Provincial preaches mission in Newfoundland...
The Province of Edmonton-Toronto in Canada is so vast that it covers six time zones from east to west. The most easterly community of Redemptorists, who live in Newfoundland, are nearer to London and Dublin than they are to Edmonton or Vancouver within the Province.
At present, the Redemptorists are a resource for the capital city of Newfoundland, St. John’s, and are also responsible for the large parish of St. Theresa which is staffed by three Redemptorists assisted by a Religious Sister and helped by several lay associates and a dedicated group of parishioners . The parish priest, Fr. Leo English is aided by Fr. Tony Bidgood and also Fr. Roy Kandathiparampil who is on loan from the Province of Liguori in India.
Newfoundland has suffered in terms of the Faith. Prolonged and public trials in terms of clerical sexual abuse have rocked the island and left many people dispirited. The atmosphere is now very secular, and education has been moved from the Church authorities to that of the government.
A decision to hold a Parish Mission was made in consultation with the parish council, and Fr. Ronnie McAinsh, Provincial of the London Province, was invited to conduct it over four days. Months of preparation went into advertising this event and posters were to be seen in many locations in the city as well as the parish.
Fr. Ronnie preached at the four Sunday Masses and opened the Mission that evening at which – to his joy and amazement – every seat in the large church was taken. The church seats over 800 comfortably.
During the days of preaching, the numbers continued to grow, and the Mission which was held in the morning and in the evening, proved to be a highly significant event in the life of the parish. The topics covered ranged from the call to Christian life in Baptism, Healing, Reconciliation, Marriage, Human Sexuality and our Life of Faith.
A Reconciliation Service was held at which the Archbishop participated and presided, and nine priests were available for the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Indeed the Archbishop spoke most touchingly of the power of the Redemptorist mission.
Although the mission was held during Lent, in the month of March, the temperature never rose above -3 degree, and indeed was often in the – 20s at nights. Despite this cold, the faithful turned up in huge numbers. One evening the mission had to be cancelled because of a severe blizzard. However, the people arrived the following morning despite the huge mounds of snow, and participated fully in the Mission. And Fr. Ronnie stayed on for an extra day to offer the missing mission service!
A striking feature of the time spent in St. John’s was the meeting with the Redemptorist Lay Associates. They meet monthly with the Redemptorists and offer practical and prayer support. One Lay Missionary of the Most Holy Redeemer, Anne Walsh who attended the General Chapter of 2009 was also present each evening. Fr. Ronnie has invited her to visit the London Province with a view to assisting in the formal establishment of Associates, as recommended in their recent Visitation report.
The Redemptorist spirit was very evident in the community. The three resident Redemptorists and the Missioner represented three of the Conferences of the Congregation, and reminded us of the internationality of the Redemptorists. A follow up is envisaged at some stage. However, the work of the Spirit has to settle first. Certainly the spirit of St. Alphonsus was with the four confreres and the people of the parish and the city during these grace filled days.
