Christian Perspectives

Church of Infant Jesus at Imbulgoda

The new Infant Jesus church at Imbulgoda is scheduled to be opened officially on December 15 by His Grace the Archbishop Most Rev. Dr. Malcolm Ranjith who will be the chief celebrant of the inaugural mass, which will be at 5 p.m.

The new church can accommodate about 1,000 devotees. No words can express the beauty and solemnity of the church. A dome in Sri Lankan architectural style adorns the church. The church is octagon in shape. In Christian religious symbolism, the octagon or the figure 8 represents resurrection, rebirth and eternal life.

The octagonal plan has been used in early church buildings. The first octagonal church was built by the Byzantine Christians in Capernaum over the reputed house of St. Peter.

The parishioners of Imbulgoda owe a deep debt of gratitude to our parish priest for the tremendous personal sacrifices he made, to build this church. No proper meals, blazing sun, stormy weather, for which he did not care.

He trudged from door to door with a few parishioners to collect funds to complete the work of the church and still going on overcoming numerous barricades. From dawn to dusk he is as busy as a bee. His great service will be remembered down the years.

Let all the parishioners of Imbulgoda praise and thank the Lord for this wonderful, courageous, faithful, good shepherd Rev. Fr. Ravin Sandasiri Perera. May peace and joy of the Lord surround him, and His blessings and protection follow Rev. Fr. Ravin everyday.

Olga Wanduragala,

Imbulgoda.

Weekly devotions

Being joyful during trials

Sunitha SAHAYAM

I like to spend more time this week on the subject of a Christian's Trials. Last week our devotions were on how to be joyful during trials as the Bible teaches us, and this week I want to discuss some points on the same passage of James 1: 2-4

James 1:

To my brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. 4 But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.

From these verses it is clear that our faith is currently being tested during this time of trial and this produces patience, which seems to be a major lesson that God teaches every Christian and is willing to spend a lot of time in seeing that we get this lesson right. Every spiritual stalwart was tried by fire in order to get this character installed in his life. Abraham, Job, Moses, David, Peter, Paul and the list could go on.....

~Certainly you and I, if we want to follow Christ must also transform our impatient character into a patient one as patience is a virtue in a Christian's life and you cannot be a witness to Christ without it and God through trials will transform our impatient nature into a patient one.

In my own experience, every trial bears the mark of patience and trusting God . I must warn you that this is a slow process and takes life long sessions of trials, and perfection is only reached when we see Jesus face to face, but the transformation must start to take place, here on earth.

There are two things to remember - God's final goal is that we take on the character of Christ. He is not interested if we achieve degrees, or hold a good job and own properties and chattels to show the world how successful we are in a worldly way.

But he is certainly interested in transforming our characters to reflect Christ and is involved in it painstakingly and the method he uses is through trials.

Secondly, the whole process, the word says, is that we attain maturity as Christians. Some versions of the Bible read James 1:4. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete.

Now, who is a mature Christian? The Holy Spirit revealed this to me in my own trial - the mature Christian is one who will (according to the first commandment) love God with all his heart, with all his soul and all his strength. In other words, the one who understands what the first commandment is about.

Deut 6:5

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.

NKJV

You may think you do love Him but wait till the trial touches someone you love and you start doubting God -

You find that Abraham passed this trial with flying colours when God asked Abraham to sacrifice his only son, the son of promise - Abraham had come through several trials that he failed but ultimately understood the love of God and loved God enough not to doubt God. Very often, God has to teach us to love Him in spite of the whole world crumbling around us so that we could say 'though He slays me yet will I trust Him'.

So, if we are going through a period of trial, let us realize with the help of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God what God is trying to teach us, so that one could bear it up with joy as we progress in our spiritual walk and the character formation of Christ takes place in us, thus making our trials into triumphs as the word of God guarantees

Prayer:

Lord, our heavenly Father, we thank you that you have full control of our lives and we trust you to take us through our trials in order to be victors and not victims. Father, it is your perfect will that we become transformed into reflecting Christ's nature and character in our lives and trials have been chosen in your wisdom to be the method you use. Help us to draw close to you during this time and not live apart from you .

Enable us to submit our wills to you and experience your presence and may this trial reveal you more and may many spiritual blessings be showered on us as a result, I pray. I present this prayer to you, in Jesus' name. Amen

Ampitiya Oblate Scholasticate celebrates Golden Jubilee

E. Weerapperuma

The Oblate Scholasticate, Ampitiya, Kandy will sing from the salubrious hill-tops announcing that they have ceremoniously entered the golden age on December 8 this year, to live among the salutary. While celebrating the Jubilee they will also make it loud and clear that they aspire to move on from the golden age to the diamond age and go on even for another century, if God willing.

