SERRAPOST Date March / April 2014 Martha Kremer Editor 416 444-5403 marthakremer@hotmail.com Editor s Note: Special Serran Vincent DeMarco It seems we have been living with a very special person. For many of us in Toronto Downtown Serra, who haven t been members for that long, Vince was a quiet, smiling presence at our meetings, accompanied by his faithful friend, Diana Novak. Oh, yes, we had learned that he was the world s longest serving Serran (62 years) when he was presented with a plaque by then- President Anne MacCarthy at the Serra Canada Fall Conference held at St. Bonaventure Parish in September, 2012. As Mario Biscardi reminded us, shortly after Vince s death on February 21 st, he was the only living Charter Member of the Serra Club of Toronto (now known as the Serra Club of Toronto Downtown). An article in the Catholic Register (March 16, 2014, p.5), gives us a larger picture of Vince, his love of the Church, his generosity to Catholic charitable organizations such as Canadian Food for Children, his love of his family, and his friends, which included many priests and bishops. Jim Meyer, in the September 2012 issue of Serrapost, tells us he held most of the positions in the club. Jim also told me he remembered with great fondness his trip with Vince to the 63 rd Serra Convention in Bangkok in 2005. Vince didn t miss a dance with any of the ladies present. God grant that we see you again, Vince. Vincent De Marco Receiving plaque as longest serving member from Anne MacCarthy, at Serra Fall Conference 2012 Speaker s Report: Snow Day! February 3 turned out to be a Snow Day! Fr. Damian McPherson could not make it for the scheduled talk because of the extreme weather, so Kevin, a Basilian novice, kindly volunteered to talk about his vocational story. It turned out to be quite a story.
Snow Day Continued: Kevin grew up in Rochester, N.Y. He taught high school there and in California where he lived for many years. While he was on a sort of sabbatical leave in Rome, his father became seriously ill. While praying at the altar of St. Joseph at the Vatican, Kevin heard a voice in his heart telling him to move back to Rochester because his family needed him. He did, and also enrolled in a Masters program in theology. His father stabilized but began a long, slow decline, dying nearly 5 years later. Kevin feels it was a time of grace to have accompanied his dad at the end of life s journey. While working on his degree Kevin found himself working volunteering in the parish he grew up in, and enjoyed it thoroughly. His parish was to be amalgamated with others to form a new, larger parish, and while preparing the altar for the church s final mass he again heard a voice in his heart saying, Kevin, you won t be able to say your first mass here. Although he discerned priesthood when he was younger, that was the first time a vocation to the priesthood had entered his mind in nearly 20 years! After completing his Masters degree he was hired in another parish in lay ecclesial ministry as a Pastoral Associate. Kevin is an enthusiastic supporter of the idea of lay pastoral ministry, but emphasized that it should not be thought of as in any way in competition with the ordained ministry. Lay ministers, he said, should not think of themselves as replacing priests in the future of the Church but will be co-workers in the vineyard, a term used by the US Conference of Catholic Bishops. The parishioners in his parish encouraged and invited him to consider ordained ministry. The voice in his heart was affirmed by the voice coming from God s people in his parish. He was faced with discerning between diocesan priesthood or joining a religious order. He was in touch with the Basilian Fathers, whom he had met in high school and whose apostolic work matched what Kevin had already done: education and parish work. When he received a scholarship to attend the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago, the Basilian superior urged him to accept it. He studied in Chicago where he completed his Doctor of Ministry degree with a concentration in liturgy. His doctoral research combined his interest in church buildings/worship space with his interest in the process of amalgamating parishes, which is taking place in parts of the United States and Canada as the Catholic population shifts and dioceses deal with the reality of fewer priests to staff parishes. He entered novitiate with the Basilian Fathers here in Toronto in July and, God willing, will take first vows with them this summer. Kevin, seated next to Anne MacCarthy at December 14, 2013 Christmas Party.
