Parish Bulletin

Parish Letter I8th Sunday of the Year 2008
Come ... all you who are thirsty!

After hearing of the death of John the Baptist, the Gospel tells us, Jesus withdrew to a lonely place. He wanted to be alone to grieve over his friend and cousin, his precursor and herald. He needed time alone to ‘regroup,’ to process the loss of John, to put closure to their relationship. But no sooner than he got there, the crowds had already caught up with him. We see Jesus here facing the challenge to balance his personal need to take time out and mourn the Baptist; and the pressing needs of the people who sought him. When he saw the crowds, he took pity on them and healed their sick.

This Gospel reveals to us a very important truth about Jesus. He was true God and true human being, as we profess in the Creed. What shines out in this Gospel is his genuine humanity. As a human being he felt loss and all the emotions that we feel when someone we know and love dies. He felt the need to be alone, to refocus his life after the loss, to honour the beloved dead. He knew that he would not be much use to those who needed his help when he was feeling this low. This is an idea that many people today, as many others throughout history did, find difficult to understand and accept – that God can be a human being all the way! That God can feel loss and pain, get tired and need rest. That is the mystery of the Incarnation – God became a human being and lived among us.

Then he feeds the multitude miraculously.

It is easy here to emphasize that it was because of his divinity that Jesus performed this miracle. There is no doubt about that – only God can do something like that. Yet, it is important to acknowledge that it is because of his human ability to empathise, to feel with and for others, that Jesus worked the miracle. In his own neediness, he was able to see the need of others. Contemporary spirituality has often called Jesus “the wounded healer.” He knew and bore the wounds of our human condition; hence he understood the pain of the wounds of others. Because he had experienced need he felt for the needs of others. Only God-become-human can do that. So if we make his humanity shine in this miracle we are at the same time making his divinity shine!

Isaiah, the prophet in the first reading, talks about the everlasting covenant out of the favours promised to David. Through the words of Isaiah, God calls out to all who are thirsty, hungry, and have no money. He wants them to come so he can fill them with plenty. Jesus fulfils this promise in today’s Gospel – he fills with plenty the crowds who were thirsty, hungry and had no money. He filled the sick with healing. He felt pity for those who were abandoned. God became a human being so that his promises, given through the prophets, may come true.

St Paul, whom we commemorate this year, came to know Jesus and his life was transformed. It was his encounter with this God who became a human being that made Paul so utterly convinced of Jesus’ power to save. So he could not think of anything that could come between us and the love of Christ. Even death cannot separate us from the love of God made visible in Christ Jesus our Lord. It is this love of God, prophesied by Isaiah, proclaimed by Paul and made human by Jesus that beckons us in the Eucharist. Let us open our hearts and draw closer to God who calls us.

Yours in the Redeemer,

Fr. William Guri, C.Ss.R.

Fr Gerry's Letter

Fr Gerry Mulligan's Letter to St Gerard's Parish

While I was overseas in July, Gerry Mulligan, our Vice Provincial, was kind enough to come to Zimbabwe and help in our parishes. I was very happy that he came, especially at this time when our country is going through a very difficult phase. While telling our confreres in the UK the difficult situation here, I feared that Gerry might be scared and decide not to came. Knowing fully well what was happening here he decided to come. Gerry responded in the spirit of the true Redemptorist: "Always ready to undertake what is difficult." The letter that he wrote for our Parish Bulletin as he left speaks for itself:

ST GERARD'S PARISH LETTER 17th. Sunday of The Year 2008

One cold day last January in Scotland, Fr Ronnie McAinsh- our Redemptorist Provincial said to me “They were going to be a bit short-staffed in Zimbabwe during the month of July. They needed help with the weekend and daily Masses.” Listening to the rain and sleet battering on the window pane, I said “I’ll go.”

Five months later, on June 29th, standing in the queue for security checks at Glasgow airport I wondered if I had made the right decision. People looked at me strangely when I said I was going to Zimbabwe for a month. I must admit, I felt a bit apprehensive myself after all we had seen on TV during the lead up to the elections.

First impressions can be misleading. When I arrived, so much seemed to be going on as normal. Certainly, the welcome I received from everyone was overwhelming and people seemed to be genuinely pleased that I had come. It was only with time that I began to realize how very difficult and frightening things had been. I was amazed at people’s ability to cope, to survive from day to day and even to keep smiling– something I had remembered from previous visits. I felt in a strange way honoured to be here; humbled that people had allowed me to share these days with them. But, there was tiredness in people’s faces, not surprisingly, and a feeling of disappointment that was so real you could almost touch it.

