The feast of the Nativity of Mother Mary was celebrated on September 08 with Rosary procession and Mass. The Parish Council had made elaborate arrangements to give a good treat to all the parishioners in honor of Mother Mary. The Mahila Sangh and Youth are at work to bring more vitality to the parish community. 

 

Gyandeep, Birsanagar : The Nazareth Sisters celebrated the feast of St. Vincent de Paul on September 25, Saturday with a special meal for the clergy and religious of the town. On 27^th morning Fr. Jerome Pereira celebrated Mass for the staff, students, parents and well-wishers of the school. The School children and staff organized a special felicitation program to honor the Sisters immediately after the Mass.

Cheshire Home, Sundernagar : The Daughters of Charity celebrated the feast of St. Vincent de Paul on September 26 with a special meal for the clergy ,religious , committee members and benefactors together with the inmates. It was an occasion for everybody to meet the inmates and interact with them.

 

N A T I O N A L – I N T E R N A T I O N A L  R O U N D – U P S :

 

Urbano, Rome : “ I am fine. We are still continuing with the language course. It will end on September 18. Then we move to Rome. For 2 weeks we will be with the Rector for the annual retreat. Our classes will begin from October .The Italian language professor is happy with my progress. [ Dileep Marandi, Pontificio Collegio Urbano , “De Propaganda Fide”, Via Urbano VIII, 16 – 0018 ROMA]

 

How the Pope spends his summer vacation : “Pope John Paul II has been giving advice about how to get closer to God during vacation. Fresh from his 12-day break in the Italian Alps, the Pope in his Angelus message entrusted the time of vacation to Mary, asking her to help us to appreciate it as a “propitious time to rediscover the primacy of the interior life”. The Pope reflected on his experience in the mountains and noted that in the midst of nature ,”it is easy to feel the benefits of silence , a quality that is becoming rarer and rarer today”. [ Zenit]

John Crasta :  “ Love and greetings from Germany. The ministry is going on well. I will be back to Leuven in the first week of October. The weather is very nice and pleasant here in Germany. The exact date of my visit to Jamshedpur will be communicated later on. Greetings to Monsignor. I have changed my  e-mail ids. My hotmail id was meanwhile hijacked by someone in Dubai ! It is unbelievable but true ! So here are my ids: [email protected] and [email protected] “.

                                           

Austria grateful for Papal action on scandal-hit seminary : Austrians seem pleased with  John Paul II’s quick decision to send a special inspector to the Sankt Poelten Diocese, where the Major Seminary is linked to a child-pornography scandal. The Vatican press office announced on 20 July that the Pope asked Austrian Bishop Klaus Kung of Feldkirch to investigate the situation.

The Holy Father’s decision was received with great satisfaction, both by public opinion in the country, as well as by the Church in Austria, especially because of the speed of the Pope’s decision, who has just returned from Valled’Aosta”, said Erich Leitenberger, director of Austrian Catholic agency Kathpress.

“The decision to appoint an apostolic inspector for a diocese is made in very few cases; that is, it is extremely severe and important measure”, Leitenberger said. [Zenit]

 

Searsolin : “ Loving greetings and prayerful wishes from Fr. David Vincent. I am fine and enjoying over here. I am also doing well in my studies. Thanks for your support and prayers. I get the news of the diocese. Kindly pray for me”. [David Vincent]

 

Aylmer : “ Greetings from Aylmer. Summer is over and all are back to work. Our pastoral year kicked off with meeting of Parish Pastoral Council and the Wardens[Finance Committee] and the outdoor Mass. Around six hundred people took part in the Eucharistic celebration which was conducted in the backyard followed by lunch for all the participants. This year the focus of the parish is on youth. The parish is planning to send at least 20 young boys and girls to Germany for WYD. The four ladies who visited India is organizing a dinner and auction on the 17^th October to raise fund for the Goilkera School project. Getting busy with parish work. It is already cold. Last night it was 7 degree.”. [Joy Paul]

 

BACK