On this occasion the Members of the OMI Congregation will make a pledge to their continuous service, to provide shelter to those who come to her bosom from time to time, and bring forth worthy religious and devoted priests to serve the Sri Lanka Church, to the countries coming under the purview of the Colombo Oblate Province, and to any country in the globe seeking the services of the Oblates from Sri Lanka.

The Superior General of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate Most Rev.Fr. Wilhelm Steckling OMI who is on his second visit to Sri Lanka, (Fr. Superior General first visited the Scholasticate on June 20, 2001) will preside at the Golden Jubilee Year celebrations and dedicate the Scholasticate once more for a fruitful service to all seeking their help and assistance being "the specialists of most difficult missions" as stated by Pope Pius XI, the Pope of the Missions.

Thanks to God

Very Rev. Fr. Clement Ashley Waidyasekera OMI, the Provincial Superior, Colombo Province, Anuradhapura Bishop Rt. Rev. Dr. Norbert Andradi OMI, Rev. Fr. Reginald Lucian OMI, the present Superior of the Oblate Scholasticate, the staff, the Member Priests and Lay Brothers of the Congregation will rally together to give thanks to God, the Almighty, Jesus Christ the Redeemer and Saviour of the human race and Blessed Virgin, the Mother and Patroness of the OMI Congregation.

The Oblate Study Club and the Golden Jubilee Committee will release a special souvenir to mark the historical event of the Scholasticate.

Through the Oblates in Sri Lanka do celebrate the Diamond Jubilee of the Scholasticate of Mary Immaculate, this year, the very first Oblate House of Formation was inaugurated in 1934. This year also marks 162 years of the presence of the Oblates in this soil, the " The Land of the Small Miracle". The seminary was set up by Archbishop Rt. Rev.Dr.Christopher Bonjean OMI, in 1871, as the Vicar Apostolic of Jaffna, had given shelter to those aspired to be priests and religious.

It was the during the tenure of Very Rev. Fr. Alexis Serru OMI (1956 - 1962) as the Oblate Provincial, steps were taken in 1959, to build the present Scholasticate at Ampitiya.

This is the second building constructed to be the permanent Oblate Scholasticate on the architectural design drawn by Rev. Fr. Jean Sion OMI, in a plot of land purchased close to the National Seminary of Our Lady of Sri Lanka, within the citadel of historical Kandy, declared as one of the World Heritage Cities of the world.

The ground braking ceremony to begin the construction work of the future Scholasticate was held in January 1957. The then Kandy Bishop Rt. Rev.Dr. Bernard Regno OSB(1886- 1977) to whom the people affectionately referred as "the Coolie bishop" and served the diocese from 1936 to 1959, blessed and laid the foundation stone on December 8, 1957, the feast day of the Immaculate Conception of Virgin Mary.

The House, open to accommodate scholastics from the countries of the SAARC Region and beyond the periphery of the Region if and when required was blessed and declared open by the then Oblate Superior General Most Rev. Fr. Leo Dechatelets OMI on February 17, 1959.

The Scholastics numbering 48 moved to the new building on June 02,1959,after their major vacation. Rev. Fr. Anthony Dharmarathne OMI was appointed on May 27th, 1959 as the Acting Superior. They go down in the Oblate Scholasticate history as the first batch to have occupied the new building. Rev. Fr. S. N. Arulnesan OMI (48) took over as the First Superior on March 7th 1960 and was there in that capacity until March, 1966.

It is on record that during Fr. Arulnesan as Superior, a new wing was added to the Scholasticate in 1960, to accommodate the increasing number of Scholastics entering House.

His Eminence Cardinal Agagnian blessed and laid the foundation stone. On June 25, 1962, the new extension of two storied building was declared open by Very Rev.Fr. Alexis Serru OMI, the then Oblate Provincial Superior of the Sri Lanka Province. In the year 1947, a proclamation was made dedicating Sri Lanka to Our Lady and the Major Seminary which came to be in the Kandyan Kingdom in 1955 was aptly named the National Seminary of Our Lady of Sri Lanka.

The scholastics who moved from Kohuwala to Kandy, shared the rooms with the Diocesan brothers until the completion of the construction work of the Ampitiya Scholasticate with Rev. Fr Francis Bizien OMI, playing the role of the moderator to the 33 scholastics. Rev. Fr. Fedrick D. Sackett OMI, responsible for the spacious and magnificent building constructed in line with the Kandyan style of architecture unique to the Upcountry, played the dual role as the Rector of the Seminary and the Superior of the Scholastics.

Oblate history

The Oblate history of this land records of a first-ever Scholasticate on May 1, 1934, almost 87 years after the arrival of the pioneering Oblates to the shores of this land.

A house at No. 27, Kinsey Road, Borella purchased was turned as the Oblate Formation House or the Scholasticate. Rev. Fr. Alphonse Margez OMI (27) was appointed as the first Moderator for a batch of 20 scholastics and the Rector of the Major Seminary was the Superior of the Scholastics.