I enjoyed meeting my Redemptorist confreres again at St Gerard’s and visiting the student community at Tafara. It is always good to meet up with your brother Redemptorists and enjoy catching up with all the news of people and having some good laughs along the way. Soon, I was getting familiar with the way from St Gerard’s to Nazareth House and St. Augustine’s Hatcliffe. I enjoyed so much the Masses and the singing.It is always a moving experience to share in Mass, in different places. We have so much in common as we gather at the altar. So many different faces, different lives, different experiences, yet all reaching out to receive the food God gives us, the food we must share with one another.

During the month, people kept saying to me “Thank you for coming to see us at this time.” But I felt that I was the fortunate one because I was learning so much about the goodness and courage of ordinary people, something which survives even in times of great adversity.
I think this must be the power and the presence of God.

One of my many memories is a recent visit to an orphanage.

Whenever I got close to any of the young children and babies, they started to howl and cry. I don’t know if it was my strange voice, or my white face, or my big nose! Something was frightening them. As I moved on to another room, I saw a little boy sitting on the floor. He was blind. He had lost an eye through cancer and the sight in the other was all but gone. I stretched down to take his hand and as soon as he felt my hand , as if he was on springs, he jumped up and threw his arms around my neck and would not let me go. And that was us for the rest of the afternoon. He was fairly heavy– I don’t know how you women carry children around with you for so long! But he wasn’t really heavy, he was my brother. Later on, I asked myself if that was what God was like with us. We reach out our hand to him; it is often all we can do. When he feels our touch he takes us in is arms and won’t ever let us go no matter how heavy we are. It made me walk tall for the rest of the day.

A precious message taught to me by one of God’s little ones.

So as I return to Scotland I want to say thank you for these last four weeks. I wouldn’t have missed them for the world. I will take your good wishes to all those you have been asking me about; Fr. McAinsh, Fr. Webster and Fr. Maguire and let them know of the love and regard you have for them. Thanks also to my own Redemptorist confreres whose hospitality was so warm and generous. Being here has made me proud to be a Redemptorist.

I promise to pay for you and our country at this time. I trust that the seeds of hope that seem to have appeared this past week will grow and grow until you have the life and the country you desire and deserve. During these days as I prepare to return home, some words written a long time ago by Hilaire Belloc have been in my mind;-From quiet homes and first beginnings Out to undiscovered ends. There’s nothing worth the wear of winning But laughter and the love of friends. Dear friends, thank you for your love and your laughter.

Let us pray for one another,

Fr. Gerry Mulligan C.Ss.R

Back from Overseas

I returned yesterday from a week in Scotland UK, and a week in Maryland USA. I presented at the Formation Workshop for Redemptorist Formators at our monastery in Kinnoul Perth. The Redemptorist workshop was a wonderful opportunity to meet with confreres from the Northern Hemisphere just as the one in Bangkok was my first encoutner with the East and with our confreres of Asia, Oceania and the Pacific. Its always good to be with a bunch of our guys - the Reds are great. We had confreres from the USA, Canada, the UK, Austria, Slovakia, Poland, Ireland, South Africa, and Zimbabwe at the Scotland workshop. I felt sad at the end of the week of my presentation, when I had just about come to know the guys, to have to move on.

In Maryland I was happy to be reunited with the Redemptorist Community that hosted me when I studied at Loyola. Two of the confreres have just been moved; John Hamrogue to Brooklyn NY and John Lavin to Boston MA. I was fortunate to be there in time for their farewell Mass and party in the Caroll Gardens! I was able to spend some time with each of the members of the Annapolis community and to catch up with each of them. I went out for dinner with Jack Kingsbury, Andy Costello and Pat Flynn on both the Sundays that I was there. It was so nice to go through memory lane and to have uproarious laughter about the memorable lighter moments of my stay in the States.

