On the Road Again

Fr. Vic Subb and I are traveling the back roads of Kenya these days. Now that the ordinations are over, we are taking advantage of being in Kenya and visiting the homes of all our current students. We are moving up country, passing through Kisumu and Bungoma for those who are following along on their maps at home... Just crossed the equator! Hope you saw Fr. Neil and my picture from this spot on the back issue of the current Glenmary Challenge magazine.

Want to say thanks to everyone for their wonderful hospitality, "Asante Sana" as they say over here.

"Country Roads" of Kenya

Here is a brief video clip from a trip we made to Kenya a few months ago. Fr. Thomas from near Kisii Kenya says, "I know the USA culture," as he bursts into a version of "Country Roads" while driving us in his pickup truck along a bumpy dirt road in Kenya. - I still can't believe this video hasn't gone viral yet!

We will be in Kenya until July 9th

ORDINATION

Congratulations to Crispine Adongo and Aaron Wessman who were both ordained transitional deacons this morning in Crispine's home parish in Ulanda Kenya.

I hope to add some pictures from the ordination and updates from the rest of the trip... soon

We will be in Kenya until July 9th.

Kenya

Fr. Vic Subb and I are on our way to Kenya! This coming Saturday - June 25th, Crispine Adongo and Aaron Wessman both of whom just took their final oath with Glenmary, will be ordained transitional deacons in Crispine's home parish in Ulanda, Kenya in the diocese of Homa Bay. Should be a great celebration!

After the ordination, Fr. Vic and I will be visiting the families of all our current students who are studying with Glenmary. This means a lot of traveling around Kenya but who better to travel with than "Fr Tour Guide" Vic Subb.

Being on the other side of the globe also means it may be difficult to update the blog on a regular basis. I hope to send back some details when I can, so keep checking back. If not I will try to get all the details down after we return to the U.S. on July 9th.

Community of Missioners

The Glenmary Home Missioners of America is a covenanted community of Catholic Missioners priests and brothers. Together with students and co-missioners, we proclaim with enthusiasm the Reign of God by bringing the presence of the Catholic Church to the rural, mission areas of the United States of America.

As a community of Missioners we desire to learn, to model, and to teach the love of Jesus by working in collaboration with other Christians.

Inspired by the Holy Spirit and nourished by the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the Eucharist, we minister through Word, Sacrament, prayer and service.

Our mission is witnessing to, as well as experience, love, justice, peace unity, reconciliation and hope with all the people we serve.

Our commitment to God, to mission and to one another is the foundation, which calls, forms, unites and sends us.

How Glenmary Chapter has Changed

I General Chapter

GLENMARY HOME MISSIONERS

XV General Chapter

GLENMARY HOME MISSIONERS

Glenmary Chapter

Work on the Glenmary Chapter has continued on a steady and good pace. Today we have been discussing theological issues such as "Mission as Prophetic Dialogue." Other issues of importance such as money, evangelization, ecumenism, communication, multiculturalism and a whole lot more have been brought to the floor. It has been a a very productive day and most of the committees looking at these issues received feedback which will go back to the committees and re-writes of some of these proposals will reemerge tomorrow or the next day. I am always impressed at how Glenmarians can disagree on a such a critical issue in a passionate way and then moments later sit down and have lunch together. That is what community is about. We are a "Band of Brothers" as our president said in his opening homily the other day.

Glenmary's Newly Elected Council

Glenmary has elected the following men to our Executive Council.

President - Rev. Chester Artysiewicz

First Vice President - Rev. Pezzulo

Second Vice President - Br. Jack Henn

We Have a President!

Glenmary Home Missioners have elected Rev. Chester Artysiewicz to serve as the 10th leader of our Missionary Society. Please pray for him as he will be installed into this office Saturday and lead us for the next four years.

Rev. William Howard Bishop

Rev. William Howard Bishop, founder of the Glenmary Home Missioners, passed away 58 years ago tomorrow. Since I hope to use tomorrow's blog to update everyone on the election our new president, I decided to upload these quotes and photos a day early as a memorial of Fr. Bishop.

Memories about Fr. Bishop by Glenmarians can be found on our website glenmary.org

“There was never a time when missionary activity was more needed in our beloved land than it is today.”

"A flower is small, like the small, isolated groups that we minister to, like the little children. So small a flower is easily overlooked on the roadside. You hardly see it as you pass by. But pick it up and examine it; it becomes a thing of beauty; so, too, the country parish and the country child."

“Our work is to go into the forgotten and neglected places, the no priest land, the no-Catholic land of America to accept as bases of operation the little border-line parishes that nobody wants and from them to build up little outposts and parishes where now no hope of them exists.”

Fr. Bishop at the ground breaking of the Our Lady of the Fields Seminary

Fr. Bishop in his garden

Fr. Bishop at a May Crowning ceremony

Fr. Bishop at an Oath Ceremony for new members

Fr. Bishop on a motorcycle!

The Challenge

Why was Glenmary Home Missioners founded? Below is a copy of the original map drawn by Fr. William Howard Bishop, founder of Glenmary, showing "No Priest-land USA."
Saturday, June 11, 1953 is the anniversary of our Rev. Bishop's death but I hope to have an updated blog announcing Glenmary's new president on Saturday June 11, 2011. Therefore, I will upload pictures of Rev. William Howard Bishop a day earlier on Friday's blog.