According to Rev. Fr. Matin Quere OMI, the reputed exponent of the Sri Lanka Church history and in particular on the Oblates presence here, has documented that the setting of the first Scholasticate was made possible with the elevation of Sri Lanka as a new Province of the OMI Congregation in April 1934, one of the most prestigious events in the annals of the Oblate history of the " Land of Small Miracle".

Golden Jubilee

The Most Rev. Fr. Theodore Laboure OMI, elected the new Superior General of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate Congregation at the 1932 General Chapter took steps elevate Sri Lanka a New Province within two years after assuming the office.

The Oblates celebrated the Golden Jubilee of that first Scholasticate in 1984.

The Scholasticate today has been beautified and the interior decorations are something pleasant to the eye.

The members of the scholasticate pay tribute to Very Rev. Fr. Clement Waidyasekara the OMI Provincial of Colombo Province for his efforts in this regard.

At this point it is very relevant if we dive into the past and refresh our minds with reminiscence how the OMIs happened to be in the island, the "pearl of the Indian Ocean" or the "Tear drop of the Asian Region".

The team had left France on October 21, 1847, the day, the Oblate Vicariate was officially established. Mr. D. J. B. Kuruppu in his book "The Oblates of Mary Immaculate in Ceylon records that St. Eugene de Mazenod of Marseilles, the Founder of the OMI Congregation responding favourably to the request made by Monsignor Orazio Bettachini, the Italian Oratorian Missionary working in Ceylon being sent by Propaganda Fide of Rome, to accompany with him the pioneering team of Oblates under the leadership of Rev. Fr. John Stephen Semeria OMI.

The pioneering group included Rev. Frs. Louis Keating, Francois Ciamin and Coadjutor Bro. Gaspard de Stefani.

However according to one other source the invitation to send missionaries to Ceylon was made by Rev. Fr. Andre Reinaud, a French Missionary who had been working from 1844 in the country.

Pope John Paul II closer to beatification

Cardinals and Bishops have voted to recognise pope John Paul II's "heroic virtues," moving him a step closer on the path to sainthood, Vatican sources said Tuesday.

The 15-strong commission of cardinals and bishops that studied the case are not allowed to speak on their deliberations, but the sources said their vote was in favour of John Paul II, who was pope from 1978-2005.

Current Pope Benedict XVI must validate the commission's decision before Karol Wojtyla can be proclaimed as "venerable".

The final stage before beatification is the examination of the "miracle" attributed to John Paul II for the unexplained healing in 2005 of a French nun who suffered from Parkinson's disease. Medical and theological panels will look at the case, which will then be considered by the bishops and cardinals commission before Benedict XVI again has to authorise their decisions.

If all these stages are met, John Paul II's beatification will follow, which could take place in October 2010 to mark the anniversary of the Polish pope's election on October 16, 1978.

Should this happen, Karol Wojtyla will have been beatified a year faster than Mother Teresa (1910-1997), beatified six years after her death.

Benedict XVI set in motion the process of beatification for John Paul II just two months after his predecessor's death on April 2, 2005. AFP

Inspirational exercise books for

Catholic Sunday school childrenThe first copies of the Second issue of the Inspirational Exercise Books for uplifting Sunday School children was presented by Very Reverend Alexious Benedict Director of the Drug Prevention and Rehabilitation Programme to His Grace the Archbishop Malcolm Ranjith and Very Reverend Ivan Perera National Director of Catholic Schools at the Archbishops House recently.

These Exercise Books are designed to inspire children to be knowledgeable and be inspired by the word of God towards living a Spirit filled life and a drug free family environment. Matching to the highest quality in the market and in attractive religious designs for children they are available through the good offices of The Home of Good News.

A discount of 10% is given for every purchase of 100 books. Therefore the books come within the purchasing power of every person and Sunday School needing Exercise books.

[Remembering Rt. Rev. Dr. Frank Marcus Fernando]

Requiem High Mass

Christie Fernando

The third month of remembrance of former Chilaw Bishop Emeritus His Lordship Rt. Rev. Dr. Frank Marcus Fernando will be celebrated with a requiem High Mass by the Chilaw Bishop Rt. Rev. Dr. Valence Mendis with the Priests' Presbytery today at 11.30 a.m. at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Cathedral, Chilaw.

"All are welcome to participate at this Holy Mass", said Very Rev. Fr. Patrick Wijesinghe, Vicar General of the Diocese of Chilaw.

A medical clinic organised by the Sadasarana Matha Kantha Samithiya of St. Sebastian’s Church, Enderamulla was held at the church premises recently. Here the patron of the Samithiya and the Parish Priest of the church Rev. Fr. Anton Premalal blessings to inaugurate the medical clinic and a moment of the clinic.