I did get a chance to meet a good number of the faithful of St Mary's Parish Annapolis. Many people seemed as they were when I left last year, and some seemed to have changed much. Many of the young people have become young adults in the space on one year! It was just like madness when i walked into the St Mary's offices on the Saturday morning and there were all those screams and shouts for joy. I felt like a hero returning home! Harry the musician stood up to the occassion and played Pachabel canon for me at one of the Masses! I was tremendously impressed by the interest in and concern for Zimbabwe that the people of St Mary's showed. Because they know me they have followed events here very closely as they unfolded and asked for my safety all the time. It was very reassuring to know that there is that prayerful support for our cause and plight. It is very encouraging to know that we are not alone.

I visited Loyola College in Maryland, my Alma mater. I met some staff and faculty. I had called earlier and scheduled a meeting with the Admissions Officer David Newton and my Clinical Supervisor Dr Danielle LaSure-Bryant. We had a very good time together and they listened to my Zimbabwe stories with much interest. Just being at Loyola brought back many good memories of my stay in the States. I did catch up through the phone with classmates Laura and Hope and Karlyin actually made it to dinner with me.

I visited my friend Booby in the "Hood" of Annapolis (a black neighbourhood). Unfortunately, I was not able to see Booby, but his grandmother and his mother were there. They were both very happy to see "Mr Williams, the fine gentleman from Africa" as they call me. I regret not having had the time to allow them to teach me to eat crabs again. I went to the barbershop where I used to have my hair cut in the Hood, just to check out on the brothers and to "cut-back" (free speech as practised in the barbershops) just a little bit, if you you know what I am saying. Ah, I could have had my hair cut everyday of the week just for the "cutting-back" with brothers.

I also visited my other clinical placement site at the Calvert County Hospital's Crisis Intervention Center. I just walked in announced, like anyone in crisis coming for counselling. Now didn't I make the receptionist, Brenda, nearly faint! She just couldn't believe that it was I who she was seeing before her. It was so good seeing the wonderful counsellors who taught me the ropes of crisis counselling, which is ever so helpful on the Zimbabwean pastoral scene. Cindy who I did children's group with and Christine who trained me to do the intakes and to take the hot line calls, Janet my site supervisor, Paul the specialist for children and Allison one of the senior therapists were all there. Timothy from Kenya who interned at the same time with me and who stayed on was also there. It was a wonderful afternoon with much glorious laughter.

I caught up with some of the Zimbabweans in the Diaspora who were part of my extended community in USA. I drove up to PA to see Moira, Taka and Memory and we had some sadza! I was again just in time before Moira moves on to Canada to join her mother and Taka to Texas next month. I was able to find half a dozen Fanta's to take to Brenda and Thandi's house, as I always did when I visited them. Shingai came to Annapolis and spent the good part of Saturday with me. We went to Rumshead Tavern and had a good happy hour savouring one of Maryland's finest brews, the Copperhead Ale on tap!

The rest of the Zimbos, I was not able to see - you could only fit so much into a week. I did call Reuben and his family in Texas. Noel in North Carolina called everyday and chided me for coming for only a short time. Kuda called me from Connecticut and I was able to talk to him and his parents who are visiting from Zimbabwe.Fungisai called from Virginia and Girley from California, Chiyedza called from PA and Lillian from Texas as word began spreading among the Zimbos that I was in the States. It was nice talking again to these friends from Zimbabwe and to catch up with their life stories. Each of them spoke of the pain of watching their beloved motherland go though such an enormous struggle about which they can only do precious little to help. We shared our helplessness and encouraged each other to hope for a better Zimbabwe.

Most people who I talked to in the States, and in the UK, were worried about my going back to a Zimbabwe whose many dangers I had told. Some were courageous enough to tell me that they thought I was a fool to go back. I did not take offense. I know it is utterly foolish to come back to Zimbabwe having had a chance to go out. Many people in Zimbabwe would pay an arm and a leg to get out of this country now. I really enjoyed my time in the "free world" for those two weeks. I could not possibly abandon Zimbabwe at this time. It would be hard for me to have an appetite and to find sleep if I jumped of this ship now. So I came back. I came back because I believe very strongly that Zimbabwe is where God is calling me to be. This is where I can do the will of God and fulfill my life's mission at this time. I am very grateful that I have the opportunity to leave because that helps me to see things differentlly and with new clarity each time. My short time away has re-energized me and re-enkindled in me the fire that I need to keep burning for Zimbabwe. It was a well deserved break and I am ready to pick up the struggle where I left and continue to share hope with those who live daily in helpless hopelessness.