Friday, April 25, 2014
Holy Mass at St Peter's Tomb in Rome 23 April 2014
Saturday, April 19, 2014
EASTER 2014
Dear
Brothers and Sisters in Christ
This
Easter is a very special one for me and for all the Catholic Bishops of the
Southern African region because we will be meeting Pope Francis in Rome and
will be with him and thousands of Catholic pilgrims during the canonisation
ceremonies of Blessed Pope John XXIII
and Blessed Pope John Paul II. I will also see Fr Andrew Shingange who is
studying in Rome. I will certainly be praying for all of you at the tomb of St
Peter and during our final Mass at the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore I will
be praying for all South Africans in anticipation of the national elections.
This
year, with the help of Fr Emmanuel and the Evangelising Sisters of Mary, we are
renewing our efforts at promoting local vocations to the ordained priesthood
and consecrated religious life among our younger Catholics.We are trying to cultivate
in each parish,families and groups who will pray regularly for local vocations
in accordance with the will of our Risen Lord. While we wait eagerly for Tebogo
Modiba to complete his seminary formation in Pretoria this Easter, we realise
that our two new young seminarians have only just begun their long journey of
formation and studies. However it is with great joy to annouce that Deacon Adrien
Ntwa Ilondo will be ordained a priest on 31 May in his home country in the
Archdiocese of Kinshasa.He will then return to us and begin his priestly ministry
in this diocese. Thanks be to God.
I
encourage you to pray for our young Catholics this Easter so that the Holy
Spirit of Pentecost may stir within their hearts the divine calling to be a
priest or a religious sister or brother. Do not be afraid to identify and pray
for specific young Catholics who you feel may be the very ones God is calling
for such a life and mission.Do not avoid to pray for your own children. The
Holy Rosary is a very powerful form of communal prayer which - if followed with
an interior openess to the action of the Holy Spirit – God does answer. I
encourage you to pray the Holy Rosary this Easter in your family or in family
groups and small Christian communities. Medidate on the Glorious Mysteries and
ask the Lord to bless the Diocese of Tzaneen with local vocations when you pray
the Holy Rosary.
Blessings
of renewed hope and joy during this Easter Season 2014 for all who put their
trust in the Risen Lord Jesus,the conqueror of our sins and the conqueror of our eternal death. Alleluia!
Bishop
Joao Rodrigues
Tzaneen
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