Chaplain s Reflection: By Father Eric Rodrigues It is important that Lent be a time of repentance and conversion, so that our sacrifices and penances during this time lead to a genuine change of heart. There is always the danger of letting these 40 days of Lent simply be an isolated time of year that is, we spend the weeks of Lent doing certain spiritual practices and giving up certain things, but then once Easter comes around, we go back to our usual way of living. What good is it to give up chocolate for 40 days, only to return to eating chocolate after Easter, with no real change in behaviour? Better to choose a Lenten practice that will result in a permanent change of heart when Easter arrives. For Our Lord, Easter was a Resurrection not a resuscitation! In other words, Jesus rose to a NEW LIFE, a glorious life; He did not simply resuscitate and begin living the way He was before. After Easter, His disciples often did not recognize Him we should aim for this during the period of Lent. After Easter, we should be different, perhaps even so much so that people do not recognize us any more (in a good way, of course!). New Life: Only those who recognize Our President, Kathleen, and her husband John are now the proud grandparents of Elizabeth Marie, born February 2014. their own fragility and limits can build fraternal relations and solidarity in the Church and in society Pope Francis Coming Events: April 9: Fr. Damian MacPherson, SA, Office of Ecumenical and Interfaith Affairs, Archdiocese of Toronto Topic: Is there salvation outside the Church? April 14, 6:30 p.m.: Invitation from Serra Club of Toronto West: Father Mark Miller, End of Life Issues At Club meeting, Banquet Room of Canadiana Restaurant, 5230 Dundas St. W., Toronto, M9B 1A8 To Register, contact Irene Skinner Bain, 905-451-8238, Isisbain675@gmail.com. $25 cost. Mass and Dinner included. May 31: Serra District Spring Conference: Faith, Family and Vocations Saturday, May 31, 2014 at St. Joseph Mother House (574 Northcliffe Ave., Dundas, Ontario). We will be joined by our Episcopal Advisor, Bishop Gary Gordon, and our keynote speaker will be Fr. Thomas Rosica. To register, contact jaweber2001@yahoo.ca. Cost, including all meals and evening banquet, with wine, $75.00.
July 10 July 13: The 72 nd Serra International Convention To be held at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Sacramento, California ($129.00 per night) (Airport Super Shuttle: $11/trip) All Masses to be celebrated in the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament. Register before April 15 th to receive Early Bird convention fees of $300 ($400) Registration includes access to all Convention Events, including the Opening Reception, the Awards Lunch, and the Annual Banquet on Saturday evening. Tour the local area with fellow Serrans after the convention. Contact jliston@serra.org for more details. Ordinandi Dinner 2014 From notes of Dane MacCarthy Threatening weather as the evening of March 4 approached did not keep over 1500 people from attending the 24 th Annual Ordinandi Dinner, held at the Pearson Convention Centre in Brampton. Truly an inspirational night, according to our President, Kathleen Ancker. A smaller number of Donwtown Serrans than usual attended the dinner this year. Teresa Defrenza brought a number of guests. Also at the Serra Downtown tables were Steve and Sylvia Ponesse, John and Kathleen Ancker, Dane and Anne MacCarthy, John Grant, as well as Kevin Mannara, Basilian novice, Carmel and her guest, Fr. Ignatio and a young parishioner. Also spotted throughout the crowd were Paul Crawford, Christian Elia and Neil MacCarthy, who served as the Master of Ceremonies. A Day program, organized for the youth, saw some 700 high school students in attendance experiencing a session led by the Office of Catholic Youth and featuring witness talks by the 7 Ordinandi as well as religious sisters, including some Sisters of Life. Of course, the stars of the evening were the 7 young men, ages 28 to 37: Scott Birchall, 32, to be ordained as a priest for the Archdiocese of Toronto, Neiman D Souza, 31, Toronto, Omar Alejandro Daza Hernandez, 32, Toronto, John Perdue, 28, Peterborough, Michael Simoes, 29, Toronto, Marijan Sisko, 37, Toronto, and Dave Walter, 36, Hamilton. Of the 5 Ordinandi to be ordained for the Toronto Archdiocese, 2 had spoken to our club previously, Michael Simoes and Scott Birchall. It was especially touching to see and hear the support of these young men from their parish contingents as well as their Moms, who were invited to the head table and presented with bouquets. Two of the Ordinandi had journeyed in their faith through the Lay Movement The NeoCatecumenal Way. Two also mentioned Fr. Liborio Amaral, former Director of Serra House, as a mentor. The crowd was also introduced to the incoming rector of Serra House, Fr. Chris Lemieux, who will be succeeding Fr. Hansoo Park. Let us continue to pray for the Ordinandi and all those discerning their vocation. Ordinations in Toronto will take place in May. Our Lenten Holy Hour By Carmel Hayes On Wednesday, March 19, the Feast of St. Joseph, mass was celebrated at St. Basil's Church by our chaplain, Father Eric Rodrigues. He gave an uplifting and memorable homily which embraced the holiness and merits of St. Joseph. He said that St. Teresa of Calcutta suggested that we should pray to St. Joseph to protect our holiness just as St. Joseph was asked to provide protection for the Child Jesus and Mary when they had to flee from Herod to Egypt. St. Teresa said that if you want to become holy then you must pray to St. Joseph for that holiness. Mass was followed by the Way of the Cross, led by Kevin a Basilian novice. The Way of the Cross and Meditations were written and arranged for congregational prayer by Pope Benedict. At 1:30 p.m. Serrans then retired to Brennan Hall for a "silent" lunch (monastic way), accompanied by Gregorian chant. At 2 p.m. we returned to church with Father Eric for a Holy Hour. Although our group was small, we were joined by a few St. Basil's parishioners who also participated in the Adoration of Our Lord. At 3 p.m. the Holy hour concluded. The experience was holy and worshipful and provided the recollection and guidance that we, as sinners, need as we move through our Lenten journey.