Glenmary continues the mission of our founder by serving in nearly 40 different missions in Appalachia and the deep south. Rev. Bishop's map (above) is 75 years old but the "Challenge" to share the Good News in rural USA continues... Today in 2011, almost 60 years after Fr. Bishop's death there are still vast areas of the United States which can be considered Mission-Land. These are places where the Catholic Church is not yet present.
Glenmary will be moving into new missions in Tennessee later this year, places which have never had a Catholic church! You can read more information about the new missions on our website - http://www.glenmary.org/newmissions/

First Oath and Oath Renewal

Clive Otieno

Levis Kuwa

Final Oath Videos

Aaron Wessman

Crispine Adongo

Craig Digmann

Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord

Guest blogger today is Fr. William H. Bishop.
In preparations of our upcoming Chapter, I have been reading from the writings of Glenmary's founder, Fr Bishop. Today I offer to share with my readers some of his words about the feast of the Ascension which he wrote in 1952.

The feast of the Ascension is a glorious event of Christ's life. The world knew little about heaven at that time. We know little of it now. Some say that Catholic Schools teach only about heaven. A Dr. Fisher once said that it would be a very short course. (Because we know so little about it.) We know much more now than the peoples of the Old Testament. We know it from Christ's preaching, His doctrines, His miracles which confirmed His word. He made men love Heaven by His amiable personality. He made them feel that He was a sample of what heaven would be. Hence they desired it. He purchased heaven for us. Christ proved by his His Resurrection that His death, instead of a defeat, was a victory. He appeared at least 10 times after the Resurrection; then on Mt. Olivet, He raises His hands in blessing, and ascends into Heaven. The angels question the Apostles, and assures them that Christ would come again.

Why were the Apostles the witnesses of the Ascension? So that they would keep Him and heaven as the center of their thoughts.

Summer Mission Experience

Students have been hanging out at Glenmary headquarters for about a week now. It has been great excitement for everyone - among other things having the extra workers to help with the odd-jobs around the place. They have also had a chance to visit with the other members passing through headquarters at this time and spend some time with our senior members. Yesterday we had a a special blessing at the end of Mass for those students who are now leaving for their summer mission assignment. "Summer Mission Experience" or "Summer Mission Excitement" as I mistakenly called it at the end of Mass yesterday, is a grand tradition which dates back to the founding of Glenmary. All Glenmary members have had the experience of going out for a two to three month stint during their summer breaks from school. It has been a joy this week to hear the senior members living at headquarters share stories from their mission experiences with the students preparing to go out this summer. Fr. Jim Kelly who is 94 years old, still has strong memories from his experience and could practically recite his daily schedule while he was in the Georgia missions over 70 years ago. As another member has said "it was the summer mission experiences, being with the people, that sustained and motivated me when I returned to school."

Glenmary's aspirants, Paul Cottingham, Jerry Wilkerson and Juan Pablo Santos will have "Exciting" times this summer in the missions in Kentucky, Georgia, Mississippi and Arkansas.

Glenmary Chapter

Please continue to pray for Glenmary as we prepare for our 15th General Chapter.

Loving Father, As Glenmary prepares for its 15th General Chapter, grant them vision and inspiration to better serve your people in the mission areas of the United States.

You are the Vine Grower. In your wisdom and love, we pray that you will take away every branch that does not bear fruit and prune all other branches so that they may bear even more fruit.

Lord Jesus Christ, You are the true vine and we are the branches. Apart from you we can do nothing. But in union with you and your love, whatever we ask for will be done.

I humbly beg you, therefore, to allow Glenmary's 15th General Chapter to bear fruit so that those in even the most forgotten and neglected areas of the United States might be fed at your Eucharistic table.

Holy Spirit, You open the heart and the mind to the Vine Grower's call. You make effective every impetus toward good, toward truth and toward charity. Bring to completion the joy of Jesus in these missioners so that their love may be made manifest to all.

Father, Son and Spirit, Receive with kindness these prayers for Glenmary's 15th Chapter. Grant its participants zeal, generosity and unity to help them remain faithful to the Gospel and the Mission in which they share.

Amen.

Glenmary Chapter

Glenmary Home Missioners will be gathering for the next two weeks for meetings called our 15th General Chapter. What is a "General Chapter?" It is the authoritative, legislative body of Glenmary which elects our leadership and sets the course for our missionary efforts for the next four years. Our theme for this Chapter is"A Community of Missioners" which reflects who we are and will hopefully guide us as we pray and make decisions which will set the course for us and the missions over the next four years. The following quotes from our Glenmary Constitution the describes some of the functions of the General Chapter:

"Once every four years, at a time specified in the Directory, the General Chapter shall convene with full competence over all matters including the constitutional law of the Society without prejudice, however, to the general law of the Church requiring permissions and approvals for certain matters. The Constitution may be changed by two-thirds vote of the Chapter,

with the approval of the Holy See."

"The General Chapter will be a Chapter of the Whole composed of all members under perpetual oath. Members under temporary oath, novices, students and invited consultants will participate in discussions but without voting privileges. The quorum for Chapter meetings is a majority of those with a right to attend."

"At the Chapter of Elections, which begins the General

Chapter, all members of the Society under perpetual oath

will elect the President and the two Vice Presidents. The

process shall be prayerful and provide time for dialogue

between the potential officers and the Society as well as

among the members themselves. A majority is required for

election to each of these offices. Voting continues, without

limit as to the number of ballots, until one person receives

a majority."