FNE, A Positive Catholic Response to Negative Modern Youth Values On February 19, we were treated to a talk by Paul Ritchie, Founder and General Commissioner for the Federation of North- American Explorers, a Catholic faith youth movement new to North America but well established in Europe as the International Union of Guides and Scouts of Europe. Paul is passionate about his faith as he strives to bring youth closer to Christ. Paul opened by saying that his talk might appear unorthodox as he brought to us the true ideals and values of FNE. This movement is of interest to Serra as it encourages vocations to the priesthood and religious life. Modern society, with its changing values and non-stop noise competing for our attention, makes it hard to hear the loving and gentle voice of our Lord. Society promotes human respect and human values, seeing the 10 Commandments of our Creator as not relevant or simply tolerated as private belief. Paul made reference to the Bible: Woe unto them that call evil good and good evil. Is it any wonder that those called to vocation do not hear the call or recognize it for what it is? Of if they do hear the call, find the courage and trust to say yes? FNE can help make a difference that will help support the cause of vocations. This effort needs to start in the formational years of a young person which will help guide the person to make wise, Christ-centered choices from childhood. Paul showed us the many ways in which FNE counters modern society s false allurements. In contrast to negative role models and peer pressure in areas such as smoking, drugs, pornography, gangs, FNE develops positive youth role models, such as the patrol chief and youth leaders. With the FNE youth leaders, core values of our faith are woven into the program, in co-operation with and the support of parents. Also, through mentorship, each child is guided to their full potential. FNE stresses the importance of hard work and perseverance, counteracting today s culture of instant gratification. Also, FNE encourages working together for mutual and shared success. Important words which resonated through his talk were responsibility, trust, sharing, team effort, sacrifice. Important to the FNE movement is the Explorer promise, which reflects character and personal honour: On my honour, with God s grace, I promise to do my best to serve God, my Church, my country, to help others at all times, and to obey the Explorer Law. FNE offers rich experiences in the outdoors. Paul recalled waking up in the middle of nowhere in the wilderness without a single man-made noise or movement. Here you can see the beauty of nature, contemplate life and the greatness of our Creator. Paul was most enthusiastic in his narrating how the Catholic faith is passed on to youth. One thing in particular stood out: Eucharistic Adoration. Nine year old boys and girls spent two hours in shifts one weekend in June, from midnight to six a.m. at Blessed Trinity Parish. They really enjoy that and have some incredible personal experiences. Once, while on a hike, they were near St. Pascal Baylon, where there is 24/7 Adoration, so they went into the small chapel at the back for 20 minutes, and one of the boys, Thomas, 9 years old, was crying and crying. When Paul asked what was wrong, he answered, Jesus just showed me how much he loved me and I am so happy. Paul summed up his talk by saying that the FNE movement not only helps shape the Christ-centered child, it also actively encourages vocations for those who may be called. Two of the local Explorers are doing exceptionally well in Junior Seminary in the States. Other boys have indicated an interest in the priesthood. In France, the single greatest source of priests is this movement. Photo of Paul Ritchie and Jo-Anne Sheehy with FNE calendar which Paul distributed to all Downtown Serrans present at the Feb. 19 meeting